Notre Dame's CFP matchup with Penn State: James Franklin takes a jab at Notre Dame.

Notre Dame is not a member of a conference, according to Penn State head coach James Franklin before his Nittany Lions face the Fighting Irish in the national title game.

Franklin believes that every team should be in a conference, including Notre Dame, which is one of three teams that play an independent schedule in the FBS.

During a joint press conference on Wednesday, Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman was next to him, but Franklin still expressed his opinions.

"Franklin emphasized the need for consistency in college football, stating that everyone should be in a conference and play a conference championship game. He believes that everyone should play the same number of conference games, regardless of their team or conference."

The Nittany Lions made it to the Big Ten championship game, but lost to the Oregon Ducks, who were the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff. The Ducks then fell to Ohio State, who will face Texas in the national title game.

Notre Dame played one less game than Penn State, which earned the No. 7 seed in the CFP as an at-large team.

Franklin is advocating for all teams to play an equal number of games and be part of a conference due to the increase in playoff teams.

For years, Notre Dame has fiercely defended its autonomy, which is a crucial aspect of its identity. Meanwhile, other Fighting Irish teams participate in the ACC, the conference with which the football program has a scheduling arrangement.

The number of conference games played by SEC and Big Ten teams varies, with the SEC playing eight and the Big Ten playing nine before championship games.

Franklin likes the eight-game conference schedule in the SEC.

Franklin, who previously coached at Vanderbilt in the SEC, stated that even though he was not a math major at East Stroudsburg, the numbers would make things more challenging if he were playing one more conference game.

"We require a person with a broad viewpoint to examine it."

The CFP selection process was criticized in the first year of an enlarged playoff, with teams such as Alabama being excluded. Franklin believes that consistency is necessary due to scheduling disparities, which he believes makes it challenging for the selection committee to make fair decisions.

"Franklin wondered how to make a really important decision that impacts the landscape of college football when the people in the room can't compare apples to apples or oranges to oranges. He thought it made it very, very difficult."

Notre Dame's conference championship weekend provides a much-needed opportunity for rest and recovery for the squad, a luxury that Freeman recognizes comes with great pride in his program's independence.

"Freeman stated that he is a man who simply thinks, "Tell us what we're doing, and let's go." He then moves forward. When asked about his opinion on the matter, he said, "I love where we're at right now. Our Notre Dame athletic director, Pete Bevacqua, and our administration will continue to make decisions that are best for our program.""

The Orange Bowl, featuring Penn State and Notre Dame, will commence on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. ET in Miami Gardens, Florida.

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