ESPN insiders share how USC, UCLA decision to join Big Ten could impact Notre Dame's future

As news broke about USC and UCLA potentially deciding to leave the Pac-12 for the Big Ten, the question turned to what it would mean for Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish have firmly tried to maintain their independent status, but recent developments might impact that.

ESPN insiders Pete Thamel and Heather Dinich discussed how Notre Dame fits into the conference realignment equation. Thamel joined The Paul Finebaum Show and said a potential decision could come down to the College Football Playoff — and whether the Fighting Irish can still make it as the SEC and Big Ten expand at the current rate.

“Notre Dame is going to follow Playoff access,” Thamel said. “And I think that’s one of the reasons why Jack Swarbrick was one of the linchpins of the administrators who put together the 12-team playoff and he was as disappointed as Greg Sankey was and others that it didn’t end up happening. The reasons for it not happening, honestly, when you look back and say, ‘Oh, the environment’s too hectic, we need to get things fixed. We need to calm them down.’

“Well, it was a brush fire then and it’s a raging inferno now and it’s naive to think that we’re ever really going to really have NIL in some contained space and there’s going to be some legitimate type of NCAA enforcement. Market forces are driving the world and it’s driving away from the smaller revenue leagues right now.”

What it would take for Notre Dame to join a conference

Dinich provided some context about Notre Dame’s standing in the ACC, which it plays nearly every sport except football. The Fighting Irish played in the league during the COVID-19-impacted 2020 season and made the conference championship game, but went back to their independent status last year.

“A source told me that if Notre Dame were to withdraw from the ACC, it can play football wherever it wants,” Dinich tweeted. “It would have to pay exit fee and grant of rights fees for its other sports.”

Notre Dame finished No. 5 in the final CFP rankings last season after going 11-1 overall in the regular season. The Fighting Irish fell to Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Day.