Fan Fanatic Sports Staff
"I'm oooooold! And I'm not happy! And I don't like things now compared to the way they used to be." - Dana Carvey as The Grumpy Old Man on SNL
If I were 82 years old and was the winningest coach in college football I guess I would speak my mind freely too. That's what Penn State Head Coach Joe Paterno did at an alumni event on Wednesday. Paterno would love to see a 12th team join the Big Ten to help with scheduling and of course a lucrative conference title game. That sounds great to me, the problem is "Joe Pa" wants nothing to do with Notre Dame being that school added.
As a huge Notre Dame fan, I believe this would be the best thing for the school and the conference. Paterno says no, he'd like to see either Rutgers, Pittsburgh or Syracuse join the Big Ten. Penn State joined as the conference's 11th team in 1990, so does he get to choose who becomes the 12th. Paterno said he'd like the Big Ten to add an Eastern school, especially one that plays in the New York media market. That would seem to favor Rutgers. "If I had my choice, someone that can give us the biggest TV exposure in the East," Paterno said, offering as possibilities "Syracuse, Pitt, Rutgers. Not in that order."
The Fighting Irish rejected an invitation to join the Big Ten more than a decade ago for great reasons. At the time they were still a national powerhouse and NBC was paying big bucks to have the exclusive television rights for all home games. Yes Notre Dame has been down for the past decade, excluding the last two Brady Quinn years. But, there is an ebb and flow to college football that Penn State knows very well with a 26-33 record the first five years of this decade and 40-11 the last four.
"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."
Notre Dame is the most polarizing school by far in the country, you either love 'em or you hate 'em. But, the Irish would bring in more recruits to the Big Ten and much larger TV ratings than Syracuse, Pitt, or Rutgers could ever hope for. Does the elderly Paterno realize what kind of a following Notre Dame has worldwide. If he is looking to add a school for TV exposure it doesn't make sense to take a school from the Big East that nobody watches anyways. There is no need to snatch a school that is already affiliated with a conference. Take the independent ND and watch the TV numbers soar for the Big Ten you old fool."Progress?! Flobble-de-flee! In my day, when we were angry and frustrated, we just said, 'Flobble-de-flee!' 'cause we were idiots and we didn't know what else to say! Just a bunch o' illiterate Cro-Magnons, blowin' on crusty handkerchiefs, waitin' in lines for our head to burst into flame and that's the way it was and we liked it!" - Dana Carvey as The Grumpy Old Man on SNL
Let's remember that Paterno is the guy who said in a press conference last season that he didn't know what the BCS was.
ReplyDeleteIsn't Notre Dame too arrogant to join a league anyway?
ReplyDeleteAs far a recruits, they're not bringing any good ones in as an independent right now, even with "mastermind" Charlie Weis, why would it change if they were part of the Big 10? If anything, Big 10 opponents might get stronger with the opportunity to beat up on the Irish?
ND's recruiting comeback all the time is how difficult a school it is and how academics are top priority. Who's drinking that silly juice?
Flobble-de-flee!
What good does joining a conference do Notre Dame, honestly? From a business standpoint, they get more money with a national television contract and the ability to sign games with whomever they please - except Boston College after 2010 because of contractual obligations with the Big East. Teams will continue to sign on to play them for the national exposure, so where's the urgency to join a conference?
ReplyDeleteAs for recruiting, I believe up until this year, ND had had a Top-10 recruiting class for something like the five years prior. This year, they were still in the Top-25, according to Rivals.com. Recruiting is not the issue for Notre Dame. It's the coaching.