Notre Dame, Vanderbilt Had Drastically Different Reactions To Missing The Playoff

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Vanderbilt went 10-2 this season, ultimately missing the College Football Playoff.

The Commodores had a solid resume, including a strong win against Tennessee, but ultimately fell short of reaching the postseason. Vanderbilt is not salty about it, though. The Commodores admitted that they only have themselves to blame.

Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea sounded off on missing the College Football Playoff during an interview with reporters on Sunday.

“That’s no one’s fault except our own. We had our opportunities and we didn’t do enough. We are not victims in this process. Our ownership is in coming up short…” he said.

Vanderbilt showed true, legitimate class in that decision. Meanwhile, take a look at some of the other programs that missed out on the College Football Playoff.

Notre Dame's reaction was completely different

Notre Dame, meanwhile, was "stunned" by missing the College Football Playoff.

ESPN’s Jen Lada said that head coach Marcus Freeman was "speechless" by the move, based on a conversation she had with Notre Dame AD Pete Bevacqua.

“(Bevacqua) said Marcus did get up and speak to the team immediately afterward. .. He said that usually he has answers or reasons for why these things happen. He has none, and that was unusual. He said he has no answers, it doesn’t make sense, it doesn’t add up why Notre Dame is not in this Playoff field," she reported.

Notre Dame decided to withdraw from bowl contention as a result, too.

It's a tale of two programs, that's for sure.

This story was originally published by The Spun on Dec 9, 2025, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add The Spun as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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