College Football: Notre Dame, TV Contracts, and What The BCS Could Be.

$18 million.

That's the amount of money that perennial cellar dweller Vanderbilt is raking in on an annual basis thanks to the SEC's new TV contracts with ESPN, CBS, and the SEC championship game.

Notre Dame on the other hand?

The Irish are making $9 million off the NBC TV contract annually and they don't have a championship game since they are independent.

While I couldn't find the numbers for what Notre Dame makes being a member of Big East basketball, I'd guess it isn't close to $9 million a year, especially when you split it between 16 teams.

So why do the Irish still hold out, relish their identity as an independent, and claim the TV contract with NBC as a leading reason? At this point, it just looks like ego more than anything.

Sure, while a Vanderbilt or Kentucky rakes in more money annually, what they don't get is exposure. Notre Dame is on national TV every week and that exposure is invaluable. But would anyone argue that they wouldn't still be on national TV almost every week if they were part of the Big Ten?

Of course they would. The Irish could trade two or three national TV games per year, if you are still going to play seven or eight, and at the same time bring in an extra $7 million a year with a new big TV contract with the Big Ten.

The Irish are sitting right in the middle of Big Ten country, a conference with 11 teams, and yet they are still independent.

Meanwhile, the SEC set the standard for what a big time conference can achieve in TV contracts last summer, when they signed a 15 year deal with ESPN worth $2.25 billion.

That payout gives $12.5 million per team a year, plus the CBS contract which is 15 years and $4.6 million per team a year, adding in what the SEC earns from their conference championship game gives each team around $18 million annually.

So, teams like Vanderbilt and Kentucky make more money than Notre Dame on a yearly basis. That's almost unthinkable. The NBC/Notre Dame deal used to be the thing that made everyone else around the nation jealous. Not anymore.

So why do Notre Dame and the Big Ten still stay separately?

If they joined the Big Ten, they would no doubt up their annual payout and may push the Big Ten to bigger contracts than even the SEC. The Big Ten already makes $7 million per team a year from the Big Ten Network, and they make another $9 million per team a year from ABC.

Think what the contract would look like if Notre Dame was a part of that conference? That would also lead to a conference championship game, which means another million or two a year as well.

Notre Dame potentially holds the key to unlocking all that the BCS could be as well—just think about it.

Notre Dame wises up and joins the Big Ten, which is a no brainer to many. The Big Ten then creates their championship game, which the Big 12, ACC, and SEC already have.

Anyone think the Pac 10 won't follow suit?

Of course they will.

First, I think the Rose Bowl will want their two traditional conferences crowning a champion the same way.

Second, the Pac 10 will be the only big time conference other than the Big East to not have a conference championship. They will see the money flowing from TV contracts and a conference championship game and want a piece of that pie.

So with the Big Ten and Pac 10 now having conference championship games, the pressure will be unreal on the BCS and athletic directors to make these championships a play-in to the BCS playoffs.

Sure these steps to a playoff are far fetched for right now and probably wishful thinking at best, but that's the potential and Notre Dame can start the ball rolling.

Recently, the Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany said they had no plans to expand at this time, but there's no doubt his tune would change very quickly if Notre Dame wanted in.

So, get with the program Irish. At the very least, you should join the Big Ten because it's the next logical step in college football. More money, and you can keep your three out of conference games with USC, Stanford, and Navy if you want to.

Be a part of something bigger than yourself—join the Big Ten—and make that one giant leap for college football fans everywhere towards a playoff. At the very least do what makes sense, or cents.