“How do you put those people that are in that room to make a really important decision that impacts the landscape of college football, and they can’t compare apples to apples or oranges to oranges?” Franklin wondered. “I think that makes it very, very difficult.”
It didn’t matter that Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman was right next to him during a joint press conference Wednesday. Franklin let his thoughts known.
“I was not a math major at East Stroudsburg, but just the numbers are going to make things more challenging if you’re playing one more conference game,” Franklin, who previously coached at Vanderbilt in the SEC, said.
Notre Dame is one of three teams that play an independent schedule in the FBS, but the College Football Playoff expansion has led Franklin to believe every team should be in a conference.
So, with more teams entering the playoff, Franklin is calling for every team to play the same number of games and belong to a conference.
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
“I’m a guy that just thinks, ‘Tell us what we’re doing, and let’s go.’ And you move forward,” Freeman said when asked about whether he had an opinion on the matter. “I love where we’re at right now. Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua and our Notre Dame administration will continue to make decisions that are best for our program.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
The Capital One Orange Bowl between Penn State and Notre Dame kicks off Thursday in Miami Gardens, Florida, at 7:30 p.m. ET.
There are also differences among conferences. For example, SEC teams play only eight conference games, while the Big Ten plays nine before conference championship games are played.
The CFP selection process was already ridiculed in this first year of an expanded playoff, with teams like Alabama being left out. Franklin wants to see consistency because of scheduling differences, which makes it difficult for the selection committee in his eyes.