Big 12 Chief Labels Notre Dame Comments Following CFP Omission as ‘Completely Out of Bounds’
At a strong criticism, Big 12 Conference commissioner declared that Notre Dame AD, Pete Bevacqua, was “completely out of bounds” for public criticisms targeting the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).
Root of the Controversy
The Fighting Irish has a gridiron scheduling agreement with the ACC and is a participating member in all other sports. Bevacqua has contended that the ACC hurt Notre Dame’s bid to qualify for the College Football Playoff, instead choosing to campaigning for the selection of the University of Miami.
“The ACC do wonderful things for Notre Dame, but we provide substantial football value to the ACC, and we didn’t understand why you would go out of your way to try to undermine us in this procedure,” Bevacqua stated.
Miami ultimately secured the CFP berth over Notre Dame, mostly due to winning the head-to-head contest between the two schools. Notre Dame's AD additionally stated that the ACC ran a coordinated social media campaign over multiple weeks demonstrating its preference for Miami.
A Strong Reaction
Later on Tuesday, Yormark spoke about the criticism at the Sports Business Journal’s Intercollegiate Athletics Forum.
“In my view his actions has been egregious,” Yormark said. “He is totally out of bounds in his tactics and if he was in the same room, I’d tell him the same thing.”
This public pushback is especially notable given Bevacqua’s special role. He sits on the College Football Playoff Management Committee alongside the ten FBS conference commissioners, advocating for the interests of football independent Notre Dame.
Past Context and Future Rumors
Yormark also highlighted the assistance the ACC gave Notre Dame during the Covid-affected 2020 season, providing the Irish a complete conference schedule and a place in its championship game.
“His behavior has been egregious,” he reiterated. “It’s been egregious attacking Jim Phillips, when they helped Notre Dame during Covid...”
Speculation had spread about Notre Dame possibly leaving the ACC and partnering with the Big 12. Yet, the commissioner's strong reprimand on Tuesday seem to make such a partnership highly improbable in the near term.
The Irish, who reached the CFP championship game last season, have indicated they will decline a postseason invitation after missing out this year.
