The biggest story of the final College Football Playoff selections was that Notre Dame was snubbed and missed out on the 12-team playoff. The Fighting Irish were shocked by the snub, and in response, they decided to opt out of bowl season entirely. There has been a lot of frustration bubbling up among Fighting Irish fans about the ACC, and it seems to have spread across college football.
On the latest episode of “The Joel Klatt Show,” Klatt was talking about what he heard when he was in Las Vegas for the National Football Foundation Awards, and Notre Dame was a big topic of discussion. He said that Notre Dame's independence was seen as a big piece of frustration in the industry. The sentiment was that they did not like that Notre Dame thought they deserved special treatment.
“There is a pretty broad displeasure with Notre Dame and how they handled the last week more specifically, and their independence,” Klatt said. “And I thought that was really interesting because not many people in previous years have broached that. You have to understand this, if you’re in a conference, even if you’re like a power brand in a conference.
“You look at Notre Dame and you start to think to yourself, why do we have to agree with 17, 16, 15 other schools and have some sort of negotiation within ourselves to present this one seat at the table as it relates to college football. And Notre Dame can just roll in there themselves and they get a seat in all of these conversations and carve-outs, and special treatments, and our playoff system. And there’s a real displeasure with that.”
Klatt also said that the general sentiment in the room was that if you don't like it, then you should join a conference.
“A lot of sentiment of, hey Notre Dame, join a conference,” Klatt said.
The displeasure comes from the fact that Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua ripped into the ACC and accused it of attacking Notre Dame for three weeks. This drama could only be beginning between the Fighting Irish and the ACC.
