They are the king makers. They determine the Heisman. They influence the CFP playoff committee. They influence recruiting. They can either hype you up or ignore you. Notre Dame has stayed relevant, but not easily, and with the help of a 12-0 season which cannot be expected to occur every year.
Meanwhile, we are associated with a 2nd rate sports network who makes little effort to boost us as their product.
We have an antiquated financial contract based on “good feelings and gentlemanly understandings” between long time partners.
I heard an ESPNU talking head acknowledge to a caller that when it comes to not talking about ND very much, “I admit it. We are encouraged to push certain teams, and hey...it’s a business”. And Notre Dame is the their rivals’ product. But they (ESPN and Disney) dominate the market.
It’s time to see what kind of deal we can command from a sports network willing to aggressively push us as their product and allow us to retain our independence.
Edits due to iPad & autocorrect errors - sorry.
The future is impossible to predict
Notre Dame brings the eyeballs, period. We could sign w/ QVC .... it wouldn't matter. When ND goes on the road, the average ticket price goes up nearly 100%, far outpacing every other visiting team.
The SEC is in the midst of a multi-year deal w/ CBS and they have done just fine.
As far as the financials, I don't understand why anyone would care, particularly when viewed in context of ND's endowment.
....and NBC has not been a good steward of,our,program wrt advertising and promotion. Even if they tried harder, they lack the resources and platforms to push ND as Disney could.
in their football programs than even Oregon, Clemson, and Alabama.
It's a given that the admin won't allow spending anywhere near the levels that other programs will be doing, but increased revenue will allow for more spending on things like traveling for coaches to see recruits.
Depending on the source, ND is usually amongst the top ten in college football revenue. The football program generates plenty. When we need money for whatever - such as the new indoor facility - we have no problems getting such things funded.
Whether we could get an incremental amount more by leaving NBC is really not important.
You're right in that the football program generates more than enough to fund anything it needs or wants, but the administration won't fund things like Texas or Texas A&M do.
Anything the football program needs or wants it has the revenue to fund from football revenue, the issue is that the Admin won't allow football factory type spending. So anything new the football program needs that other programs are doing, Swarbrick has to dial it back a level, then pitch it as something that has benefits for every other program/group on campus. The problem lately has been that as soon as they have something, it's already out of date in the football arms war. That indoor facility has been an issue for years.
So say the Admin is willing to spend 40 percent of football revenues on the football program, then you have to increase that revenue to increase the funding.
....what are we not funding that, to use your example, Texas and Texas A&M (or any other top program) are? I suppose the time it took to get the new indoor facility built would fall into this category. I understand there's a Gug renovation on tap that I believe is already funded.
It's a never-ending arms race and there will always be those that have shinier facilities and better training tables. So long as we are in the same ballpark, that is fine by me.
There is one area that I think would be beneficial. This past summer The Athletic ran a story about how staff members from ND and Clemson have met a couple of times in the past couple of years to trade ideas and talk best practices. Look it up if you subscribe. One thing Clemson does - that few programs currently do - is to allow their DCs / assistants to conduct their recruiting travel via charter flights and not commercial air. Considering the time that assistant coaches put in on the recruiting trail, that is a huge time saver and stress reducer.
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To the tune of $2.25 billion and the SEC Network.
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