A Match Made In Heaven

Big Ten & Notre Dame Together

"Come Together, Right Now, Over Thee" -  Beatles Song  (Thee Big Ten)

                                                                                                                                         

There is one thing in life that I don't understand...and that is of Notre Dame and The Big Ten not coming together! Notre Dame originally applied for the Big Ten back in the early 1900's, but the Big Ten rebuffed them because of their Catholic affiliation. In the 1976 book "Big Ten Football" on page 26; Knute Rockne wanted in the Big Ten Conference in the 1920's...but because of his school's dominance over other Big Ten schools...Notre Dame was rebuffed again. Even when the University of Chicago quit playing athletics in the Big Ten in 1939 and left the Big Ten in 1946...Notre Dame along with a host of others like Nebraska, Pittsburgh, Iowa State, Marquette and Michigan State were the likely candidates to fill the void...with Michigan State finally joining in 1949. Again Notre Dame was left out because of their football supremacy.

Fast forward to the 1990's...Now the Big Ten has extended an invitation to Notre Dame and Notre Dame has rebuffed The Big Ten a couple of times now. Notre Dame enjoyed their football Independence for decades and has many Nat'l Titles, Heisman Trophys and All-Americans to boast about to most other schools envy. But those days are a faded memory. Notre Dame has not won a title or heisman trophy for well over two decades now. The college football landscape has changed. Notre Dame cannot draw talent from smaller Catholic schools because the talent isn't there now because parhocial schools have had such a hard time with the priests and how they have been unsavory in their relationships with our youth. Then add in the strong academics standards that Notre Dame possesses. No high profile coaches want the job because of how hard it is currently to win there.

If Notre Dame joined the Big Ten, They would recruit stronger. The way it is as an Independent..if they lose 3 games in a season they are not in the BCS. But if they were in the Big Ten they could lose 3 or 4 games overall... and have a shot of getting in the Big Ten Championship Game and winning it for a BCS bid. Plus who is to say that Notre Dame will continue to get the NBC deal of $9 million annually in the future when NBC has recently been sold. The Big Ten Network will always thrive especially if Notre Dame was a member school.

So its high time the Fighting Irish get with the program of the future and forget about the Independant past and stop and think about their options...and make a historical move to the Big Ten Conference with other schools they have in common with, like Legendary Traditions such as Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State, Illinois, Michigan State and etc. This would solidify The Big Ten as the greatest conference in the Nation. Notre Dame needs the Big Ten...and The Big Ten needs Notre Dame! I think you'll see that things would change dramically for the Irish and they would enjoy the success of all their athletic programs in the future.

Notre Dame would only have to play 8 Conference football games a year during the regular season. That leaves 4 or 5 games that they could still play Southern Cal, Navy, Boston College, Stanford, Pittsburgh, Georgia Tech and etc. No one seems concerned about their basketball program playing in a Conference...namely The Big East. It looks like Notre Dame has already broken the rule of being Independent when their basketball team joined the Big East. Its time for the Notre Dame to call up The Big Ten and commit to membership...because the Big Ten is not going to wait for them forever. Now's the Time...Wake up the Echos! The echos of being open to change!

Notre Dame could probably be in a Division of their absolute liking. This is how the 2 Divisions could look like:

 

BIG  TEN  CONFERENCE

 

GREAT LAKES DIVISION                                                                                                                                                              Iron Sledge Trophy

 

Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Michigan Wolverines

Purdue Boilermakers

Michigan State Spartans 

Northwestern Wildcats

Illinois Fighting Illini

 

MIGHTY RIVERS DIVISION                                                                                                                                                                 Steel Axe Trophy

 

Ohio State Buckeyes

Penn State Nittany Lions

Wisconsin Badgers

Iowa Hawkeyes

Minnesota Golden Gophers

Indiana Hoosiers

 

The Winners of the Axe & Sledge would play for the BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIP GAME and Big Ten Trophy!

Like I said...ND & The Big 10...A Match Made In Heaven!

The league would keep the same name of the Big Ten, and it would symbolize the original 10 schools...and "Being a 10" means being THE BEST!

The Big Ten Conference that is!

 

Thank You!

Dutch Holland

 

PS

Great Lakes Division ( Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, Ontario)

Mighty Rivers Division (Mississippi & Ohio)

Poll

Do The Irish Join The Big Ten? or Do The Irish Stay Independent?

47%

JOIN?

22 votes

52%

STAY?

24 votes

46 votes | Poll has closed

THE GREAT NORTHERN UNION CONFERENCE :

Big Ten makes offers of Membership to Notre Dame, Nebraska, Missouri, Kansas & Pittsburgh.

This makes a 16 Team Conference. New name of the Conference would be the "Great Northern Union Conference" or GNUC. The word "Great" applys to the "Great Lakes" and the "Great Plains" that would encompass the Conference. These are all  "Northern" schools and with the Mega-Expansion of the Conference...it would become a "Union".

"The GNUC"...is short for "knuckles" or it can also be called "The UNION". The Conference would have (2) 8 Team Leagues with a total of (4) Divisions with (4) teams in each Division. The Leagues would be called the Eastern and Western Leagues. The Divisions would go by names of tall mighty stately trees of the Central, Eastern  & Lake States...such as the Walnut, Ash, Maple and Oak Divisions. 

Here is a following of how the Conference would look in "The Holland Plan" :

 

                                          GREAT  NORTHERN  UNION  CONFERENCE

                                                                        GNUC

                       Eastern League                                                              Western League

Walnut Division                     Ash Division                     Maple Division                    Oak Division

Notre Dame                           Ohio State                        Wisconsin                           Nebraska

Michigan                                Penn State                       Minnesota                           Illinois

Purdue                                   Pittsburgh                         Iowa                                   Missouri

Michigan State                      Indiana                             Northwestern                      Kansas 

 

Walnut Division                       Ash Division                     Maple Division                   Oak Division

Fighting Irish                           Buckeyes                          Badgers                             Cornhuskers

Wolverines                              Nittany Lions                     Golden Gophers                Fighting Illini 

Boilermakers                           Panthers                           Hawkeyes                          Tigers

Spartans                                  Hoosiers                            Wildcats                            Jayhawks

These would be extremely competitive divisions with geography and rivalries intact. It would be the first Super-Mega Conference and fans would be proud to say '"You're in Great Northern Union Country" !!!

 

Please feel free to leave your comments...

Thank you,

Dutch Holland