Notre Dame aligning themselves with the ACC for all sports seems to make sure they'll have an "in" if it comes down to that. I wouldn't be so sure... If we have to get down to four 16-team conferences, of the five major conferences left, three are safe bets (SEC, B1G, PAC) for the final table. That leaves the ACC and B12 fighting over that last spot at the dinner table. Also, it appears that with the B1G moving into the Atlantic, they're looking for 2 more ACC schools (UNC, GA TECH?) to round them into 16. Then you pair that with rumblings that FSU and Clemson are looking to split for either the SEC or B12... And all of a sudden, that leaves the ACC with VA Tech football, Duke basketball, and Big East leftovers. You really think ND will leave football independence for that? It will be interesting to see what happens first: the B1G and SEC getting to 16 (which, odds are, will pick the ACC dry and save the Big 12) or the PAC 12 expanding southward and getting to 16 (which will likely kill the Big 12).