College Football Playoff: Miami’s Ugly Win Reignites Notre Dame Controversy
If you tuned into the Miami vs. Texas A&M College Football Playoff opener expecting fireworks, you got something closer to a fire drill - chaotic, disjointed, and hard to watch. In a game that felt more like a defensive struggle from the early 2000s than a modern CFP showdown, Miami eked out a 10-3 win in a game that featured more missed opportunities than memorable moments.
With eight minutes left in the fourth quarter, the score was still locked at 3-3. That’s right - two teams that averaged over 34 points per game during the regular season had combined for just six points deep into the final quarter. It was the first time in CFP history - dating back to the four-team format launched in 2014 and continuing into the new 12-team era that began in 2024 - that a Playoff game went into halftime scoreless.
The first three quarters were riddled with mistakes: four missed field goals on six attempts, three turnovers, and countless drives that stalled out before they ever got going. It wasn’t just a defensive battle - it was a full-on offensive breakdown from two programs that were supposed to bring more to the table.
And while Miami eventually did just enough to advance, the real noise came from outside the stadium - particularly from South Bend.
Notre Dame’s Absence Still Looms Large
Notre Dame, the first team left out of this year’s 12-team Playoff field, had to watch from home as two teams they faced earlier this season - and lost to - struggled to put together a competent offensive drive. That reality didn’t stop the wave of frustration from Fighting Irish fans, who felt their team had done enough over the course of the season to earn a spot in the bracket.
The selection committee’s decision to include two Group of 5 champions - No. 20 Tulane and No.
24 James Madison - over a higher-ranked Notre Dame team sparked debate from the moment the bracket was unveiled. The new format guarantees a spot to the five highest-ranked conference champions, and while that creates opportunity for programs outside the Power 5, it also left the Irish on the outside looking in.
Criticism came swiftly from some of the sport’s most prominent voices. ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit didn’t hold back on his podcast “Nonstop,” saying, *“I don’t think we need to make sure everybody gets a trophy, and make sure everybody’s included.
I think that’s a bunch of bulls-.” *
Nick Saban, now an ESPN analyst after his legendary coaching run, echoed that sentiment during the Dec. 7 bracket reveal. He argued that the Playoff field didn’t reflect the 12 best teams, and lumped Notre Dame in with Miami and Alabama as teams that “should have gotten in and deserve the right to play.”
The irony? Saturday’s game had nothing to do with Tulane or James Madison.
This wasn’t a Group of 5 team getting blown out by a powerhouse. It was two Power 5 programs - Miami and Texas A&M - putting on a display that left fans wondering how either team made the cut.
The Head-to-Head That Haunts
Notre Dame’s exclusion came down, in part, to Miami’s 27-24 win over the Irish back on August 31. Neither team played in Week 15, but when the final rankings dropped, Miami jumped Notre Dame to claim the last at-large bid. That early-season head-to-head result loomed large in the committee’s decision-making process.
But for Notre Dame fans, that single result didn’t outweigh what they believed was a more complete season. And when Miami’s offense sputtered for most of Saturday’s game, that frustration boiled over.
Social media lit up with reactions - some humorous, others biting - as fans and analysts weighed in on the low-scoring affair and what it said about the selection process.
“Notre Dame would’ve had 30 on the scoreboard by now,” tweeted former NFL linebacker Will Compton.
“Can’t believe we got left out. We would boat race these two teams,” another post read, channeling the voice of every Irish fan watching from the couch.
“Notre Dame would beat both these teams,” the official Notre Dame fan account posted bluntly.
Of course, not everyone was sympathetic. Some pointed out that Notre Dame lost to both Miami and Texas A&M this season, which makes the outrage a little more complicated. Still, the broader question remains: did the committee get it right?
The Bigger Picture
Saturday’s game wasn’t just a dud - it was a flashpoint in the ongoing debate about how best to structure the Playoff in the 12-team era. The new format was supposed to give more deserving teams a shot, but it’s also exposed the challenge of balancing resume, rankings, and head-to-head results.
Miami’s win may have moved them forward, but it didn’t silence the critics. If anything, it poured fuel on the fire for those who believe the system still has flaws - and that Notre Dame was one of its first casualties.
The Irish didn’t get their shot this year, but judging by the reaction to Saturday’s game, their absence is still being felt. And if the goal of the expanded Playoff was to bring more clarity and fairness to college football’s postseason, this weekend proved we’re not quite there yet.