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Before the Orange Bowl in January, Penn State head coach James Franklin used his dual pregame press conference with Marcus Freeman to lecture the college football world on his belief that Notre Dame should join a conference. More News: Major College Football Program Accused of Stealing Signs Before Big Game Between jabs at Notre Dame's independence and weird comments about Freeman's hairline from Franklin, the Irish head coach left the news conference upset. A couple of days later, ND defeated the Nittany Lions 27-24 for the right to play in the national championship. Months later, neither coach is in a conference, though Franklin's status has changed for another reason. More News: LSU’s Brian Kelly Makes Honest Admission About His ‘Job’ Notre Dame takes pride in its independent status. At one point, the Irish tried to join the Big Ten, but were kept out, in part, due to anti-Catholic prejudice. However, Freeman understands that things in college sports are fluid, especially in the era of the NIL and expanded conferences. (California and Stanford are now somehow in the Atlantic Coast Conference.) During an appearance on the "Bussin' With The Boys" podcast on Monday, Freeman suggested he and Notre Dame would be open to joining a conference if that was the only way the program could compete for a national championship. “The future of college athletics are always uncertain, right?" Freeman said. "And with private equity, with what's going to happen with these conferences, if there's a time that Notre Dame has to join a conference to ensure they can have the same opportunities to make the playoffs as everybody else, then I'm sure our administration will do it. "Currently, the administration and myself, all of us feel confident that if we win the games we're supposed to win, we take care of the business we're supposed to take care of, then we have just as good of a chance to make the playoffs as anybody else... "We can never put our program at a disadvantage for postseason play because we're not in a conference. And if that's ever the case, I'm sure we'll join a conference.” Freeman made similar comments over the summer. Despite not being in a conference, Notre Dame has crawled back into the CFP picture by winning five consecutive games after starting the season 0-2 with losses on the road to Miami and at home against Texas A&M. Both of those programs are in the top-10 in Week 9. The No. 12 Irish are on a bye in Week 9 before they travel to play Boston College in Week 10. Because Notre Dame's best win of the season will likely be the 34-24 victory over USC on Saturday, the Irish probably won't have a chance to earn a bye in the first round of the CFP. There might have been another story if the Irish had a chance to win a Power 4 conference championship.
