July 30, 2007
Michigan - Notre Dame gets 20 year extension
Just days after the Michigan - Notre Dame series was rumored to be swimming with the fishes, it now appears that the series is getting a 20-year extension beginning in 2012.
The University of Michigan and University of Notre Dame athletic departments announced jointly on Monday (July 30) a 20-year contract extension in the Michigan-Notre Dame football series, extending the series from 2012-31. With the current contract expiring after the 2011 season, the new contract guarantees that the two winningest football programs in NCAA Division I history will meet every season for the next 25 years."We are pleased to have reached a formal agreement with Notre Dame to extend our football series," said U-M director of athletics Bill Martin. "We are thrilled that the series between two premier college football programs will continue uninterrupted for the next 25 years."
"The Notre Dame-Michigan game has been a red-letter date on the football schedule for a long time, so it made perfect sense to make certain the rivalry continues annually long into the future," said Notre Dame director of athletics Kevin White.
Brian at MGoblog says wants to know WTF - why did stalled talks suddenly result in a 20-year extension?
Like... WTF? There is apparently no break in the series. Did we give up on the ND/OSU alternating thing? Or did we just say screw it, we'll get an interesting nonconference opponent? I dunno.
I don't know how it came about (although I suspect it didn't take much, since both sides wanted this to work), but you certainly have to give props to both schools for getting this deal done. An uninterrupted run of 25 straight Michigan-Notre Dame games is good for college football.
Comments:
College Pigskin Fan said:
posted on July 31, 2007 1:22 AM — 63.19.45.76 — link — abuse?
I knew it was just a matter of time. The schools would not pause the series with the big money at stake. The short traveling cost, big sold out stadiums, and national television coverage, it's one of the top five games in the nation.
c-dogg said:
posted on July 31, 2007 9:30 AM — 76.188.187.195 — link — abuse?
(#3) I don't think ND wants any piece of Ohio State for a while (especially after that bowlgame).
Eddie Goerge won his heisman from his ND performance.
My prediction for the next 20 years....
Michigan-14 wins.
Notre Dame- 6wins.
IrishJT said:
posted on July 31, 2007 10:15 AM — 65.83.54.4 — link — abuse?
More conversation about that irrelevant school in South Bend!!! I'm just confused as to why there aren't more strings regarding Florida or Miami or Auburn or USC or Wisconsin or any Big East team.
Oh yeah. 'Cause they ain't ND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
gatorstud said:
posted on July 31, 2007 10:29 AM — 69.95.111.248 — link — abuse?
hey irish jt... to quote you "More conversation about that irrelevant school in South Bend!!! I'm just confused as to why there aren't more strings regarding Florida or Miami or Auburn or USC or Wisconsin or any Big East team.".....i'll take this philosophy on it..."walk softly and carry a big stick"...yeah you hear a out of notre dame, but it doesn't add up to much because they can't live up to the hype...no matter how much people talk about them.....now florida, miami, fsu, and usc...have all won national titles within the last ten years....so we will just keep walking softly......but watch out for the big stick.......you go ahead and keep patting yourself on the back for all the greatness that is notre dame......too bad it won't help you win games...and that is really what counts.......
i am not trying to dogg you or the irish....it just seems sometimes you need to come off that soapbox your perched upon and see it in the real light....like the rest of us......
go gators...and hokies
gatorstud said:
posted on July 31, 2007 10:39 AM — 69.95.111.248 — link — abuse?
i have been here in northern indiana for about 15 years and unless you live in the area, you really can't get a feel about how big this out-of-state rivalry is......it reminds me a lot of the fla. - tenn. rivalry.....it is not like an in-state rivalry where you are trying to bet up your brother or something like that.....this rivalry is like...let's see...how can i describe it....
you ever had a neighbor that no matter how much you try to get along..it just doesn't work...and all year long you have to hear a lot of b.s. about your neighbor.....and it is just pissin you off even more every day...and then one day a year...you get to call him out into the streeet and "GET IT ON" for sixty minutes..you get to beat on that neighbor and take out a year of frustration out on him.....and then walk away at the end and not lose a wink of sleep over what you just did to him....
that is what NOTRE DAME - MICHIGAN is all about......
i for one am glad they worked the deal out....it is good for college football.....jmho
go gators.....and hokies
OU-Ron said:
posted on July 31, 2007 11:09 AM — 216.201.209.146 — link — abuse?
# 10 gatorstud
You have just described the OU-TEXASS game each year except for a few differences, they don’t try to get along at any time during the year, and at the end of the game, after a win, if you’ve won by 1 point or by 60, the sleep you lose is because you stay up late thinking how great it would have to beat them by 10 or by 80. Neither team is satisfied, nor should we be.
GO SOONERS
IrishJT said:
posted on July 31, 2007 11:13 AM — 65.83.54.4 — link — abuse?
it's not a soap box. it is this pre-pubescent hatred for notre dame that permeates the sports media (i.e., ivan maisel, mark may, any SI writer) and the folks who write in these strings. i'm from northern indiana, a notre dame alum and a lifelong fan of the irish. i feel that i can safely speak from experience about how ridiculous the notion is that notre dame is "over-hyped" and undeserving of any attention. it is comical.
posted on July 31, 2007 11:33 AM — 205.188.116.136 — link — abuse?War Eagle Atlanta said:
C-Dogg: ND doesn't want any part of Ohio State? They've played 5 times in 120 seasons. Ya think? :-) I've been struck by freaking lightning more times than that.
IrishJT: Nah, I'm pretty sure that my hatred for Notre Dame came well after puberty. Sometime in my college days, I think... No, I don't hate ND. I just think that they get more attention than they deserve. I'd have more respect for them if they had been playing regional powers Michigan and Ohio State more in the last 120 years. Something's wrong when ND has played GA Tech only one less time than they've played Michigan and they play Ohio State only when Halley's Comet reappears...
c-dogg said:
posted on July 31, 2007 12:35 PM — 76.188.187.195 — link — abuse?
War Eagle....
I've been accused of hating ND also. That's not the case. Just like you, I dislike them because they get more attention than they deserve. Then they prove my point every in every bowlgame they play in. Kind of like the Yankees who haven't won a title in a long time.
What losers really watch "the bronx is burning"?
GatorMatt said:
posted on July 31, 2007 1:32 PM — 128.227.7.35 — link — abuse?
Irish JT,
You know damn well that no on in the media hates Notre Dame. The media is the reason for the so called "success" of Notre Dame. If it wasn't for the MEDIA contract of NBC, the or the MEDIA voters of the AP who constantly rank ND above where the should be, or the MEDIA aspect of playing in a BCS game, do you really think Notre Dame would ever get any attention? No. They are an over-glorrified average team. The days when they showed dominance were over a long time ago
posted on July 31, 2007 3:23 PM — 205.188.116.136 — link — abuse?
C-Dogg: I hear ya. What's really strange is that although we all accuse ND of having a somewhat weak schedule of late, ( beating Navy 43 straight times, never playing Ohio State, rarely playing Michigan, etc) cfbdatawarehouse has ND as having the #3 all-time toughest schedule. I've sent cfbdw emails asking them to explain how they calculate that figure, but I've never gotten a reply. If you want to see the top teams' SOS, go to: http://www.cfbdatawarehouse.com/data/rankings/all_time_team_sched_rankings.php
The only Big 10 Team that ND plays with any frequency is Michigan State. It's hard to figure that ND would have such a strong SOS over the years without playing regional powers such as Michigan and Ohio State, but I guess those are the numbers. I am curious how they calculate it though. Auburn has the 4th toughest SOS all-time, but it stands to reason since Auburn historically played 3 top 10 all-time programs every year, Alabama, Tennessee, and Georgia.
Anyone else shed some light?
Tomcat said:
posted on July 31, 2007 8:00 PM — 66.142.90.76 — link — abuse?
IrishJT I really enjoy reading your posts.#15 GATorMatt purty much said it all, none of us really hate Notre Dame. The press and the Media absolutley love N.D.
Trivia Question: Name a two loss team that is not a conference champ that plays in a BCS Bowl?
Answer: N.D. Its not hatred or jeulously, thats just the way it is.
I would love to see yall play the Horns again.
Glad yall scheduled some tough teams, looking foward the matchups.
Hookem-HornsMc Duck said:
posted on July 31, 2007 10:42 PM — 63.230.172.173 — link — abuse?
IrishJT (#17) you are correct, Mark May has nothing good to say about the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame. As a matter of fact, I am listening to Blue and Gold Radio...and the Host, Ryan O'leary has been talking about that very thing. He is trying to get May on Blue and Gold Radio. I hope he does. I'd like to hear what Irish fans have to say to Mr. May. Go, Ducks! Go, Irish!
posted on August 1, 2007 12:37 PM — 70.180.45.10 — link — abuse?
hrposon, post #3:
Pretty easy to be great at scheduling tough opponents when you have no conference schedule to think about...
Pretty much leaves your schedule wide open and flexible, huh mate?
M GO BLUE said:
posted on August 1, 2007 2:06 PM — 216.46.212.98 — link — abuse?
Notre Dame schedule.
week 1 Georgia Tech....Georgia Tech will be looking to give ND some payback for last season's loss to ND. (Look out for Georgia Tech)
week 2 at Penn State ......Notre Dame is going to get a dose of "Happy Valley" and it's not so friendly 110,000 residents in the second largest football stadium in America.
Week 3 at Michigan ......about right now the ND players are wondering who the idiot was that scheduled two back to back road games in the two largest stadiums in the country against two of the toughest teams in the Nation.......FEAR THE MAIZE AND BLUE !!!
WEEK 4 vs Michigan State....Notre Dame will take on their fierce rival and will try to remove the Michigan State flag that has been flying over Notre Dame stadium since the fall of '05
week 5 at Purdue .....now fans are wondering why Notre Dame is not part of the Big Ten as they play against their fourth Big Ten opponent in 5 weeks and their third game of the season in a Big Ten stadium.
Why not join???
Mc Duck said:
posted on August 2, 2007 11:52 PM — 63.230.172.173 — link — abuse?
Notre Dame will finish in the top 5!
Notre Dame is the pope's favorite college football team...
B16 proclaimed that the Fighting Irish will win the National Championship -- this year!
And the players will need a Fork-Lift to carry Charlie Weis off the field...
The pope was speaking exCathedra when he proclaimed Notre Dame National Champs...which means it is an infallible decree.
I can hardly wait for the encyclical: De Notre Dameus Nationalis Championis!
It will be a best seller.
Children will study it in catechism classes...
Priests will quote from it during their homilies...
Assembly of God congregants will flock to the Catholic Church to sample her wine...
Lutherans the world over will admit that they should never have severed ties with the Mother Team...
The sky will clear...
The Red River will part...
Oklahoma fans will beat Longhorns fans into plowshares...
And Michigan fans and Ohio State fans will not learn scorn anymore!
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Pony said:
posted on July 30, 2007 8:48 PM — 67.188.161.226 — link — abuse?So does this mean that ND will play OK and Mich in the same year? If so, kudos to the Irish... I'm not a fan not a hater, but I have been critical of the special treatment which they have been given in the past. Good job on getting this done.