NBC and Notre Dame Reup Through 2015

Anybody who thought that Notre Dame's troubles over the last few years would give NBC pause when it came time to renew the peacock's contract to broadcast the Irish can rest easy now. NBC and Notre Dame announced today that their exclusive contract has been extended through the 2015 season despite the Irish having the lowest ratings since the contract began in 1991.

The renewal of the NBC contract should also effectively end any discussion that Notre Dame might join a conference before the end of the 2015 football season. Although financial terms weren't disclosed, it is unlikely that the deal calls for payments much lower than the $9 million per year that the Irish receive under the current deal. With that money flowing in and their seat at the BCS table secure, why should the Irish give all that up to join a conference. Unless the Big East grows some balls and tells Notre Dame to join for football or leave for all other sports, the issue of conference affiliation is dead until 2015. That likely means the next round of conference expansion/realignment won't take place before then either.