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This is an opinion column.
Notre Dame chose the nuclear option and it’s hard to blame them.
The corrupted College Football Playoff selection committee left Notre Dame out of the playoff in favor of hot-mess Alabama, and it was all about money and corporate politics. Instead of playing in a bowl game, the Fighting Irish said no thanks and won’t be putting its brand on television this holiday season.
Notre Dame, which finished its season 10-2, took a stand instead contributing to college football’s broken postseason. It’s admirable, and I’d like to think Alabama would have done the same thing had it been robbed of a chance to play in the national championship tournament.
This column isn’t an argument for Notre Dame over Alabama or the Tide over the Fighting Irish. Both teams had their moments this season, good and bad, but both teams did enough to be in the College Football Playoff.
The Crimson Tide earned its way in and deserves its spot. No.9-seed Alabama (10-3) travels to No.8 Oklahoma (10-2) for a first-round night game on Friday, Dec.19. Alabama is a slight 1.5-point favorite for its rematch against the Sooners, which, let’s be real, got kinda lucky in Tuscaloosa a few weeks ago.
It’s going to be an incredible atmosphere in Norman, Okla., and the sport of college football is better for it.
Notre Dame is about to go to war with college football, and the sport will be better for that, too.
Alabama was chosen over Notre Dame based on the Tide’s body of work, but I understand Notre Dame’s anger after watching the SEC championship game. Alabama fans were angry, too. The Tide’s offense looked like it had been replaced by the guys from Bishop Sycamore.
Meanwhile, Notre Dame finished its season with 10-straight wins, was one of the hottest teams in the country and featured running back Jeremiyah Love, arguably the best player in the country.
But never mind Alabama bumping off the Fighting Irish. Notre Dame is out of the playoff and James Madison and Tulane are in? It’s absurdly stupid. Isn’t the point of the College Football Playoff to feature the best teams?
This whole thing needs a fresh start.
True or not, it appears like Notre Dame was punished by the College Football Playoff selection committee for not being in a conference. You could see it coming, too.
The College Football Playoff management committee is meeting later this month to discuss the future of its tournament. The committee is made up of college football’s 10 conference commissioners and Notre Dame athletics director Pete Bevacqua. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey already wants to expand the playoff to 16 teams, and he should now have a strong ally in Bevacqua.
It should be obvious to anyone paying attention that Notre Dame’s power play on Sunday will cause the playoff to expand next season. The question now becomes how many teams? I’ve always thought 16 was the best idea, but I’m beginning to question that number.
The FCS playoff is 24 teams, and that tournament seems to be working pretty well. The big boys should just jump straight to that format.
In the FCS national tournament, the top eight teams all get first-round byes. That leaves 16 teams for the first weekend. If College Football Playoff, Inc., adopted that model, then every FBS conference champion could earn an auto bid and the remaining 14 spots could be at-large.
Otherwise, I’m not sure how much longer the conference championship games are going to be around. What’s the point anymore other than making money?
Is Alabama better than Notre Dame? Not based on what we saw on Saturday in Atlanta. The Tide was awful against Georgia, losing 28-7 while gaining only 209 offensive yards (minus-3 rushing). Hot trash, indeed.
At the same time, Alabama can’t be punished for playing in a conference title game, or at least that’s what the selection committee and ESPN want everyone to take away from the final playoff rankings.
But wait. That’s not entirely true.
Alabama was protected despite a loss, but BYU was punished for playing in its conference championship game and losing. The Cougars’ two losses this season were both to Texas Tech, which everyone agrees is one of the top four teams in the country. Shouldn’t BYU be in the playoffs, too?
Now let’s do Notre Dame.
The Fighting Irish were No.9 in the weeks 12-14 CFP Top 25. Then things got weird. The Irish were dropped from No.9 to 10 in favor of Alabama after the regular season, and then from No.10 to out of the playoff after the conference championship games.
People are now calling for Notre Dame to join a conference, but that’s not the answer. Notre Dame will never join a conference and is better off being independent with its own TV deal.
The College Football Playoff selection committee just picked a fight with the biggest brand in the sport in favor of ESPN and its corporate partners. What happens next? Prepare for a series of counterpunches from the Fighting Irish.
The bamboozlement of Notre Dame will have consequences for the rest of college football, and most likely teams in the SEC. Y’all thought the Fighting Irish spent a lot on its roster this season?
Just wait until the transfer portal opens up.
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