At one point we were independent in hoops

by Greg, seemingly ranch, Tuesday, March 09, 2010, 14:27 (5936 days ago) @ Pat

Then the Big East formed and other independents joined other conferences. As the 1980s wore on, our ability to get good TV coverage waned and the Big East's power grew. Our schedule became a joke (with one or two good games). Our recruiting became a joke, because why go to play at ND when there were suddenly better options with good TV coverage right on the eastern seaboard in ND's old recruiting territory?

Over time, our program slipped from being a major player (in a 12-year span from 1976-1987, the team made 6 Sweet 16 appearances and 3 other trips to the tournament) to middling success (3 tournament trips in 1988-1990) to utter irrelevance (in an 11-year span from 1990-2000 the team made no trips to the tournament). To put it another way, in the 16 years between Digger's Sweet 16 run in 1987 and Brey's run in 2003, we made the tournament 5 times -- 3 in a row in '88-90 and 2 in a row in '01 and '02 -- and all 5 were really tied to the Sweet 16 runs. The remainder of that 16 years was a hoops wasteland.

If the choice for football is wasteland or joining a conference, I say join -- and join on our terms and in a way that is representative of our historic place at the football table. Taking a lead position in creating a superconference would echo Rockne's historic leadership of college football in the early part of the last century and would lock ND in as a leader for the future. Being forced into the Big 11, conversely, is the worst of all possible worlds. It marginalizes us as just one bit player in a geographic concern and it puts us in a position where our voice would be minimized.

If we must go, we must. Rockne wanted to, after all. But we must go on our terms.