Big 12 commissioner calls out Notre Dame for slamming Miami and the ACC

Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark has joined into the Miami-Notre Dame-ACC-College Football Playoff Committee feud, and he chose to back up the ACC and Jim Phillips for supporting the Hurricanes' CFP bid over the Irish.

Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark backs the ACC

The Big 12 commissioner said bluntly that he does not like how Notre Dame has handled the snub. He called Bevacqua's public campaign against the ACC "egregious" and "totally out of bounds," and he made it clear he would tell Notre Dame's AD the same thing to his face.

"I think Pete's, his behavior has been egregious. It's been egregious going after Jim Phillips, when they saved Notre Dame during COVID... He is totally out of bounds in his approach and if he was in the room, I'd tell him the same thing."

Brett Yormark

Yormark also pointed out that BYU, an 11-2 Big 12 team, was also left behind a conference opponent, Texas Tech, for CFP seeding based in part on head-to-head results. His point was that the same standard that hurt a Big 12 team is the one that helped Miami, and that the ACC should not be punished for pushing that case. Yormark said CFP chair Yurachek was transparent that as Miami and Notre Dame "got closer together, head-to-head would be a factor," which was the same explanation Yurachek gave on national TV during Selection Sunday.

The ND-ACC Feud

After the 12-team field was revealed Sunday, Miami slid into the playoff as the last at-large at No. 10. Notre Dame, also 10-2, was No. 11 and became the first team left out of the playoff. The committee pointed straight at Miami's 27-24 win over the Irish in the Aug. 31 opener.

Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua has spent the last two days ripping the ACC for how it promoted Miami down the stretch. In an interview with The Dan Patrick Show and in comments to ESPN, Bevacqua accused the league of running a "targeted" social media and programming campaign that "attacked" Notre Dame while pumping up Miami's case. He went as far as saying the ACC has caused "permanent damage" to its relationship with the school, which puts 24 other sports in the conference.

ACC commissioner Jim Phillips responded Monday with a statement calling Notre Dame an "incredibly valued member" of the ACC, but he also said the conference has a responsibility "to support and advocate for all 17 of our football-playing member institutions" and that he stands behind how the conference pushed for Miami before the selection. Phillips stressed that "at no time was it suggested by the ACC that Notre Dame was not a worthy candidate" and said the conference is both thrilled for Miami and understanding of Notre Dame's disappointment.