michael wilbon calls out ND
I was just watching sportscenter and Michael Wilbon called Notre Dame the Floyd Mayweather of college football because they want to go to a crappy division to win. Referring to ND going to the ACC (ortiz) and dodging the BIG (pacquiao). I thought this was funny and wanted to share.
September 21st, 2011 at 11:00 AM ^
"the 10 guys i worked with who went to nd" weren't smart, so nd must be a bad school.
nobody has any idea how to evaluate the quality of an undergraduate education, and i think the rankings are fairly ridiculous, but the "i know some idiots who went to nd" line isn't particularly persuasive.
i know some idiots that went to harvard. and mit. and michigan, etc.
September 22nd, 2011 at 1:25 AM ^
September 20th, 2011 at 9:32 PM ^
B10 schools including us need to stop playing ND. We are just do them a favor by giving them a B10 schedule without them having to join the conf. They need all the B10 teams way more then we need them. If they do jump to the ACC... I say screw them. Once the contract is over then never play them again.
September 20th, 2011 at 9:34 PM ^
Thus saith Bo: "TO HELL WITH NOTRE DAME!"
September 20th, 2011 at 9:53 PM ^
September 20th, 2011 at 9:35 PM ^
September 20th, 2011 at 10:01 PM ^
Perhaps for us, but not for MSU and Purdue has no chance of home and homes with anyone comparable. Let's face facts, Notre Dame draws well, both in the stands and on TV, and they're typical more beatable than any other opponent with similar appeal..
September 21st, 2011 at 10:59 AM ^
I think Sparty has home and homes with Alabama, WVU, and Miami (FL) over the next few years if I'm not mistaken. I don't know that they really struggle to schedule big names
September 20th, 2011 at 10:33 PM ^
more often than not the big 10 schools that plays Notre Dame beat them. With Notre Dame being overhyped year in and year out , why not play them lol.
September 21st, 2011 at 8:54 AM ^
I am sure ND would survive but I think it would definately be a blow to their ratings if Big Ten schools stopped scheduling them. I have believed this for a while now though.
I happen to agree with JoePa when he said, "If I had my choice, someone that can give us the biggest TV exposure in the East, Syracuse, Pitt, Rutgers. Not in that order. There's some pressure, I would suppose, to maybe go back to Notre Dame and ask again, which I would not be happy with," Paterno said. "I think they've had their chance."
ND has, indeed, had their chance now it is time for them to go to a second rate conference and deal with. Also, I don't believe the ACC will allow them to keep their football independence.
September 21st, 2011 at 11:07 AM ^
nd recently scheduled series with miami (ytm) and texas. byu is sitting out there as a natural to put back on the schedule as well given their recent independence.
is nd's schedule worse with texas/miami/byu than um/msu/purdue? so, i think the b1g could make nd's life annoying, but i don't think the conference's hand is all that strong. no single conference has much leverage over nd. the only way nd's hand gets forced is if the 64 top football programs all end up in superconferences. if that happens, nd is going to be in a delicate situation.
September 21st, 2011 at 10:55 AM ^
for both schools, the nd game is one of their marquee games of the season. they have no problem selling tickets, they can package nd tickets and sell crappy tickets and they get their fans all fired up.
i have a hard time imaginging that individual schools are going to go against their short-term self interest so that the conference can pin nd into a corner. if msu and purdue fall into line, why would northwestern or illinois or minnesota pick up nd if they had the open dates?
as long as nd's fanbase remains big and diverse, they're a money-maker for their opponents. the only way nd's hand will be forced is if they keep sucking long enough to make a major dent in the size of that fanbase...which, surprisingly hasn't happened yet.
September 20th, 2011 at 9:35 PM ^
you know what I say to all of this?
"TO HELL WITH NOTRE DAME"
September 20th, 2011 at 9:40 PM ^
Love Wilbon. Always writes a great column as well.
September 20th, 2011 at 9:42 PM ^
Michael Wilbon also compared Cam Newton to Wayne Gretzky and Michael Jordan, twice.
September 20th, 2011 at 10:34 PM ^
The MJ comparison is surprising considering he's a Chi-Town homer.
September 21st, 2011 at 12:49 AM ^
Except faster.
/fredjackson
September 20th, 2011 at 9:51 PM ^
$5 says it was that douche Cigarro Cubano.
September 20th, 2011 at 10:19 PM ^
Yeah, what's the deal with that guy?
September 20th, 2011 at 9:54 PM ^
I hope we end the annual ND game. I'm sick of playing them at the expense of a new team every couple years. ND wont be able to keep all of their annual games going at that point anyway..between UM MSU USC and a few others.. something has 2 give
September 20th, 2011 at 10:36 PM ^
But, ND is a traditional UM rivalry, and the game always gets national attention (albeit more because of ND than UM, especially recently).
September 20th, 2011 at 10:07 PM ^
I demand that ND takes random drug tests before we play again.
September 20th, 2011 at 10:08 PM ^
How long are we under contract with Nd? I hope UofM and every other B1G school fights for every penny of those buy outs. One final middle finger to that school in south bend.
September 20th, 2011 at 10:20 PM ^
September 20th, 2011 at 10:37 PM ^
Just out of petty spite, it would be fun to see every B1G drop their game w/ ND too late to reschedule, potentially leaving ND with only 8 or 9 games before they'd theoretically join the ACC. I hope their hockey team enjoys the quality of competition in the ACC. Midwest based hockey programs hopefully would tell them to piss off, as well. After all, the east coast fits their BS blah blah blah . . .
September 20th, 2011 at 11:49 PM ^
Is pound for pound the greatest boxer ever to do it. That's a very bad comparison.
September 20th, 2011 at 11:55 PM ^
And I don't understand why people think this but Floyd has never ducked Pac man once. He has repeatedly said he will fight him anytime. As long as he takes the same test that everyone takes when they fight him. With that being said doesn't it seem like Manny might be the one ducking Floyd. Is it because he is on the juice? I don't know but damn the American public has been misled.
September 21st, 2011 at 2:09 AM ^
I don't want our conference to grow anymore - I'm already annoyed that we're not in the same division as OSU. Independents are fun on top of it - I hope UT goes independent at some point, I hope BYU stays independent. Major independent teams that play national schedules are good for the sport, especially since we see less and less OOC games.
September 21st, 2011 at 10:51 AM ^
from the institutional perspective, per the nytimes nate silver analysis, ND has the most widely disseminated fanbase in the country. consequently, getting to play all over the country is important to keep that fanbase happy and healthy. joining a conference ties nd to a region, even if it may be a big one (ie: the current acc footprint).
from a fan's perspective, its fantastic to get to play everybody. in the last 20 years, nd has played major powers from the B1G, big 12, acc, sec, pac10, et al. virtually every major power has been to south bend and we've been to their place...and that's fantastic as a fan. particularly in the 9 conference game schedule era, only independents are going to be able to do anything remotely like that. i, for one, think its very cool as a fan.
i just wish we'd stop losing so damn much.
September 21st, 2011 at 9:17 AM ^
This is funny actually because Mayweather has always fought the best. Never understood they Mayweather hate.
September 21st, 2011 at 9:26 AM ^
Champ(at least 1b if not p4p) Manny.
September 21st, 2011 at 10:01 AM ^
Finally, somebody with a "national voice" is making sense. No free pass on a decision like the one they are considering.
I'm starting to think they are afraid of the competition again. I had that feeling when they weren't going to renew the game against Michigan couple of years back.
Something is wrong in South Bend.
September 21st, 2011 at 10:45 AM ^
a rumor of conference realignment? i'll believe that nd is ends up in the acc when it actually happens. three much more likely explanations for the rumors: 1. they're total BS. 2. nd is doing due diligence on all its options 3. nd is leaking these stories to improve their leverage in other negotations they actually care about.
something has stunk in south bend, and its been the football team since holtz left. but, it seems awfully premature to buy into any of these rumors to me.
September 21st, 2011 at 10:09 AM ^
Wilbon is biased towards the Big Ten and he hates Notre Dame anyway. VT, FSU and Miami arent cupcake conference opponents. It would be nice to have them in the Big Ten but they probably fit better in the ACC.
September 21st, 2011 at 10:13 AM ^
I might be naive, but wouldn't teams like VT, Miami, and FSU still destroy them? And it's not like they streamroll teams like BC or Maryland on a year-by-year basis. It seems crazy that ND would just be able to walk into the ACC and expect to dominate. And in terms of TV deals, I don't think the rest of the ACC would bend over and take it from them for some extra scratch - those ND games don't pull monster ratings on NBC unless the opponent is also a big name, You throw ND on a Thursday against Duke, I don't expect that you outdraw two mediocre SEC teams battling it out.
September 21st, 2011 at 10:41 AM ^
you have to understand wilbon's perspective. the opportunity to pile onto a team he hated was so good, he didn't actually wait for any evidence to justify piling on. as we all know, conference realignment rumors are almost always accurate.
if nd end up in the acc, i'd be shocked. moreover, i'm entirely sure easier football schedule will have little to do with it. since kevin white left as AD, nd hasn't sought an easier schedule - far from it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notre_Dame_Fighting_Irish_football_future_…
September 21st, 2011 at 12:07 PM ^
regularly, and they fall further from grace with G*d and man. There is a strong dislike for ND in the American south, one that starts with a certain distate for Catholicism in general. . .
I, for one, will be very happy ND doesn't join the B1G. As a hoops fan, however, I would love to have Kansas, and (for this reason) may regret Mizzou's move to the SEC.