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When the Notre Dame Fighting Irish found out that they had not made the College Football Playoff, they decided to take their ball and go home, opting out of a bowl game in 2025.
Following that decision, news broke of a memorandum of understanding that would automatically lock the Fighting Irish into the playoffs in future years should they finish in the top-12 of the final College Football Playoff rankings.
The Fighting Irish finished 11th this season, with the top 10 qualifying, and conference champions from the American Athletic Conference (Tulane) and Sun Belt Confernece (James Madison) claiming the final two spots in the 12-team field.
Under the new provision, Notre Dame would have qualified ahead of the 10th-ranked Miami Hurricanes despite being ranked behind them.
Now, Dan Wolken of Yahoo Sports reports that Power 4 athletic directors are working to revoke that memorandum and could conspire to leave Notre Dame off their future schedules.
Power 4 Athletic Directors Aren’t Happy With Notre Dame’s Special Treatment
Followin the Fighting Irish’s decision not to play in a bowl altogether, and Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua going after the ACC for lobbying for Miami, Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark spoke out against the university.
“I think Pete’s behavior has been egregious,” Yormark said. “It’s been egregious going after Jim Phillips, when they saved Notre Dame during COVID. … The chair said that as Notre Dame and Miami got closer together, head-to-head would be a factor, OK?”
All of Notre Dame’s varsity sports, other than football (which is an independent) and men’s hockey (Big 10), compete as members of the ACC. Additionally, since 2014 Notre Dame has played at least five ACC opponents per season as part of a scheduling partnership.
Now, that partnership might be falling apart.
Wolken reports that athletic directors in other leagues are threatening to freeze them out of future schedules after learning of the top-12 provision. Additionally, Texas has threatened to cancel its series with Notre Dame in 2028-29, and the Fighting Irish have yet to agree to extend their longstanding rivalry game against USC.
If Notre Dame can’t find top-tier opponents to schedule, then reaching the top 12 of the playoff standings becomes significantly more difficult. Additionally, this could be the impetus needed for the Fighting Irish to finally join a football conference, something they’ve avoided for as long as possible.