“...but it seems to ND would have had a decent bowl game...”
Depends on who they play. They were not strong this year as their schedule and record indicates. But that’s not reality.
Bowl games are decided by a mix of contractual conference tie-ins, the College Football Playoff (CFP) committee for the top teams, and individual bowl committees filling remaining spots based on rankings, geography, and appeal, creating a tiered system where top teams go to CFP bowls and others fill traditional conference-linked games.
College Football Playoff (CFP) bowl game committees, and traditional bowl committees, are made up of diverse groups of current and former college athletic directors, coaches, players, administrators, and media members.
They four main categories each have a function:
Athletic Directors: Provide administrative and strategic perspectives.
Coaches: Offer on-field coaching insight.
Players: Bring a player’s experience.
Media Members: Add journalistic objectivity and coverage knowledge
But if the teams are there for the show, then the appearance of entertainment takes precedence over actual talent and the greasing of palms becomes the reality.
wy69
ESPN has an article about the Notre Dame AD accusing the ACC of sabotaging their playoff bid. Although ND’s other sport programs are part of the ACC, football isn’t. Miami is a full member, so they will share at least $4M with the rest of the conference for the playoff selection.
The ACC commissioner politely told ND they didn’t interfere.