23andCounting

That's hilarious. I'd love to see Izzo get one more title before he retires. I've never heard a bad word about the guy. One head coach personally told me that the difference in character between Izzo and Crean is night and day. Also heard good things about him from a local business person and a massive Notre Dame donor who knew him personally.

When a player goes over the border, this Irish fan doesn't care one way or another if he ever returns. Just sayin. Secondary will be stocked. I wonder how Brandon Logan is progressing. They were very optimistic about him coming in. He must be pretty excited to play football, otherwise, I'm sure he would have stuck with his commitment to play baseball at Vanderbilt.

Honestly, if South Bend is anything like Fort Wayne, I have a hard time believing anything they say. Sorry, had some dishonest run-ins with the media in the past. Glad to hear that Freeman was the bigger man in this situation and walked away. The little guy will have a story to tell his friends. A win/win.

Hmmmm, my traffic violations count is pushing 15 I believe. Anyways.......... I can't imagine, seeing how Marcus Freeman conducts himself as the coach of Notre Dame, that anyone took this thing remotely serious. Sounds like you have have a hot head who wants to be in the headlines and potentially an easy payday. There are some stupid coaches out there that may compromise themselves in a situation like that, but Freeman isn't one of them.

Pretty sure that was meant to be a joke. In the real poll, Indiana will be #1, Ohio State and Oregon top five, and ND top seven. Pretty sure even ESPN is on board with the SEC taking a back seat to the B1G.

That's not what I asked. Although I disagree. I'm not taking away from IU right now. They are a team of destiny. I asked if it would have been sweeter had they gone through Notre Dame.

Honest question for the IU die hards. No right or wrong answer. Indiana has taken a back seat to Notre Dame in football for 137 years. Would this year have been just a little sweeter had they gone through the Irish to get here?

It truly is a bizarre world that we live in.

Best program in the state of Indiana. Good for him, he's earned that title. I do say that loosely though, as there are some pretty good programs out there.

That's kind of the beauty of Notre Dame. Kids still go there for the education. Everyone wants to hate Notre Dame for opting out of a bowl game. But no one wants to like them for being one of the few football programs where kids also come for the education. Fans have their priorities screwed up.

I'm struggling with that. Purdue is all we have left in terms of basketball. Indiana, Butler, and Notre Dame have fallen to average status. In football you have Notre Dame and IU, two of the best programs in the country. Marian and St. Francis have had recent success at the NAIA level. Indianapolis high schools more than hold their own against teams from Cincinnati. Dwenger took care of business against a traditional power out of Toledo last season.

Agree. I think Cignetti is proving that coaching trumps everything else. This thread was inspired by an article I read on ESPN where the writer felt like more and more southeastern talent is being spread around the country due to the NIL and the transfer portal. Kind of a "they are stealing our kids" kind of thing. I too think that there is a lot of talent from California, Texas, Ohio, and Pennsylvania that matches up just fine with the southeast. Wow, didn't think of that. Thanks for the education.

ESPN cites the portal and NIL as the main factors in the rise of the Big Ten and the fall of the SEC. While that's probably true, they also cite that their programs were built on good local talent that is now being dispersed to other parts of the country. Basically saying their talent is being stolen without saying "our talent is being stolen." The question for me becomes: Is a kid who is born in the Southeast somehow a better football player than a kid who is born in the Northwest or the Northeast? There was a time when USC ruled the roost. It's called coaching and building a program, which the SEC did a good job of. Within the rules set forth for all programs to follow? Speculation says that the SEC bent the rules more than most, hence the rise of their conference. I feel like Suburban Indy is a good case in point. They are the SEC of Indiana, or at least what the SEC was a few years ago. Is it because they have better talent in Central Indiana? Of course not, a kid in Indy isn't taller, stronger, or faster than a kid anywhere else. It's simply because they hire good coaches and and build good programs in the process. The SEC has done that, and some say, with the help of some "extra" incentives given to their players that most colleges around the country weren't privy to as not to bend the rules. Long story short. Are players from the Southwest being highjacked from them? I was just looking at IU's roster. They do have their fair share of players from the Southeast, but it looks like the majority are from the Midwest. Anyone care to do Ohio State? Georgia? How many of Georgia's key players are NOT from the Southeast. Maybe I'm in denial, but just like basketball (this isn't the 70's anymore), there's good football talent at every corner of the country and much more in between.

I wouldn't necessarily call for the death of Notre Dame viewership. In 2022 and 2023 they had the #5 most viewed games. Didn't make the top ten in 2024, but came in at #8 in 2025. So let's not pretend Notre Dame doesn't garner national interest. Strength of schedule hasn't done the Irish any favors in the department as of late. At the end of the day, programs like Ohio State, Alabama, and Georgia have more marquee games than ND does through the course of the season.

They may have less leverage in 2028 than they did in 2023, but a large piece of the pie will still be willing to schedule the Irish. They may miss out on an Alabama, and LSU, or a USC, but that's just a small piece of the pie. Cignetti has balls that most programs don't possess. I doubt he'd turn down Notre Dame if they came calling. I don't see any teams in the ACC or Big 12 saying "no." Those programs need a team like Notre Dame to boost their resume.

Whatever, you do you.

I don't typically judge someone for being ignorant. Probably has something to do with upbringing. Not everyone grew up in Disneyland. If I understand what you're trying to say, that's all that matters.

Not going to debate that with you. IU's resume is good. Just saying Notre Dame would have had a chance, just as Penn State, Iowa, and Ohio State did.

Not saying it's fact at all, just saying that I think Notre Dame would have beaten Oklahoma by 14 in Norman then would have given IU one hell of a game. I'm with film expert Brooks Austin out of Georgia in that Notre Dame was Top 3, right behind IU and Ohio State. They were a complete team. Great defense, best run game in the country, great offensive line, very good passing attack. Good special teams. Not very many weaknesses. But hey, this is the year of the Hoosier. Congrats, and enjoy the dynasty that's in it's early stages. It'll be very hard to say Notre Dame is better than IU moving forward. Notre Dame has a Top 5 coach in my opinion. But the gap between the best coach and everyone else is wide. Indiana is the new Alabama and no one will get in the way of that.

The whining was justified. Not so sure your Hoosiers would have beaten them last weekend.

I'll give you that, I respect your opinion. But rankings are just for fun. I still think this team could have won it all.

I'm just a fan, what I think doesn't matter. I love Notre Dame and what the University stand for. I trust the administrators to make the right decision. It's my hope that the Irish remain independent. I've always had a soft spot for the outliers, and in this case, it's my favorite team. So yeah, I kind of enjoy "us against the world" and all the bitching toward us that comes with it.

Thanks for the correction. But yeah, have a tournament for the Division 1 programs who aren't Power Four. Ball State for example. A kid that goes there has NO chance at any kind of a national title. But Saint Francis (Fort Wayne) does because there is a tournament that caters to teams in their weight class. MAC schools are just punching bags for Power 4 programs and something needs to be done.

Good read @Bobref. Thanks for that. I'm a traditionalist, so as long as Notre Dame opts to keep their independence, I stand by them 100%. If they decide to join a conference, I trust that the administrators did their due diligence, therefore I'd stand by their decision in doing so.

That's basically what the Group of 5 are for the Power 4 programs. Even some Big 12 and ACC programs are farm clubs for the Big 10 and the SEC. NIL and the transfer portal has turned college football into a clown show. Iowa State (hypothetical) finds a gem that no one else wanted. That player successfully works his way through the program only to end his career at an Indiana, Alabama, or an Ohio State. All the more reason to let the Group of 5 have their own tournament. I think it's a certainty within five years.