ACC commissioner Jim Phillips makes case for Notre Dame, Virginia to make NCAA Tournament

The ACC Baseball Tournament is crowning its champion on Sunday with a battle between North Carolina and Clemson. They’ll both be moving on to the NCAA Tournament, but Commissioner Jim Phillips knows that there are a few question marks on the bubble for the ACC.

Phillips jumped on the ESPN2 broadcast early in the game. There, he advocated for both the Virginia Cavaliers and Notre Dame Fighting Irish to make it to the NCAA Tournament this season.

“Listen, they really deserve to be in,” Jim Phillips said. “This isn’t about some kind of gift. People have to remember also they played three less ACC games. The horrendous tragedy at FSU — and our hearts and prayers and thoughts remain with the Seminole community and family over that just horrific incident. They are a NCAA-quality team and I don’t know that there should be so much debate about it. I get it. I understand it. There’s only so many spots, but what they’ve done speaks for itself.”

Virginia finished the season 32-18 overall and 16-11 in ACC play. That’s notable because every ACC team ever since 1999 to go five games over .500 has made it to the NCAA Tournament. Still, in the latest Field of 64 projections, Virginia is listed in the First Four Out.

Another team currently listed in the First Four Out is Notre Dame. The Irish finished the season 32-21 overall and 14-16 in ACC play. Despite that losing record, they finished strong, and Phillips deserves they also belong in consideration.

“I also will say Notre Dame, they win 10 of their last 12 down the stretch. They’re playing really well,” Phillips said. “And two of those series wins were against NCAA Tournament teams. Now, I know they’re underneath Virginia for several reasons, but on paper 11 teams could be talked about and should be talked about for the NCAA Tournament in this conference.”

In the current RPI rankings, Notre Dame is 48th in the country. Virginia, meanwhile, is sitting at 64th nationally. Neither of them has a chance to add to their respective resumes further.

In those latest Field of 64 projections, the ACC currently has nine teams in the field. That’s the second most of any conference, trailing only the SEC. It also includes three teams set to host. Of course, Jim Phillips would love to find a way to close that gap as much as possible and Virginia and Notre Dame are the two teams in a position to potentially do so.