Notre Dame hoops and hockey plans and how real an ACC exit may be

Spring practice will begin around Saint Patrick's Day and end with the Blue-Gold Game on April 25, and Notre Dame's men's and women's basketball teams and the hockey program are struggling this season.

Notre Dame will begin spring practice around Saint Patrick's Day and will close the period with the Blue-Gold Game on April 25. The mailbag piece examines on-field issues and bigger organizational questions about coaching, roster construction, and conference alignment. Both basketball programs and the hockey team have underperformed this season, prompting scrutiny of resource allocation and leadership. The article also discusses a speculative scenario in which Notre Dame could pursue a partial scheduling agreement with the Big Ten and SEC instead of full ACC membership changes. Key facts: - Spring practice timing is set for around Saint Patrick's Day, with the Blue-Gold Game scheduled for April 25. - The men's basketball program faces a difficult season and may miss the ACC tournament, while the women's team could miss the NCAA Tournament despite having Hannah Hidalgo as a key player. - Notre Dame hockey is 1-15 in the Big Ten under first-year head coach Brock Sheahan. - Recent coaching turnover moved from long-tenured figures (Muffet McGraw, Jeff Jackson, Mike Brey) to Micah Shrewsberry, Niele Ivey and Brock Sheahan, with two of those being first-time head coaches. - The idea of Notre Dame leaving the ACC for a scheduling agreement with the Big Ten and SEC is presented as speculative and potentially costly, with media-rights negotiations later this decade cited as a motivating factor. Summary: The current situation places pressure on athletic leadership to weigh investments in coaching and roster construction against football-driven revenue priorities. University leaders, including athletic director Pete Bevacqua and hoops GM Pat Garrity, are expected to decide whether to back current coaches or pursue changes in the coming weeks. The question of an ACC exit or alternative scheduling arrangement is portrayed as a longer-term, speculative possibility tied to future media-rights deals.