Notre Dame's Independence is not Independent of Jealousy

Erich Pilcher
1 day ago
3 min read

Independence empowers. It inspires hope, fuels the fight, and shapes how millions live. Yet in College Football, it has become a loaded term, burdened by negative connotations—especially for one storied program.

Photo by The Irish Tribune

The Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team competes as an independent, a status that has drawn them constant ridicule. This criticism intensified after they were excluded from the College Football Playoff last season and declined a bowl bid. Now, a new Memorandum of Understanding guarantees them a playoff spot if they finish in the top 12 of the final rankings, amplifying public scrutiny and resentment.

This has opened the floodgates of derision and insults. Notre Dame has been targeted by coaches (namely, Texas Tech’s Joey McGuire and Clemson’s Dabo Swinney), and an unnamed Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) coach said:

"I can't stand them. Not only do they beat us on the field, but they also steal all our best players and recruits. And to make matters worse, I think my wife has a crush on their coach. I'm just getting really sick of them”.

That quote was after an unnamed ACC executive was quoted as saying:

“(Notre Dame) is the guy that walks in the house, opens the fridge, eats all the food, then (screws) the wife, kicks the dog, doesn’t pay the mortgage & walks out w/out any skin in the game.”

Despite the sources being unnamed, the ACC can ill advise such irresponsible statements. Notre Dame helps the ACC immensely. Last season’s Notre Dame vs Miami matchup to open the season garnered 10.8 million viewers. It was one of only two ACC Conference games to be in the top 50 most-watched games of the season (the other was Miami versus Florida State, with a touch over 6 million viewers, coming in at number 38).

When the 2026 season schedules were fully released, it was revealed that Notre Dame had three prime-time games. Many other powerhouse fan bases took to social media to complain, with Ohio State being the most vocal, which has had most of its major games relegated to Fox Big Noon Kickoff, including their annual showdown with Michigan and last season's opening matchup against Texas. This is due to the Big Ten's television deal with Fox. But somehow, Notre Dame became the target of anger and visceral hatred.

I feel compelled to say that Ohio State does deserve more primetime games. Could you imagine a game against Michigan played under the lights at the Horseshoe or the daunting Big House? It would be an environment that would amplify rivalry and make it a memorable game. But this is not a Notre Dame problem; this is a Big Ten problem. To attack Notre Dame for this and, in turn, target their independence is just scapegoating at its finest and willful ignorance of television contracts at its worst.

All of this stems from one glaring emotion: jealousy. Notre Dame’s independence benefits them in ways that have allowed them to regain their footing at the forefront of college football. The past three recruiting classes show this. Notre Dame athletics made $20 million from their 2024 playoff run to the National Championship game. Because of their independence, this was revenue they were able to keep in full. This also includes their estimated groundbreaking $10 million per year deal with outfitter Under Armour. This has allowed them to build a new state-of-the-art athletic center, the Jack and Kathy Shields Family Hall. That two-year project is set to conclude this summer.

ESPN Heather Dinich once said, “College Football is just better when Notre Dame is good.” Sadly, many do not feel that way. But when we, as fans, see the derision towards “Our Lady,” we must think, does it come from fact or does it come from jealousy? Often, we will find it is the green-eyed monster of the latter and not the research driven by the former.

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