Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick predicts that membership in the five power conferences will remain at its present 65 schools for the foreseeable future.
Swarbrick, who will be in Denver next week for a Notre Dame alumni event, doesn’t allow much encouragement for members of the NCAA’s nonpower Division I leagues to think they could join the elite group.
“I think we’re entering a stable period for at least the five major conferences,” Swarbrick said. “You have to ask, what are the benefits of adding more members? It’s difficult to identify any. It would complicate scheduling. There has to be incentives to motivate change, and there doesn’t seem to be any right now.”
Swarbrick bases his opinion on his activity on NCAA committees. He is the upcoming new chairman of the Division I-A Athletic Directors Association.
“I don’t have a crystal ball,” Swarbrick said. “There could be some court decisions ahead that could be game changers. But I anticipate that we’re entering a period of time where things will be pretty quiet in terms of changing conference affiliations.”
The Mountain West, whose members include Air Force, Colorado State and Wyoming, is not one of the five power conferences. There has been speculation that CSU’s best course of action is to seek membership in a power-five conference.
Swarbrick, 61, contends there will be room for all levels of college football in the future. And he scoffed at the idea that college football is headed toward becoming a farm system for the NFL.
“That’s not a model that Notre Dame is interested in joining,” said Swarbrick, an ND graduate. “Absolutely there will be room for all of our programs. I’ve seen a real commitment for that from everybody in our meeting rooms. All of our programs have had great players and made meaningful contributions to the fabric of college football.”
Swarbrick didn’t offer much hope that the Fighting Irish would be playing football on the Front Range anytime soon. With schedules into the 2020s essentially full, there is little chance of the Irish resuming a series with Air Force in the near future.
