Jamie Dixon doesn't like the Big Ten

[garekis]

That's ridiculous.  Why would Notre Dame care how the other schools support their student athletes?

Here's one reason:  When you join a conference, the needs and wants of the many supplant the needs and wants of the few. The majority will make the decisions and, were it to join the Big Ten and seek to maintain its high academic standards for student athletes, Notre Dame would run the very real risk of being on the wrong end of 11-1 and 10-2 decisions when those decisions relate to things such as conference academic standards and compliance.

As a matter of fact, right now, the Big Ten is evaluating whether it needs to change certain of its practices and rules in order to address the NCAA's Academic Progress Rates - which holds universities accountable for the academic progress of student athletes by imposing concrete consequences (e.g., loss of scholarships) for those institutions that do not satisfy the NCAA's requirements.  Just like every Big Ten university cares about what the Big Ten will (or will not) do to move towards voluntary compliance with APR (consistent with its track record and philosophy, likely the Big Ten will do little or nothing), so too would Notre Dame if it was a member of that conference.  But, on educating student athletes, Notre Dame's philosophy diverges from that of the Big Ten collective.

According to the numbers, the land-grant institutions of the Big Ten really don't give a rip about the academic side of things when it comes to their athletes.  I appreciate that you apparently dislike Notre Dame.  Fine.  But irrespective of your personal feelings, that school, much like ours (presuming you're a Marquette grad), educates and graduates its student athletes at a commendable rate.  With a single (or perhaps a couple) noted exception(s), the institutions of the Big Ten don't.  In a nutshell:  Notre Dame and the Big Ten have radically different "needs and wants" w/r/t educating student athletes.  That matters when you want to excel on the playing field AND in the classroom.  And that's but one reason why "Notre Dame would care how the other schools support their student athletes."

[SD Warrior]

While I realize that this a BB board, I have to post about the arrogance of Noter Dame. They turned down the Big 10 in 1999 and the word is that they did it again now, as the Big 10 is looking to expand.

This is just another example of the arrogance of the ND football fans. The program has steadily deteriorated, even though they play a pansy schedule, and they would be a natural fit for the Big 10, they have dissed the conference twice. I know a number of ND fans who say that if they ever go to a conference for football (most prefer not), it would be a better fir for the Big east. When asked why, several respond that they could dominate in the Big East Football.

That tells volumes about their arrogance, because they know that ND would be middle of the pack in the Big 10 football.

I do believe that the BEast is at par or slightly above the Big 10 in basketball, but football is not.

ND fans are for the most part arrogant.

I don't understand why you are so bitter about ND not wanting to join the Big Ten. It wouldn't provide much benefit to their program and like a previous poster mentioned, they want to maintain the existing rivalries they already have. If ND fans were in favor of joining a conference for football, which very few are, it would definitely not be the Big East. As for the schedule they play: 7 or 8 bowl eligible teams is hardly pansy. Perhaps Northern Illinois and Wofford are more to your liking?

[GGGG]

Here's one reason:  When you join a conference, the needs and wants of the many supplant the needs and wants of the few. The majority will make the decisions and, were it to join the Big Ten and seek to maintain its high academic standards for student athletes, Notre Dame would run the very real risk of being on the wrong end of 11-1 and 10-2 decisions when those decisions relate to things such as conference academic standards and compliance.

As a matter of fact, right now, the Big Ten is evaluating whether it needs to change certain of its practices and rules in order to address the NCAA's Academic Progress Rates - which holds universities accountable for the academic progress of student athletes by imposing concrete consequences (e.g., loss of scholarships) for those institutions that do not satisfy the NCAA's requirements.  Just like every Big Ten university cares about what the Big Ten will (or will not) do to move towards voluntary compliance with APR (consistent with its track record and philosophy, likely the Big Ten will do little or nothing), so too would Notre Dame if it was a member of that conference.  But, on educating student athletes, Notre Dame's philosophy diverges from that of the Big Ten collective.

According to the numbers, the land-grant institutions of the Big Ten really don't give a rip about the academic side of things when it comes to their athletes.  I appreciate that you apparently dislike Notre Dame.  Fine.  But irrespective of your personal feelings, that school, much like ours (presuming you're a Marquette grad), educates and graduates its student athletes at a commendable rate.  With a single (or perhaps a couple) noted exception(s), the institutions of the Big Ten don't.  In a nutshell:  Notre Dame and the Big Ten have radically different "needs and wants" w/r/t educating student athletes.  That matters when you want to excel on the playing field AND in the classroom.  And that's but one reason why "Notre Dame would care how the other schools support their student athletes."

In other words, they wouldn't be able to compete on the field with the Big Ten.  *That's* the real reason.  You can write it off as a different philosophy on supporting student athletes all you want, but when it comes down to it, the real reason is that they wouldn't succeed.  

Because honestly the rates aren't all that different...each Big Ten school is 78% and above...which is way above their at-large graduation rates.  And other schools with high rates have had plenty of success...Boston College, Wake Forest, etc.

Just add it to the list of excuses that Notre Dame comes up with to explain away their poor performance.

[ChicosBailBonds]

I don't understand why you are so bitter about ND not wanting to join the Big Ten. It wouldn't provide much benefit to their program and like a previous poster mentioned, they want to maintain the existing rivalries they already have. If ND fans were in favor of joining a conference for football, which very few are, it would definitely not be the Big East. As for the schedule they play: 7 or 8 bowl eligible teams is hardly pansy. Perhaps Northern Illinois and Wofford are more to your liking?

Considering how poorly Notre Dame has done against the Big East in football, I don't blame them for wanting to stay away.   

Lost to Pittsburgh twice
Lost to UCONN
Lost to Syracuse

[garekis]

In other words, they wouldn't be able to compete on the field with the Big Ten.  *That's* the real reason.  You can write it off as a different philosophy on supporting student athletes all you want, but when it comes down to it, the real reason is that they wouldn't succeed.  

Because honestly the rates aren't all that different...each Big Ten school is 78% and above...which is way above their at-large graduation rates.  And other schools with high rates have had plenty of success...Boston College, Wake Forest, etc.

Just add it to the list of excuses that Notre Dame comes up with to explain away their poor performance.

Oh, I see your point now:  you don't like Notre Dame.  Got it.

But that has nothing to do with my point:  one reason why Notre Dame football has shunned the Big Ten again is because of the Big Ten's ongoing failure to educate and graduate its football players at an (in my opinion) acceptable level.  That's the issue.  Is Notre Dame being idealistic?  Maybe.  Commendable?  Maybe.  Stupid?  Maybe.  Is the Big Ten being realistic?  Maybe.  Overly pragmatic?  Maybe.  Fiscally responsible?  Maybe.  But those questions are beside the point.  What I'm positing is that Notre Dame's and the (as a collective) Big Ten's philosophies when it comes to educating football players differ significantly.  And, given the nature of the beasts (i.e., institutions of higher learning), that matters - a lot.

Note that we're talking about football GSRs (vis a vis Notre Dame's commitment to educating and graduating football players and the Big Ten's lack thereof).  So, no, the Big Ten's is not approaching 80%.  It's collectively (based on 2009 numbers):  68% (and that includes Northwestern's outlier, and impressive, 92%).  Notre Dame's is 96%.  That's not close.

By the way, I don't think any rational Notre Dame hater, fan, or unbiased observer would argue that Notre Dame's recent subpar performance can be explained by anything other than terrible coaching.  Too bad for them.  Good for those of us who take great joy in seeing them fail on their own network.

[LON]

College football = overrated

[RawdogDX]

In other words, they wouldn't be able to compete on the field with the Big Ten.  *That's* the real reason.  You can write it off as a different philosophy on supporting student athletes all you want, but when it comes down to it, the real reason is that they wouldn't succeed.  

Because honestly the rates aren't all that different...each Big Ten school is 78% and above...which is way above their at-large graduation rates.  And other schools with high rates have had plenty of success...Boston College, Wake Forest, etc.

Just add it to the list of excuses that Notre Dame comes up with to explain away their poor performance.

It seems like all your agruments are about how they are spam purses for not doing it.  And every arguement against it is that there is no reason to do it. 
Why should they?/no reason to  >  they should because if they don't they are axe wounds

at least IMO

[GGGG]

Oh, I see your point now:  you don't like Notre Dame.  Got it.

But that has nothing to do with my point:  one reason why Notre Dame football has shunned the Big Ten again is because of the Big Ten's ongoing failure to educate and graduate its football players at an (in my opinion) acceptable level.  

Modified.

No reason to continue to debate this.