Notre Dame Makes $20M from Orange Bowl Win vs. PSU in 2025 CFP Bracket

Even though Penn State head coach James Franklin wants to see every team in college football affiliated with a conference, Notre Dame continues to benefit from being an independent after a 27-24 victory over the Nittany Lions in the College Football Playoff semifinal.

Front Office Sports noted the two teams that make the College Football Playoff Championship Game earn $20 million for their conference, but Notre Dame will get to keep the full amount for itself since it doesn't have any affiliation.

Franklin told reporters Wednesday that he thought every FBS team should be in a conference in the interest of uniformity across the sport.

"It should be consistent across college football," Franklin said. "This is no knock at [Freeman] or Notre Dame, but I think everybody should be in a conference. I think everybody should play a conference championship game, or nobody should play a conference champion championship game. I think everybody should play the same number of conference games."

Notre Dame is one of three independent FBS programs, along with Connecticut and Massachusetts. UMass will no longer be independent next season when it joins the MAC.

While the Fighting Irish are an ACC affiliate in other sports, they remain independent in football. That allows them to keep all of the money they earn through various outlets, including bowl payouts and television contracts, rather than having to split it equally if it were in a conference.

Notre Dame extended its TV deal with NBC in November 2023 through the 2029 season. The new contract is believed to pay the football program around $50 million per season, but the program also earns $17 million in television money from its ACC affiliation in other sports.

Per ESPN's Heather Dinich, Notre Dame could earn around $18 million annually beginning in 2026, which is right in line with Big Ten and SEC programs and more than Big 12 and ACC schools.

Dinich also noted there will be a $6 million financial incentive for any independent team that makes the playoff.

All of this goes to show that Notre Dame doesn't have to deal with splitting conference revenue because its stature as one of the most historic and marquee programs in the nation has afforded it the ability to operate outside the traditional conference structure.

The Irish have also elevated their profile by reaching the College Football Playoff Championship Game in the first season of the 12-team format.