🔗 Share this article

In a notable rebuke, Brett Yormark asserted that Notre Dame's athletic director, Pete Bevacqua, was “totally out of bounds” for public comments targeting the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).

Root of the Dispute

The Fighting Irish has a gridiron scheduling agreement with the ACC and is a participating member in all other sports. Bevacqua has claimed that the ACC actively damaged Notre Dame’s bid to qualify for the College Football Playoff, instead choosing to pushing for the selection of the University of Miami.

“They do great things for Notre Dame, but we offer substantial football value to the ACC, and we couldn't comprehend why you would go out of your way to try to damage us in this process,” the athletic director remarked.

The Hurricanes ultimately received the CFP invitation over Notre Dame, primarily due to securing the head-to-head meeting between the two programs. Notre Dame's AD further alleged that the ACC conducted a targeted social media effort over multiple weeks demonstrating its preference for Miami.

An Egregious Rebuke

Later on Tuesday, the Big 12 commissioner spoke about the criticism at the Sports Business Journal’s Intercollegiate Athletics Forum.

“In my view his conduct has been egregious,” the commissioner said. “He is completely out of bounds in his approach and if he was in the room, I’d tell him the same thing.”

The pushback is particularly significant given Bevacqua’s special role. He sits on the College Football Playoff Management Committee with the ten FBS conference commissioners, representing the interests of football independent Notre Dame.

Past Support and Future Rumors

Yormark further highlighted the assistance the ACC offered Notre Dame in the Covid-affected 2020 season, providing the Irish a full ACC schedule and a berth in its championship game.

“His behavior has been egregious,” he said again. “It’s been egregious going after the ACC commissioner, when they helped Notre Dame during Covid...”

Speculation had spread about Notre Dame potentially leaving the ACC and aligning with the Big 12. Yet, Yormark's public reprimand on Tuesday seem to make such a scenario unlikely in the immediate future.

Notre Dame, who reached the CFP final last season, have indicated they will decline a bowl game after missing out this year.