Notre Dame’s Exclusion from the College Football Playoff: Implications and Reactions

The uproar over Notre Dame not making it into the College Football Playoff could seriously impact the football program. Pete Bevacqua, Ireland’s sporting director, expressed confidence during the “negotiation” phase of the situation, claiming that such an oversight as in 2025 wouldn’t occur again. This has a lot to do with a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in place, which supposedly grants preferential treatment to schools that finish 13th or better, assuming the playoff field expands to 14 teams or more.

Right now, it feels somewhat like an empty threat since no school has openly declared its intentions. Still, it highlights that numerous college teams might feel a bit unsettled about Notre Dame’s position. Alongside the MOU discussions, Bevacqua criticized the ACC for not allowing Duke to advance in the playoffs due to a tiebreaker rule. Miami moved ahead as the top team, despite Duke’s original chance, which is a point of contention given Duke’s matchup against Virginia in the ACC Championship.

Bevacqua pointed out that the ACC has caused “permanent damage” to its relationship with Notre Dame. This also affects their agreement regarding the football schedule and Notre Dame’s role in ACC basketball, which extends to 2031. The idea was that the ACC would provide strong opponents to strengthen Notre Dame’s schedule, while having the Irish in conference football would ideally help the ACC secure a better television deal.

Things might be falling apart now, but it adds a complex layer to the situation. Essentially, Notre Dame has been vocal for a week about how college football needs them more than vice versa. There’s a real chance they might call out that bluff. Looking ahead, Notre Dame’s 2026 schedule is looking quite weak, with only Wisconsin and USC posing significant challenges outside the ACC. This follows a 2025 schedule that ranked low, at 44th nationally, which was a major factor in their playoff exit.

This means that if Notre Dame attempts to break ties with the ACC early, they’d need to fill more than half their schedule themselves. Moreover, if power conferences close ranks against Notre Dame’s less competitive schedule, it could spell disaster for their playoff hopes—whether or not the MOU is still in play.

It’s clear that financial implications are significant. Once everything settles, a compromise may be reached. Threatening Notre Dame and subsequently pulling certain games from their schedule would jeopardize the revenue that comes with it. Nonetheless, urging Bevacqua and Notre Dame to play less arrogant and more collaboratively feels like a wise move. The reality is that the Irish, like everyone else in college football, should acknowledge they need the broader football community just as much—if not more—than it needs them. In this landscape, no institution is above falling from grace.