Notre Dame’s College Football Playoff Snub Exposes New Selection Rule Controversy
In a stunning development following the 2025 college football season, the University of Notre Dame was excluded from the newly expanded 12-team College Football Playoff (CFP), sparking widespread debate over the selection process and a recently revealed CFP rule.
Notre Dame had maintained a top 10 ranking in every CFP ranking release until the final one. Despite this consistency, the Irish were dropped to No. 11 in the final rankings and ultimately lost the last at-large playoff berth to the Miami Hurricanes, who defeated Notre Dame early in the season and moved upward in the rankings.
According to Notre Dame Athletic Director Pete Bevacqua, the program was left in “utter disbelief and shock” by the committee’s decision. Bevacqua criticized the rankings released before the final one as a “farce and total waste of time,” emphasizing that these earlier rankings gave the team confidence about their playoff prospects. Yet, Miami’s late surge in the rankings pushed Notre Dame out of contention even though neither team played in the weekend prior to selections, adding to the confusion and frustration.
The CFP Selection Committee chair, Hunter Yurachek, explained that Miami’s 27-24 victory against Notre Dame from August 31 became a critical factor only when Miami overtook Notre Dame in the rankings during the final evaluation. Yurachek encouraged committee members to re-watch that game, implying that head-to-head results carried greater weight in close comparison scenarios.
This outcome has renewed calls for a thorough review of the CFP selection rules. ESPN college football analyst Dusty Dvoracek noted that the committee’s current approach assumes all Power Five conference champions qualify, but situations like the ACC playoff arrangement disrupted that assumption. He highlighted the need for a “long hard look” at how automatic bids are determined and suggested the possibility for rule adjustments to better align with competitive fairness.
Following the snub, Notre Dame made the unprecedented decision to withdraw from bowl games this postseason, marking their stance against what they see as an unfair and opaque selection mechanism. The school’s action underscores the wider dissatisfaction among fans, analysts, and stakeholders over the playoff format and its impact on major programs.
Observers argue that Notre Dame, which held the third-best odds for a national title in some projections, being left out of the playoff field undermines the integrity of the CFP’s stated goal to include the 12 best teams nationwide. The situation has intensified pressure on CFP organizers to refine and clarify their criteria to avoid similar controversies in the future.
As debate rages, college football’s postseason landscape faces uncertainty. Whether the CFP will implement significant rule changes following this fallout remains to be seen, but the Notre Dame episode has undeniably exposed vulnerabilities in the playoff selection system as it currently stands.