Newsstand: Notre Dame president addresses CFP snub and bowl opt-out

Even the University of Notre Dame’s president had something to say about the Irish getting rejected from the College Football Playoff and the subsequent decision to decline a bowl game invitation.

On Sunday, Notre Dame President Rev. Robert A. Dowd, C.S.C., released a statement supporting the team’s season and how its leadership handled the unexpected turbulence.

“On behalf of the entire Notre Dame community, I want to express how incredibly proud we are of our football student-athletes for their accomplishments both on and off the field this season,” Dowd said.

“We are deeply grateful for the exceptional leadership of Vice President and Director of Athletics Pete Bevacqua, Head Coach Marcus Freeman, and the entire coaching staff.

“Our pride stems not only from this team’s success on the field but from the values they embody: faith, perseverance, selflessness, and a steadfast commitment to the University.”

Despite being in the top 10 each of the last five weeks of the College Football Playoff rankings, the committee confusingly excluded the Irish from the final grouping. That came even though Alabama had an uninspiring 28-7 loss in Saturday’s SEC Championship Game and Miami had been ranked below Notre Dame every week prior — until Sunday.

Bevacqua will discuss the matter further on the Dan Patrick Show sometime between 9 a.m. and noon ET. No update has been provided on when Freeman plans to speak next.

Notre Dame Posts of the Weekend

Former Irish quarterback Brady Quinn shared his thoughts on the matter. 

There wasn’t any logic waiting to move UM ahead of ND if Conf championship game outcomes are inconsequential. If Head to head was a factor, you had it all year. This isn’t a serious committee. It’s a made for TV event. Expand and get rid of the committee. BCS was a better…

— Brady Quinn (@Brady_Quinn) December 7, 2025

Former Irish women’s basketball coach Muffet McGraw shared her thoughts, too. 

You KNEW Miami beat ND thru the 1st 5 reveals then you suddenly drop us out of the field when all we did was win????   You were the ones who put us 9th to begin with!!! That’s just cruel. What a sham. SEC bias is real.

— Muffet McGraw (@MuffetMcGraw) December 7, 2025

​​Rodger Sherman is a sports writer, formerly of The Ringer.

keep coming back to this:

Notre Dame's two losses were by a combined four points. Their most recent loss was on September 14th.

Alabama lost by 21, yesterday

— Rodger Sherman (@rodger) December 7, 2025

Notre Dame Quote of the Weekend

“If the rankings shows are legitimate, there is no logical explanation of what happened to us. Have one ranking show at the end, like Sunday. What’s the point of doing anything prior to that?”

— Bevacqua to Yahoo! Sports senior college football reporter Ross Dellenger on Sunday.

Notre Dame Headlines of the Weekend

• What they’re saying about ND being left out of College Football Playoff and Irish declining bowl bid
• Why ND walked away from a bowl after the CFP snub, and what needs to come next
• Weekly College Football Playoff rankings prove to be irrelevant with ND’s snub
• Horka: CFP committee got it wrong putting Alabama, Miami in playoff over ND
• No. 11 ND football declines bowl game after College Football Playoff snub
• ND women’s basketball gets right with big road win at Florida State
• CFP committee chair Hunter Yurachek explains why ND dropped out of playoff field
• Soble: The outcome is the outcome, but how ND missed the College Football Playoff is a complete joke
• ND snubbed from College Football Playoff field while Alabama, Miami make it