This is to our administration in response to the reports in the USA Today that Notre Dame is making advances towards joining the Big Ten conference in all sports, including football.This is a terrible idea. For starters, it would totally destroy the idea that we play a national schedule. Our few non-conference games would be taken up by traditional rivalries - USC, Navy - leaving no room for variety.The best part about our independence is the fact that we can schedule who we want, when we want. We don't have to play Northwestern, Iowa, Indiana or Wisconsin every year. I know that the BCS contract expires soon, and the fear is that we'll be cut out of the money, or at least have our share diminished. So what. The $13 million we earned from our Fiesta Bowl trip would be the equivalent of not making a game and splitting that money 12 ways for 13 years. I think we can do better than 1 in 13. Finally, the last time I checked, the Stadium sold out every game, and we were ranked the No. 1 most popular college football program in America. Notre Dame football is special. Don't rush into a decision to join a conference just because times are tough now.
Andrew Warnersenioroff-campusNov. 21
