Big 12 Commissioner Labels Notre Dame Comments After CFP Omission as ‘Completely Out of Bounds’
During a strong rebuke, Big 12 chief declared that Notre Dame athletic director, Pete Bevacqua, was “entirely out of bounds” for recent comments about the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).
The Source of the Controversy
The Fighting Irish maintains a gridiron scheduling agreement with the ACC and is a full member in all other sports. The AD has claimed that the ACC hurt Notre Dame’s opportunities to enter the College Football Playoff, instead campaigning for the selection of the University of Miami.
“They does wonderful things for Notre Dame, but we offer significant 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 selection,” the athletic director said.
Miami ultimately received the CFP spot over Notre Dame, primarily due to securing the direct meeting between the two programs. Bevacqua further alleged that the ACC ran a coordinated social media effort over several weeks demonstrating its support for Miami.
A Strong Rebuke
Later on Tuesday, the Big 12 commissioner spoke about the criticism at the Sports Business Journal’s Intercollegiate Athletics Forum.
“In my view his behavior has been out of line,” the commissioner stated. “He is totally out of bounds in his tactics and if he was in the same room, I’d say to him the same thing.”
The criticism is especially striking given Bevacqua’s special position. He sits on the College Football Playoff Management Committee with the ten FBS conference commissioners, representing the concerns of football independent Notre Dame.
Historical Context and Future Rumors
Yormark also highlighted the support the ACC offered Notre Dame in the Covid-affected 2020 season, providing the Irish a full conference schedule and a place in its title game.
“It has been egregious,” Yormark said again. “It’s been unacceptable criticizing Jim Phillips, when they helped Notre Dame during Covid...”
Speculation had circulated about Notre Dame potentially leaving the ACC and aligning with the Big 12. However, Yormark's pointed reprimand on Tuesday appear to make such a scenario unlikely in the immediate future.
Notre Dame, who reached the CFP championship game last season, have stated they are declining a bowl game after failing to qualify this year.
