Notre Dame isn?t interested in joining the Big Ten if and when the league expands. The Irish turned down an offer in 1999, and athletic director Jack Swarbrick told the Chicago Tribune that the Irish still prefer their independent status that allows them to maintain traditional rivalries. ?Independence is a big part of the tradition of the program and our identity,? Swarbrick told the paper. ?We?d sure like to try to maintain it.? NBC pays Notre Dame $9 million annually to televise its home football games, but they could double that by moving to the Big Ten, according to the Tribune. ?All of this has a lot more to do with our priorities than it does with business issues,? Swarbrick told the paper. ?Our independence is tied up in a lot of the rivalries we have. We play Navy every year and have the tradition of USC weekends. Frankly, it works pretty well to play USC in October at home and in November at their place.?