fr. jenkins' approach: go with the option that produces the most money. it's all about the money.

legendary independence is great and n.d. is the poster child for it. it produces controversy; it produces flexibility; it produces myth; it produces national appeal and exposure. joining a conference will ultimately be regionally confining - neutral football aficionados on the left coast would watch reruns of "the view" instead of an all-acc national championship game. but if n.d. were still independent, the same acc-n.d. match-up would get viewers who would be there to root against our haughty and aloof little selves. joining a conference would make us just another tree; right now we are our own whole forest.

otoh, there is safety in numbers. right now n.d. has to fight a political battle as well as go virtually undefeated to get into the playoff picture. as a p5 conference champion, it would almost be a lock - especially if they increase the number of teams to 6 or 8. in hard times a conference acts like a mother hen (a role the acc is basically playing with us right now). there is guaranteed money in a conference where there is not as an independent - although n.d. does well producing money, let me tell you.

maybe they should subscribe to a 5-year trial run as a full member of the acc. analyze the pros and cons and come to a mutually acceptable arrangement. include tv. the whole argument is not moot. it should have resolution.