Notre Dame announced it would not play in a bowl game following its College Football Playoff snub. The decision sparked immediate backlash across college football.
FS1 analyst Emmanuel Acho called the Fighting Irish’s choice “absolutely unacceptable” during his show Sunday night.
“I feel bad for the fans,” Acho said, labeling the decision both “cowardly” and “immature.”
Absolutely unacceptable by Notre Dame. I feel bad for the fans. pic.twitter.com/A7ZTMj67oR
— Emmanuel Acho (@EmmanuelAcho) December 7, 2025
Committee drops Notre Dame at final hour
The Irish entered Sunday ranked No. 10. They’d stayed ahead of Miami in every CFP poll this season and expected to claim the final at-large playoff spot.
The committee had other plans.
Miami jumped Notre Dame in the final ranking despite both teams finishing 10-2. The Hurricanes’ head-to-head win from Week 1 became the deciding factor after the committee admitted it hadn’t considered that result until BYU lost the Big 12 championship game.
Athletic director Pete Bevacqua said the playoff “was stolen” from Notre Dame. He called the entire ranking process “a joke.”
Irish withdraw from all bowl consideration
Notre Dame announced it would “withdraw its name from consideration” for any bowl game. No Gator Bowl. No Holiday Bowl.
The team will end its season entirely.
The official statement thanked fans and looked ahead to 2026. It framed the decision as one made together as a program.
Critics saw it differently.
Acho targets fan impact
The former NFL linebacker didn’t focus on playoff politics or committee decisions. He pointed straight at Notre Dame supporters.
“I feel bad for the fans,” Acho repeated throughout his segment.
Those fans buy tickets, travel across the country, and invest emotionally in their team. They deserved another game, he argued, regardless of Notre Dame’s frustration with the system.
To Acho, a program that prides itself on tradition and doing things “the right way” had chosen the opposite path.
Big 12 schools face fines for similar moves
Kansas State and Iowa State both declined bowl bids Sunday due to coaching changes. The Big 12 hit each school with a $500,000 fine.
Notre Dame’s situation was different. No coaching transition. No staff departures.
Just frustration with the playoff system.
That distinction made the criticism sharper. A program this size choosing to quit over a snub rubbed analysts the wrong way.
Committee’s explanation doesn’t satisfy
The CFP committee admitted it only considered Miami’s head-to-head win after BYU lost Saturday night. That explanation confused Notre Dame officials who thought head-to-head results mattered throughout the process.
Bevacqua and the Irish genuinely don’t understand how they were passed over at the final moment.
But analysts continue hammering the same point. There are better ways to send a message than refusing to play.
Notre Dame felt betrayed by the playoff system. Critics feel the Irish betrayed their supporters.
Season ends in controversy
The Fighting Irish finished 10-2 and spent every week in the top 10 until Sunday’s final ranking. They say they’ll chase a national title in 2026.
Right now, though, the conversation isn’t about next year’s potential.
It’s about a team that chose not to take the field one more time. Notre Dame wanted to make a statement about the playoff system.
Instead, it created a different controversy entirely.
