Big 12 Commissioner Labels Notre Dame Remarks Following CFP Omission as ‘Completely Out of Bounds’
In a public statement, Big 12 chief declared that Notre Dame's AD, 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 other sports. Bevacqua has contended that the ACC hurt Notre Dame’s chances to make the College Football Playoff, instead choosing to pushing for the spot of the University of Miami.
“The ACC do wonderful things for Notre Dame, but we provide significant football value to the ACC, and we didn’t understand why you would make an effort to try to hurt us in this procedure,” Bevacqua stated.
Miami ultimately secured the CFP spot over Notre Dame, largely due to winning the direct matchup between the two schools. Notre Dame's AD additionally stated that the ACC ran a targeted social media effort over multiple weeks demonstrating its preference for Miami.
An Egregious Response
Subsequently on Tuesday, Yormark spoke about the criticism at the Sports Business Journal’s Intercollegiate Athletics Forum.
“My opinion is that his conduct has been unacceptable,” Yormark commented. “He is totally out of bounds in his method and if he was in the same room, I’d tell him the same thing.”
The criticism is particularly significant 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 Support and Future Moves
Yormark also remarked the lifeline the ACC gave Notre Dame in the Covid-affected 2020 season, providing the Irish a complete conference schedule and a berth in its title game.
“It has been egregious,” Yormark reiterated. “It’s been unacceptable attacking the ACC commissioner, when they helped Notre Dame during Covid...”
Speculation had spread about Notre Dame potentially leaving the ACC and partnering with the Big 12. However, Yormark's strong comments on Tuesday seem to make such a partnership highly improbable in the near term.
The Irish, who reached the CFP final last season, have announced they plan to decline a postseason invitation after missing out this season.
