It's Official...

Jack Swarbrick has officially lost me. I think I held out long enough before forming any opinions, but there is enough body of evidence that his latest quotes in a Yahoo Sports article are just the icing on the cake. He just doesn't get it. And if that makes me one of his so-called delusional alums, then so be it.

"The 7-4-1 model makes scheduling much more complex. We don't make any scheduling decisions that are designed to try to produce more winnable games," Swarbrick said. "But everyone has to understand the price you pay for having more home-game experiences, more things people go to and enjoy, is a limitation on who you can get."

Wait a second. So the 7-4-1 model makes things more complex. It limits the quality of our opponents. It gives us matchups like ND-Wazzu in San Antonio. It prevents us from having games like ND-Texas in Texas or ND-Miami in Florida because of our stubborn refusal to relinquish that last home game. SO THEN WHY ARE WE STILL PURSUING THIS MODEL? Honestly, at some point, you just have to come down to what is best for the program. I would like to think that college football is still about that, but maybe not anymore. If Swarbrick thinks that it is better for the program to play "home" games against Army in New York rather than a neutral site game against Alabama or Texas or anyone like that, well, it's a sad day.

"I think our fans need to recognize how the BCS landscape has changed. Utah might not cause the same reaction as some other schools, but look at what they did last year," he said. "I don't know that Nevada isn't this year's Utah. I think we all have to have a more expansive view, a more studied understanding of how quickly it changes in the top level of college football today."

This is the one that did it for me. Here he goes again. Those crazy Notre Dame fans. Can't you just be happy playing Nevada and Utah. You really want to play Alabama AND Utah in the same season? Don't you fans realize that playing Nevada is essentially the same program as Texas? Just wait until September 5th - I mean there will practically be a BCS bowl atmosphere when the Wolfpack come to town.


Give me a break Jack. Sure the college football landscape is changing, but Miami is still Miami, Texas is still Texas, Alabama is still Alabama and so on. Yes, there are cycles where programs go through ups and downs, and Miami is just coming out of a down period, but for a lot of college football matchups its about the name on the front of the jersey, the pomp and circumstance and passion behind the fan base and the history behind the program that make them what they are. Miami could go .500 for the next 10 years and I would still want them on the schedule and still get fired up for a meeting with the U.

I could go on and on, and I'm sure Doug will pick up the reins from here, but this is not the type of things I want to hear coming from the athletic director's office. It's like Kevin White never left.

And all you Nevada and Utah fans, this isn't about your programs. We respect them for what they've done. But when our AD is touting these games as the same as playing a Texas or Alabama, it just not what we want to hear. Ask any ND fan how they feel about this year's schedule and the first word is more than likely 'embarassing.' You have to supplement the Nevada and Utah games with more than Army in New York or Washington State in San Antonio. And Swarbrick doesn't seem to get it.