Earlier this week, a story began circulating about a continued fracturing of the relationship between Notre Dame and the ACC. The story, first reported by Brett McMurphy, detailed several conference athletic directors who hold a rather large grudge against the Fighting Irish. The way the story was told, it seemed like a divorce was on the horizon. But now it looks like that wasn't even close to the whole story.
Notre Dame football’s ACC drama may have been framed to sound more explosive
Fansided's Corey Long laid out exactly why that story was published and why the quotes were all anonymous and harsh:
"We know McMurphy's game here. He's trying to stir things up during a rather slow news period, and it is what it is. No question there are some ADs upset with Notre Dame's 'special treatment', but the Irish's presence in the conference is driving the correct decisions that could benefit the ACC long term. You think Stanford, Cal, and SMU's addition to the ACC weren't in direct correlation with Notre Dame? Of course, it was. Because of Notre Dame, the ACC now has a footprint in two of the largest states in the Union and three high-level academic institutions with large endowments. This also opens the door for an expanded recruiting base. These things don't happen without Notre Dame."
A new report by The Athletic confirmed Long's theory. Sure, there were some AD's genuinely mad about how the Fighting Irish are treated. Some are genuinely jealous about the "special treatment" that Notre Dame gets. But still more athletic directors understand that the Irish benefit the ACC.
"That’s bulls—,' said one ACC athletic director, perplexed by the notion Notre Dame was using the league, Matt Baker and Pete Sampson wrote.
"Another wondered why skipping the Pop-Tarts Bowl — Georgia Tech moved up in the ACC bowl rotation to take Notre Dame’s slot — was a negative for the league at all. While the second AD said he didn’t like the concept of Notre Dame skipping the bowl game, he failed to see why it would trigger pitchforks and torches from his counterparts."
"'Quite frankly, everybody else benefited by going up a slot,'” he said. “'None of us were harmed and we were probably helped by them not going to Orlando.'”
The ACC may complain about Notre Dame football while still needing its spotlight
It's also worth noting that the ACC commissioner, Jim Phillips, seemingly tried to set things right when he addressed the media earlier this week. He credited the Irish for helping the conference get headlines and spotlights. And he argued that Notre Dame was a playoff team last year, which was certainly different than what he said when the relationship was seemingly teetering on the brink this winter.
It's not a huge shock that McMurphy's report drove a narrative that someone wanted spread. The On3 reporter has shown a dislike of the Fighting Irish before. It's not unlikely that he went after people who had a problem with the program to stock his story with quotes.
There are always two sides to any story, and The Athletic found ACC ADs who not only don't have a real problem with Notre Dame, but they also seem to understand the value the school brings to the conference.
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