Notre Dame to ACC in all sports but football
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CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP)
Notre Dame is moving to the Atlantic Coast Conference - yet keeping its football independence.
The school's president, the Rev. John I. Jenkins, and athletic director Jack Swarbrick joined league Commissioner John Swofford and three ACC presidents for a news conference Wednesday announcing the Irish's move from the Big East.
''This is truly a historic moment for the Atlantic Coast Conference,'' Swofford said.
The school will play five football games annually against the league's programs, but will be a full member in all other sports. The Irish will have access to the ACC's non-BCS bowl tie-ins.
The ACC also increased its exit fees for league schools to three times the annual operation budget - which would currently come to more than $50 million.
The move means the Irish can maintain football independence, while the ACC is making an exception to its all-or-nothing requirement for schools to be full members.
''It's a marquee brand and any time you add a marquee brand to your established tradition and the wonderful stuff you have, it enhances it,'' Boston College football coach Frank Spaziani said Wednesday morning.
It was unclear when the realignment will take effect. The Big East has a 27-month notification period for any member that wants to leave, and a $5 million exit fee.
But the Big East has also shown a willingness to negotiate an early exit, as it did with Pittsburgh and Syracuse, who are scheduled to join the Big East next year. The Big East received $7.5 million each from Pitt and Syracuse.
''The University of Notre Dame has informed us that it is joining the Atlantic Coast Conference in all sports other than football. Notre Dame has been a valued member of the Big East Conference and we wish them success in the future,'' Big East Commissioner Mike Aresco said. ''However, Notre Dame's departure does not change our plans. We have prestigious institutions that are excited to be a part of the Big East. We remain committed to making the Big East stronger than it has ever been.''
It's also unclear whether the addition of Notre Dame would affect the ACC's 15-year TV deal with ESPN worth $3.6 billion, which was announced in May after the league said Pittsburgh and Syracuse would leave the Big East to join the conference.
Notre Dame said in a news release that the move doesn't affect its broadcast partnership with NBC, with Swarbrick calling the move ''essentially revenue neutral.''
Notre Dame has played basketball in the Big East since the mid-1990s. Now, in the ACC, the Irish will face traditional powers like Duke and North Carolina - and rekindle its rivalries with Syracuse and Pittsburgh - while the league also fits other sports Notre Dame is competitive in, including lacrosse and soccer.
The ACC in turn cements a relationship with one of the nation's most storied football programs, adding to a group that already includes Florida State, Miami, Virginia Tech and Clemson. That would also seem to position the ACC as the easy choice if Notre Dame ever decides to give up its football independence.
Notre Dame considered giving up its football independence in 1999 to join the Big Ten, but alumni were staunchly opposed and the deal never got done. Throughout the dizzying conference realignment of the past few years, Notre Dame officials have been adamant about maintaining football independence.
The ACC decided to accommodate Notre Dame's desires.
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AP sports writers Hank Kurz in Richmond, Va., and Ralph D. Russo in New York, and Associated Press Writer Tom Coyne in South Bend, Ind., contributed to this report.
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