Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
After soap-opera separation, Michigan-Notre Dame reconnect
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The “end” of the Michigan-Notre Dame rivalry was a three-year soap opera that included accusations of cowardice and the “Chicken Dance” being played in the Big House.
It was quite the drama, concluding in 2014 with a historic beat down. The “end,” however, turned out to be just a brief hiatus.
The revival of Michigan-Notre Dame was so matter-of-fact that the athletic directors who got it done weren’t quite sure who reached out first. Was it a phone call? No, they ran into each other at a meeting. Right? A call from one coach to the other helped. Maybe.
To the people involved, it seemed inevitable that the Wolverines and Fighting Irish would play again. No peace treaty necessary. No. 14 Michigan faces No. 12 Notre Dame on Saturday.
“It is something that we value, that we believe is valuable for college football,” Michigan athletic director Warde Manuel said. “That is valuable for both Michigan and Notre Dame and college football.”
Michigan-Notre Dame is a rivalry with more prestige than history. The Fighting Irish played their first game against Michigan in 1887 but did not become semiregular opponents until the late 1970s.
A deal between the schools in 2007 extended the agreement though 2031, but it allowed for either school to pull out with three games’ notice.
In 2012, Notre Dame exercised that option. The Fighting Irish had joined the Atlantic Coast Conference, a deal that allowed Notre Dame to keep its football independence but called for five games against ACC opponents each season.
Notre Dame was committed to preserving annual games against Southern California, Stanford and Navy. That basically left Notre Dame with no room for another yearly series.
The drama started when Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick gave a letter of notification to then-Michigan AD David Brandon before the 2012 game in South Bend.
“The decision to cancel games in 2015-17 was Notre Dame and not ours,” Brandon said then in a news release.
What followed were some WWE-style follies. Then Michigan coach Brady Hoke accused Notre Dame of being “chicken” to play the Wolverines. Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly said Michigan was not one of the Irish’s traditional rivals.
The crowd at Michigan Stadium in 2013 was frenzied for a night game the Wolverines won 41-30. After it was over, the “Chicken Dance” song blared through the Big House.
“I sort of enjoy the mythology of all that,” Swarbrick said. “It’s got marketing value.”