ND left out of Playoffs, Bama gets in

[Hard2Bluff]

Discuss...

Notre Dame AD says CFP selection committee pulled rug in 'farce'

Notre Dame AD Pete Bevacqua told ESPN that the program is in utter disbelief after being snubbed by the CFP, with the Irish instead not playing in any bowl game this season.

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[RuffledFeathers]

I guess the committee said get a conference championship already. I can feel for ND though. We spent about two decades as an independent. Miami won the head to head by three in the first game of the season, but ND won ten straight to end the season. Miami didn't qualify for the conference championship, but ND doesn't have one. Pretty much, if you don't have a conference, you better plan on an undefeated season. They should have flipped a coin to give both teams a chance, however, a head to head typically would negate that option. A tough call to make.

 

[Basement Bias]

Maybe it fixes our sports' problem or we create a brand new one.

 

[Hard2Bluff]

I guess the committee said get a conference championship already. I can feel for ND though. We spent about two decades as an independent. Miami won the head to head by three in the first game of the season, but ND won ten straight to end the season. Miami didn't qualify for the conference championship, but ND doesn't have one. Pretty much, if you don't have a conference, you better plan on an undefeated season. They should have flipped a coin to give both teams a chance, however, a head to head typically would negate that option. A tough call to make.

I would have taken ND over Bama after that curb stomping by UGA in the SEC champ game, which gave them 3 losses to end their regular season.

 

[della]

I am with ND on their decision to forego the bowl. It does seem wrong for them to switch the rankings with no real change until the final vote. If anything bama proved they had regressed in the SEC title game and I don't Miami did anything to jump ND. This is just evidence that merit is beaten by money yet another time.

 

[Shower Fart]

I thought Miami should have been ahead of ND the whole time, and the committee excuse that they can’t compare teams head to head (when they’ve actually already played) was nonsense. But, since that’s not how they were ranked, how can you flip them when both teams were idle?

Miami got elevated to appease the ACC which would have been left out after Duke won the ACC. That’s the right move IMO, but the ACC tiebreaker rules made it necessary to do it in a clumsy way.

Also strange that BYU is punished for losing a CCG, while Bama wasn’t. The desire to get a 5th SEC team into the field cost ND more than anything. And that wouldn’t have have happened if two G5 schools weren’t in the field. I expect that G5 problem will be addressed before next year.

 

[Bama Believer]

a few comments / observations:

Bama has gotten worse over the last 4 games that we've played, idk if its because of injuries or if our trends and tendencies have become obvious and defendable. our defense is playoff worthy but the lack of a running game and the decline of a passing threat is most certainly not playoff worthy. Oklahoma is the best possible matchup for us. the last time we played the difference in the game was -3 turnovers and a missed FG.. we might win this next one and then Indy will send us home.

both Notre Dame and Miami deserve a spot in my opinion, this will be unpopular but I think (my opinion) G5 schools dont belong.

part of going to a bowl game is a reward to the team for a great season, come on ND, protest another way and give your boys their reward!

i really dont like whats happening to the sport I grew up loving, NIL, the transfer portal, the millions of dollars and coaching merry-go-rounds (lane kiffin, ole miss fans and players deserved better) and this playoff controversy,, there will always be talk of the first out.. I kind of like what they do in golf when they set the cut after the first 2 days to see who goes on to play the final 2 days, its a number -2 and ties, it leaves room for more than a set number of participants, i wonder if something like that could work in cfb, this year for example, leave notre dame and byu in and just make a 14 team bracket.

 

[Irishblooded]

I get both sides of it. And I am the rare ND fan that would prefer ND in a conference.

The problem is this. ND wants the committee to ultimately make a line of what they want in the playoff. It seems from week to week it goes between best team to most deserving.

I have no problem with Miami ahead of ND.
Here is my issues. And the issues of ND nation.

ND was a lock via the rankings the whole way. They didnt lose a game. They didnt even play a close game. And they played wirh respect. Their starters didnt see a full game from USC on.

And Im not picking on Bama. I am picking on what Bama represents in this argument. There is no 2 ways about it ESPiN doesnt like ND. They hate we dont have a contract they control outside of our ACC games. And that is painfully obvious. Bama became the way to screw ND in this.

If you are saying that it is the best 12 teams. You can't tell me Bama is one of them based on the last 4 games. And if it is the most deserving you can't tell me they deserve it more than BYU.

You can't tell me that ND needs a conference championship. Half the teams in the playoff didnt play one. And they didn't move. Really the only advantage for ND from the outside to join a conference is to have bad losses and still make the playoff.

So, ND players. And I can tell you with a level of certainty you can take to the bank from people I know. Almost every player in the room voted to not participate with ESPiN and their bowl money.

This year it came down to Virginia lost. Who by the way has an AD on the committee and they realized the ACC was completely out. Or they could do what they did and leave ND out and then call them the problem.

 

[batchaps4me]

I get both sides of it. And I am the rare ND fan that would prefer ND in a conference.

The problem is this. ND wants the committee to ultimately make a line of what they want in the playoff. It seems from week to week it goes between best team to most deserving.

I have no problem with Miami ahead of ND.
Here is my issues. And the issues of ND nation.

ND was a lock via the rankings the whole way. They didnt lose a game. They didnt even play a close game. And they played wirh respect. Their starters didnt see a full game from USC on.

And Im not picking on Bama. I am picking on what Bama represents in this argument. There is no 2 ways about it ESPiN doesnt like ND. They hate we dont have a contract they control outside of our ACC games. And that is painfully obvious. Bama became the way to screw ND in this.

If you are saying that it is the best 12 teams. You can't tell me Bama is one of them based on the last 4 games. And if it is the most deserving you can't tell me they deserve it more than BYU.

You can't tell me that ND needs a conference championship. Half the teams in the playoff didnt play one. And they didn't move. Really the only advantage for ND from the outside to join a conference is to have bad losses and still make the playoff.

So, ND players. And I can tell you with a level of certainty you can take to the bank from people I know. Almost every player in the room voted to not participate with ESPiN and their bowl money.

This year it came down to Virginia lost. Who by the way has an AD on the committee and they realized the ACC was completely out. Or they could do what they did and leave ND out and then call them the problem.

I said before, I have no sympathy for the teams vying for the last spot and not making it. FFS if you are going to put the decision in others hands, don't bitch about their decision. Most of the outrage I have seen is for the process and not the result. Everyone wants to make solid projections with incomplete data and then get pissed when they are wrong. The funniest thing I have seen so far is a Texas fan that thinks they are the best SEC team not named Georgia and a Notre Dame fan that thinks the ACC should have went to bat for them over Miami.

 

[Irishblooded]

I said before, I have no sympathy for the teams vying for the last spot and not making it. FFS if you are going to put the decision in others hands, don't bitch about their decision. Most of the outrage I have seen is for the process and not the result. Everyone wants to make solid projections with incomplete data and then get pissed when they are wrong. The funniest thing I have seen so far is a Texas fan that thinks they are the best SEC team not named Georgia and a Notre Dame fan that thinks the ACC should have went to bat for them over Miami.

The argument ND fans have at the ACC is 2 fold.

1. They spent the last number of weeks absolutely dogging ND. As if we are some less than and dont deserve what we have. Not remembering just a few short years ago they were practically on life support and getting ready to be raided before ND wrote the agreement they did to open up additional bowl seeds and TV contracts.
2. They went out of their way do what they did to make Bama the fall guy keeping them where they were to then put in Miami and kick ND all the way out. From replaying the ND / Miami game, literally 8 times in a row on the ACC channel.

I will die on this hill. That no conference should have ANY active employee at any level on the committee. Such as ADs, coaches, etc.

And just to be clear. Im not mad at any team that made it in rather I feel they should have or not. There's plenty of argument to have with plenty of them. But that happens in an extended playoff. Everyone has a wart somewhere. What pisses ND nation off is that there no only seems to be a constantly moving goal posts every week. But a different set of goal posts depending on the team. And that isn't fair for anyone.

 

[Shower Fart]

The argument ND fans have at the ACC is 2 fold.

1. They spent the last number of weeks absolutely dogging ND. As if we are some less than and dont deserve what we have. Not remembering just a few short years ago they were practically on life support and getting ready to be raided before ND wrote the agreement they did to open up additional bowl seeds and TV contracts.
2. They went out of their way do what they did to make Bama the fall guy keeping them where they were to then put in Miami and kick ND all the way out. From replaying the ND / Miami game, literally 8 times in a row on the ACC channel.

I will die on this hill. That no conference should have ANY active employee at any level on the committee. Such as ADs, coaches, etc.

And just to be clear. Im not mad at any team that made it in rather I feel they should have or not. There's plenty of argument to have with plenty of them. But that happens in an extended playoff. Everyone has a wart somewhere. What pisses ND nation off is that there no only seems to be a constantly moving goal posts every week. But a different set of goal posts depending on the team. And that isn't fair for anyone.

I’m hadn’t seen the talk of the ACC criticizing ND, but that’s lame. I do agree that there is no transparency on how teams are ranked, or clarity on what to expect. I get that we have a committee because there’s going to be different ideas on who should be there. This looks shady, rather than incompetent. Just my opinion though.

 

[batchaps4me]

The argument ND fans have at the ACC is 2 fold.

1. They spent the last number of weeks absolutely dogging ND. As if we are some less than and dont deserve what we have. Not remembering just a few short years ago they were practically on life support and getting ready to be raided before ND wrote the agreement they did to open up additional bowl seeds and TV contracts.

2. They went out of their way do what they did to make Bama the fall guy keeping them where they were to then put in Miami and kick ND all the way out. From replaying the ND / Miami game, literally 8 times in a row on the ACC channel.

Were ND in a conference, would you want it to do everything in their means to promote you? Was airing that game deceptive in any means? I'm not saying you don't have a gripe but rather ask what do you expect the ACC to do in the situation, not promote the conference member and give them their best chance to make the playoffs?

I will die on this hill. That no conference should have ANY active employee at any level on the committee. Such as ADs, coaches, etc.

If you need someone to die on that same hill, let me know. IMHO we first have to get the networks out of the room. Josh Pate has been warning for years that the people in the room making decisions for NCAAF do not have the game of football as the primary concern.

And just to be clear. Im not mad at any team that made it in rather I feel they should have or not. There's plenty of argument to have with plenty of them. But that happens in an extended playoff. Everyone has a wart somewhere. What pisses ND nation off is that there no only seems to be a constantly moving goal posts every week. But a different set of goal posts depending on the team. And that isn't fair for anyone.

And to be a little clear myself, I have no problem with a fan thinking they were screwed. The issue I have is when they get really emotional and forget that the team had a chance to take the decision out of the committee's hand by winning a game and they didn't. And let's face it, in no other season in the history of NCAAF would any of the contenders that were left this season even been in the playoffs/championship consideration. Not being rewarded is not the same as being punished. BTW you are cool as a cucumber with words, sir.

 

[batchaps4me]

BTW, I would suggest that Bama being in after the SECCG loss is the correct move. I do not believe that you can punish a team that would have been in the playoffs by not playing that game for losing it without destroying conference championships and therefore the conferences themselves eventually. I said that to say this: IMHO BYU is the team that got screwed and should have been in ahead of Miami and ND.

 

[della]

BTW, I would suggest that Bama being in after the SECCG loss is the correct move. I do not believe that you can punish a team that would have been in the playoffs by not playing that game for losing it without destroying conference championships and therefore the conferences themselves eventually. I said that to say this: IMHO BYU is the team that got screwed and should have been in ahead of Miami and ND.

I completely disagree with your premise. Part of the reason bama was highly ranked was their early season win against UGA. That win was tarnished and gave the appearance that bama has regressed as the season played on, so why would you reward that?

BYU got their ass handed to them when they knew what was at stake. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, but by the same token, something ventured can result into something lost.

 

[AlaCrimsonTide]

I am not going to complain too much about my team being in the playoff.. but we certainly have no business being in it. The problem is there is a committee making decisions, flip flopping whenever they think it will create matchups they think people will want/will make more money.

Make it top 12 or top 16.. Make it KNOWN that conference title games are the first leg of the playoffs. If you lose that game you are out. After that, it's the top 16 teams in the BCS rankings. Conference champions get auto bid. The rest are decided by the rankings, with the conference champ game losers excluded.

 

[Irishblooded]

Were ND in a conference, would you want it to do everything in their means to promote you? Was airing that game deceptive in any means? I'm not saying you don't have a gripe but rather ask what do you expect the ACC to do in the situation, not promote the conference member and give them their best chance to make the playoffs?

If you need someone to die on that same hill, let me know. IMHO we first have to get the networks out of the room. Josh Pate has been warning for years that the people in the room making decisions for NCAAF do not have the game of football as the primary concern.

And to be a little clear myself, I have no problem with a fan thinking they were screwed. The issue I have is when they get really emotional and forget that the team had a chance to take the decision out of the committee's hand by winning a game and they didn't. And let's face it, in no other season in the history of NCAAF would any of the contenders that were left this season even been in the playoffs/championship consideration. Not being rewarded is not the same as being punished. BTW you are cool as a cucumber with words, sir.

ND lost. That is their own problem. I told everyone over a month ago. When the first rankings came out. ND could finish every game 100 to nothing they wouldn't make the playoff. The powers that be hate that ND doesnt play ball with ESPiN and their chokehold on the sport. ND winning 20 mil last year and keeping it pissed the ACC off.

They had to go at worst 1-1 in games 1 and 2. Last year their saving grace was that they beat TAMU week 1. And then N Illinois was their only loss and that was week 2. The ACC had everyone rewatch the ND Miami game for some kind of proof that ND wasnt as good as the score showed. As if the ND team in week 12 was no better than ND in week 1. Which just is a lie.

When Virginia lost their game. The ACC knew they were cooked and were going to be left out. The only way to beat that. Was to have Bama stay ranked exactly at 9 to get Miami at 10 and push ND out. Which is a complete farce. So the ACC got their way. They can rest easy knowing they got Miami in. And the playoff committee has set a president that you can lose your playoff and let's be honest. This was not at all a close game and 15 out of 16 times it will cost you at least 1 ranking in the bracket. But if they choose. At any time they can decide to keep you at the same spot.

And I say this seriously. In ALL my years I have never seen ND administration this pissed off behind the scenes. The noise over here is crazy. The ND AD has a press conference himself tomorrow. And there isn't a whisper about what he is going to say getting out. But I will say using the term today 'permanent damage' sounds very legalize. I dont think they blow up the agreement. But I wouldn't completely rule it out either. However for everyone saying conference up to ND. There almost wasnt anything more the ACC as a conference could have done to wreck ND from wanting to ever do so.

 

[batchaps4me]

I completely disagree with your premise. Part of the reason bama was highly ranked was their early season win against UGA.

We agree for the reasons of Bama's ranking. Beating Georgia

That win was tarnished and gave the appearance that bama has regressed as the season played on, so why would you reward that?

How was Alabama rewarded for losing? They were rewarded a playoff spot for winning the SEC in the regular season with the tiebreakers over the same 10-2 teams that made it, and weren't punished by losing the playoffs for playing and losing in the SECCG. Their punishment for losing the SECCG was loss of home field in the first round and an argument for a bye.

 

[batchaps4me]

ND lost. That is their own problem. I told everyone over a month ago. When the first rankings came out. ND could finish every game 100 to nothing they wouldn't make the playoff. The powers that be hate that ND doesnt play ball with ESPiN and their chokehold on the sport. ND winning 20 mil last year and keeping it pissed the ACC off.

They had to go at worst 1-1 in games 1 and 2. Last year their saving grace was that they beat TAMU week 1. And then N Illinois was their only loss and that was week 2. The ACC had everyone rewatch the ND Miami game for some kind of proof that ND wasnt as good as the score showed. As if the ND team in week 12 was no better than ND in week 1. Which just is a lie.

When Virginia lost their game. The ACC knew they were cooked and were going to be left out. The only way to beat that. Was to have Bama stay ranked exactly at 9 to get Miami at 10 and push ND out. Which is a complete farce. So the ACC got their way. They can rest easy knowing they got Miami in. And the playoff committee has set a president that you can lose your playoff and let's be honest. This was not at all a close game and 15 out of 16 times it will cost you at least 1 ranking in the bracket. But if they choose. At any time they can decide to keep you at the same spot.

And I say this seriously. In ALL my years I have never seen ND administration this pissed off behind the scenes. The noise over here is crazy. The ND AD has a press conference himself tomorrow. And there isn't a whisper about what he is going to say getting out. But I will say using the term today 'permanent damage' sounds very legalize. I dont think they blow up the agreement. But I wouldn't completely rule it out either. However for everyone saying conference up to ND. There almost wasnt anything more the ACC as a conference could have done to wreck ND from wanting to ever do so.

I really don't disagree with much you say here and I understand your perspective even where I disagree. I understand your pride (pride might not be the right word but I hope you get my gist) in being independent and the freedoms and other benefits associated with it. But you can't have it both ways and one of the most important negatives is that when the committee does meet, you have no friends in the room. It's not hate, it's math.

 

[della]

We agree for the reasons of Bama's ranking. Beating Georgia

How was Alabama rewarded for losing? They were rewarded a playoff spot for winning the SEC in the regular season with the tiebreakers over the same 10-2 teams that made it, and weren't punished the playoffs for playing and losing in the SECCG. Their punishment for losing the SECCG was loss of home field in the first round and an argument for a bye.

They regressed against a previous win, badly. So, despite the loss they were not penalized and therefore rewarded. A game of that magnitude should matter and it didn't.

 

[batchaps4me]

So, despite the loss they were not penalized and therefore rewarded.

Perhaps not to the degree that suits you, but they lost a first round home game if not a bye for losing so they were punished. If you thank a playoff spot was a reward for playing for and losing a conference championship, what do you call giving the playoff spot to a team not good enough to play for a conference championship?

EDIT: No offense intended @della, I just think you may be using the word rewarded a bit loosely.