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By Matt Audilet
Contributing Sports Writer
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The Notre Dame Fighting Irish were the first team left out of the College Football Playoff field, landing No. 11 position in the final rankings released by the selection committee on Sunday.
In the penultimate CFP rankings released last Tuesday, the Fighting Irish held No. 10 position — two spots ahead of the No. 12 Miami Hurricanes.
Neither program played over conference championship weekend, but Miami jumped Notre Dame in the final rankings.
Read More on NCAA
Miami and Notre Dame both finished the 2025 regular season with 10-2 records, but the Hurricanes notched a 27-24 victory over the Fighting Irish in the first game of the season. The selection committee cited this head-to-head advantage as the ultimate reason they awarded Miami the final playoff spot.
The ACC publicly advocated for Miami to make the CFP field leading up to Selection Sunday, apparently damaging its relationship with Notre Dame.
More Football: Miami’s Mario Cristobal Aims CFP Message Directly at Notre Dame
Notre Dame's athletic director Pete Bevacqua publicly called out the ACC during an appearance with "The Dan Patrick Show" on Monday.
"We were mystified by the actions of the conference to attack their biggest, really, partner in football and a member of their conference in 24 of our other sports," Bevacqua told Patrick. "... They have certainly done permanent damage to the relationship between the conference and Notre Dame."
ACC commissioner Jim Phillips responded with an official statement.
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“The University of Notre Dame is an incredibly valued member of the ACC and there is tremendous respect and appreciation for the entire institution," Phillips said. "With that said, when it comes to football, we have a responsibility to support and advocate for all 17 of our football-playing member institutions, and I stand behind our conference efforts to do just that leading up to the College Football Playoff Committee selections on Sunday.
"At no time was it suggested by the ACC that Notre Dame was not a worthy candidate for inclusion in the field. We are thrilled for the University of Miami while also understanding and appreciating the significant disappointment of the Notre Dame players, coaches and program.”
More Football: Alabama Hit With Troubling Prediction After Notre Dame’s CFP Snub
Notre Dame rejected its invitation to take part in a Pop-Tarts Bowl matchup against BYU.
Miami will begin its College Football Playoff campaign with a first-round matchup against the No. 7 Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field on Dec. 20.
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