Cover 3 College Football Podcast

Episode: Upon Further Review: Notre Dame Opts OUT Of Bowl, College Football Playoff Bracket Reaction & More!
Date: December 8, 2025
Hosts: Chip Patterson, Tom Fornelli, Danny Kanell, Bud Elliott

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the seismic news that Notre Dame has opted out of bowl participation, reactions to the College Football Playoff (CFP) bracket, ongoing bowl season changes, and the evolving landscape of postseason college football. The crew also reviews the impact of recent playoff expansion, shifting bowl priorities, and debates the legitimacy of both selection committee practices and current playoff structures.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Notre Dame Opts Out of Bowl Game

• Opening Theme (00:25–02:58)

  • The hosts tackle the headline: Notre Dame declining to participate in any bowl games for the postseason. This move follows recent opt-outs by Kansas State and Iowa State, both fined by the Big 12, while Notre Dame, as an independent, avoids conference penalties.
  • Athletic Director Pete Bavacqua’s candid comments and public engagement on this issue are highlighted, suggesting significant fallout in the school’s relationship with the ACC.

• Immediate Reactions

  • Danny Kanell (03:00): “There's permanent damage that has been done to the relationship with the ACC.”
  • Hosts reflect on the mutual resentment: the ACC is deemed right to campaign for Miami, while Notre Dame’s non-conference status and selective scheduling are scrutinized.

• Reasons & Ramifications (04:14–06:47)

  • Sympathy from the crew for both sides: Notre Dame didn't want 15 "bad practices" and a loss to a motivated team like BYU, paralleling last year’s bowl blowouts.
  • Critical talk about the expanded playoff format and whether it’s penalizing Notre Dame and rewarding lesser schedules.
  • Notable Moment: The crew lampoons the forced enthusiasm for CFP matchups with lower-profile Group of Five teams.

• Debate Over Scheduling & Fairness

  • Back-and-forth on Notre Dame’s strength of schedule, cherry-picking weaker P5 and G5 opponents, and whether they are unfairly advantaged or simply deserving based on performance.

• Notable Quote

  • Bud Elliott (06:17): “JMU's probably gonna be a record setter...123rd in strength of schedule...hard to be worse and still make the playoffs. So, congrats on your record.”

• Rivalry & Historical Scheduling

  • Discussions about traditional games (e.g., vs. Navy and Stanford) and whether they meaningfully contribute to Notre Dame’s playoff case.

2. The Playoff Bracket and Committee Transparency

• Weekly Rankings & Committee Practices (10:05–15:37)

  • Strong criticism for the CFP’s weekly rankings TV spectacle, which the crew claims are for network profit, not transparency or accuracy.
  • Memorable Exchange:
    • Chip Patterson (11:22): “It was weird to see Herbstreit call out, like, why are we doing these weekly rankings?…The network you work for paid an arm and a leg for the playoff.”
    • Bud Elliott (15:07): “These rankings week to week are complete. They don't matter. Keep playing hard. This is fantasy land...just for TV.”

• Notre Dame’s Playoff Worthiness

  • Heated arguments on whether Notre Dame deserved selection over teams like Bama or Miami, referencing power ratings, win quality, and the muddled “strength of schedule” metric.

• Future Concessions

  • From next year, if Notre Dame finishes in the top 12, they're automatically in—a change noted as a “hell of a concession” (15:37).

3. The State and Future of Bowl Games

• Bowl Season’s Declining Relevance (07:24, 19:56–25:38)

  • Consensus that playoff expansion has diminished the importance of most bowls, as playoff participation is now the primary goal for all major programs.
  • The panel recalls the “player empowerment movement,” early player opt outs (Fournette, McCaffrey) as setting the precedent now being followed by teams. Teams in transition (coaching changes/player transfers) are particularly likely to opt out, with financial penalties levied as deterrents.

• ESPN’s Influence & Bowl Proliferation

  • The explosion in bowl games is traced to ESPN’s content strategy, rather than on-field demand. Bowls serve as lucrative TV filler and “promotional pieces for the College Football Playoff” (24:12), with community/tourism benefits now secondary.

• Nostalgia vs. Modern Reality

  • The panel acknowledges the value bowls have in local communities but ultimately see them as “just a marketing expense” (24:12).
  • Possible future: equilibrium with fewer, but more meaningful bowls.

• Notable Quote

  • Tom Fornelli (20:23): “The bowls have been dying since the playoff was created. This is just the latest symptom.”

4. Bowl Schedule: Matchups and Opt-Out Watch

• Games that Stand Out (31:23–39:55)

  • Notre Dame BYU would’ve been a draw, but with ND out, attention shifts elsewhere.
  • The crew highlights interesting bowl games unlikely to see significant opt-outs (e.g., Tennessee–Illinois, Iowa–Vandy, Michigan–Texas, BYU–Georgia Tech, UVA–Missouri).
  • Opt-outs and superfluous bowls remain concerns: the effect on betting, TV viewership, and team motivation.

• Fun Sidebars

  • Short digressions about fan bases, rivalry games (App State–Georgia Southern), and future bowl viability as more teams mimic recent opt-out precedents.

5. Systemic Issues: Playoff Structure, Conference Dynamics, and Selection Committee

• Should Notre Dame Join a Conference? (51:39–53:19)

  • The recurring call for Notre Dame to join a conference is debated—hosts argue it would not have helped versus Miami or BYU and point out that being in a conference hasn’t necessarily protected other schools from playoff exclusion.
  • Tom Fornelli (52:16): “Anytime anything happens to Notre Dame...you scream join a conference...but it has absolutely nothing to do with this situation.”

• Playoff Expansion: Too Far, Too Soon?

  • Calls for a 24-team playoff are met with skepticism—hosts note the 12-team field already feels large and worry expansion as a “reactionary business” dilutes season meaning.

• Strength-of-Schedule Hypocrisy

  • The committee’s inconsistency in weighing SOS for Texas, Alabama, Florida State, and Notre Dame frustrates the panel—especially as prior weekly rankings do not align with final bracket explanations.

• Notable Rant

  • Danny Kanell (05:41): “This politically correct crap. It’s so stupid that we have to put JMU in. I was the same guy arguing for expansion, but damn it, now that they're in there—damn it—why do I have to talk about them?”

6. Upon Further Review: Odds, Coaching, and Weekend Wrap-up

• Coaching Carousel and Preps (57:45–61:06)

  • Indiana’s coaching staff is praised for defensive mastery, with a note that their coordinators rarely get mentioned for bigger jobs despite outperforming better-resourced programs.

• Expert Brackets & Odds (61:06–64:44)

  • Debate as to whether only the top five to six seeds are true national title contenders; circumstances (coordinator turnover, opt outs) matter as much as talent.
  • Big Ten teams are seen as having a talent retention edge in current structure.

• CFP First-Round Matchups Outlook (64:44–66:41)

  • Discussion on potential early-round upsets (e.g., JMU over Oregon), but consensus is these are rare. The group welcomes the speedier playoff calendar—less time waiting between selection and kickoff.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

| Timestamp | Quote/Exchange | Speaker | |-----------|--------------------------|---------| | 03:00 | “There's permanent damage that has been done to the relationship with the ACC.” | Danny Kanell | | 04:14 | “Notre Dame's right to opt out of the bowl game... if their players’ heads are not going to be in it... you don't want them out there.” | Bud Elliott | | 06:17 | “JMU's probably gonna be a record setter...123rd in strength of schedule—that might be a record that will never be beaten.” | Bud Elliott | | 15:07 | “These rankings week to week are complete. They don't matter. Keep playing hard. ...This is fantasy land up here. It’s just for TV.” | Bud Elliott | | 20:23 | “Bulls have been dying since the playoff was created. This is just the latest symptom.” | Tom Fornelli | | 24:12 | “Bowl games... are nothing but a promotional piece for the College Football Playoff. ...It’s a marketing expense on the ESPN events tab.” | Chip Patterson | | 52:16 | “Anytime anything happens to Notre Dame...you scream join a conference...but it has absolutely nothing to do with this situation.” | Tom Fornelli | | 05:41 | “This politically correct crap. ...I spent years arguing for playoff expansion, but damn it, now that they're in there—damn it—why do I have to talk about them?” | Danny Kanell |

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Notre Dame Opts Out & ACC Fallout: 00:25–06:47
• Debate over Schedule Strength & Committee Transparency: 10:05–15:37
• Bowl System Discussion, Team & Player Opt-outs: 19:56–25:38
• Bowl Schedule - Matchups & Analysis: 31:23–39:55
• Notre Dame/Conference Debate & Committee Critique: 51:39–54:36
• Weekend Wrap (Coaching, Odds, Brackets): 57:45–62:45

Final Thoughts

This episode offers an unfiltered breakdown of the complex issues surrounding the current college football postseason, including Notre Dame's unprecedented opt-out, the implications of playoff expansion, the declining prominence of the bowl system, and growing discontent with selection committee processes. The hosts blend fan frustration, inside knowledge, and irreverent humor, making this a must-listen (or read) for college football faithful seeking clarity on the sport’s shifting landscape.