Big 12 Conference Commissioner Calls Notre Dame Remarks Following CFP Omission as ‘Completely Out of Bounds’
At a notable rebuke, Big 12 chief stated that Notre Dame's athletic director, Pete Bevacqua, was “totally out of bounds” for his comments about the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).
Root of the Dispute
Notre Dame has a gridiron scheduling agreement with the ACC and is a full member in all other sports. The AD has claimed that the ACC actively damaged Notre Dame’s chances to enter the College Football Playoff, instead choosing to pushing for the selection of the University of Miami.
“They does wonderful things for Notre Dame, but we bring significant football value to the ACC, and we didn’t understand why you would make an effort to try to hurt us in this process,” the athletic director said.
Miami ultimately earned the CFP berth over Notre Dame, mostly due to winning the head-to-head contest between the two schools. Notre Dame's AD also claimed that the ACC ran a coordinated social media campaign over several weeks showing its preference for Miami.
An Egregious Rebuke
Later on Tuesday, Yormark addressed the criticism at the Sports Business Journal’s Intercollegiate Athletics Forum.
“I think his conduct has been unacceptable,” Yormark commented. “He is totally out of bounds in his tactics and if he was in the room, I’d say to him the same thing.”
This public pushback is especially striking given Bevacqua’s special standing. He serves on the College Football Playoff Management Committee alongside the ten FBS conference commissioners, representing the interests of independent Notre Dame.
Historical Context and Future Moves
The commissioner also highlighted the assistance the ACC provided Notre Dame in the pandemic-disrupted 2020 season, giving the Irish a full conference schedule and a berth in its title game.
“His behavior has been unacceptable,” he said again. “It’s been egregious attacking Jim Phillips, when they saved Notre Dame during Covid...”
Rumors had spread about Notre Dame possibly splitting with the ACC and partnering with the Big 12. Yet, Yormark's pointed comments on Tuesday seem to make such a scenario highly improbable in the near term.
Notre Dame, who reached the CFP championship game last season, have stated they will decline a bowl game after missing out this year.