Penn State head coach James Franklin wants to see big changes to college football, including one that he thinks provides something of a competitive advantage for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
Franklin said at Wednesday’s pre-Orange Bowl press conference that he thinks Notre Dame should have to join a conference. Franklin added that it is only fair for teams to play equivalent conference schedules, and that the lack of consistency in conference championships is bad for college football.
“I think it should be consistent across college football. This is no knock on Coach (Marcus Freeman) or Notre Dame, but I think everybody should be in a conference,” Franklin said. “I think everybody should play a conference championship game or no one should play a conference championship game. I think everybody should play the same number of conference games. The numbers are going to make things more challenging if you’re playing one more conference game. I just think things need to be consistent across college football.”
"This is no knock at coach or Notre Dame, but I think everybody should be in a conference." 👀
James Franklin shares his thoughts about the consistency across the college football landscape during a presser with Marcus Freeman ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/apfFqZfNzx
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) January 8, 2025
Notre Dame has long maintained its status as an independent, which allows them full control over their scheduling and television rights, among other things. At times, they have compromised with other leagues on a temporary basis when necessary, but the school has generally protected its independent status. Unless some high-level authority at the top of the NCAA stepped in, that is unlikely to change, as that arrangement is very lucrative for the school.
Plenty of people would agree with Franklin’s point. Without major pressure from the top of the NCAA, however, it will not be happening.
