Big 12 Chief Calls Notre Dame Comments After CFP Snub as ‘Totally Out of Bounds’
At a notable statement, Brett Yormark asserted that Notre Dame athletic director, Pete Bevacqua, was “entirely out of bounds” for public comments targeting the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).
Root of the Dispute
The Fighting Irish has a gridiron scheduling agreement with the ACC and is a participating member in all other sports. Bevacqua has claimed that the ACC harmed Notre Dame’s opportunities to make the College Football Playoff, instead pushing for the spot of the University of Miami.
“The ACC does wonderful things for Notre Dame, but we offer tremendous football value to the ACC, and we didn’t understand why you would go out of your way to try to hurt us in this procedure,” the athletic director stated.
The Hurricanes eventually received the CFP spot over Notre Dame, mostly due to winning the direct matchup between the two teams. Bevacqua additionally stated that the ACC ran a coordinated social media push over multiple weeks indicating its preference for Miami.
A Strong Rebuke
Subsequently on Tuesday, the Big 12 commissioner addressed the comments at the Sports Business Journal’s Intercollegiate Athletics Forum.
“I think his conduct has been out of line,” Yormark said. “He is totally out of bounds in his method and if he was in the room, I’d say to him the same thing.”
This public pushback is especially notable given Bevacqua’s prominent position. He sits on the College Football Playoff Management Committee alongside the ten FBS conference commissioners, representing the interests of football independent Notre Dame.
Past Support and Speculative Moves
Yormark also highlighted the support the ACC gave Notre Dame in the pandemic-disrupted 2020 season, providing the Irish a complete conference schedule and a place in its championship game.
“It has been unacceptable,” Yormark said again. “It’s been egregious going after the ACC commissioner, when they rescued Notre Dame during Covid...”
Talk had spread about Notre Dame potentially splitting with the ACC and aligning with the Big 12. However, the commissioner's pointed reprimand on Tuesday appear to make such a move less likely 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.
