🔗 Share this article Big 12 Chief Labels Notre Dame Comments Following CFP Omission as ‘Totally Out of Bounds’ At a public criticism, Brett Yormark declared that Notre Dame AD, Pete Bevacqua, was “completely out of bounds” for public comments about the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Root of the Tension Notre Dame has a football scheduling alliance with the ACC and is a full member in all other sports. Bevacqua has argued that the ACC hurt Notre Dame’s bid to enter the College Football Playoff, instead choosing to campaigning for the inclusion of the University of Miami. “They does wonderful things for Notre Dame, but we bring substantial football value to the ACC, and we didn’t understand why you would make an effort to try to undermine us in this process,” Bevacqua said. The Hurricanes ultimately earned the CFP spot over Notre Dame, primarily due to winning the head-to-head meeting between the two schools. Bevacqua additionally stated that the ACC ran a coordinated social media effort over multiple weeks demonstrating its support for Miami. An Egregious Response Later on Tuesday, the Big 12 commissioner spoke about the comments at the Sports Business Journal’s Intercollegiate Athletics Forum. “In my view his actions has been egregious,” the commissioner said. “He is totally out of bounds in his approach and if he was in the same room, I’d tell him the same thing.” This public pushback is especially striking given Bevacqua’s prominent standing. He sits on the College Football Playoff Management Committee with the ten FBS conference commissioners, representing the concerns of football independent Notre Dame. Historical Context and Future Moves The commissioner further highlighted the support the ACC gave Notre Dame in the Covid-affected 2020 season, providing the Irish a full ACC schedule and a berth in its title game. “His behavior has been unacceptable,” Yormark said again. “It’s been egregious going after the ACC commissioner, when they saved Notre Dame during Covid...” Talk had circulated about Notre Dame potentially leaving the ACC and partnering with the Big 12. Yet, Yormark's strong comments on Tuesday seem to make such a move unlikely in the immediate future. The Irish, who made the CFP final last season, have stated they will decline a postseason invitation after failing to qualify this year.