Honestly though is the Big Twen any tougher of a conference then the ACC?
No.
But that's not really germane.
Notre Dame will get years where they will play Duke, Wake Forest, and Boston College instead of Florida State, Clemson, and Virginia Tech. Then, with the absence of more respectable opponents like Michigan (and who knows who else they're about to drop), Notre Dame gets a cupcake of a schedule.
And the point is that with that cupcake schedule, they'll waltz right into the championship race. Probably won't matter because they'll get beat easily, but it will matter when Notre Dame keeps a respectable, championship caliber team from getting in.