Notre Dame head football coach Marcus Freeman was reportedly at a loss for words when the Fighting Irish missed out on the 2025 College Football Playoff.

ESPN’s Jen Lada was with the team on Sunday, December 7 for the CFP Selection Show, describing the mood as “very quiet” once it was clear that Notre Dame had been left out.

“[Freeman] said that usually he has answers or reasons for why these things happen,” Lada, 44, said. “He has none & that was unusual. He said he has no answers. It doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t add up why ND is not in this playoff field.”

Notre Dame had been ranked in the top 10 of every CFP ranking during the regular season before the University of Miami passed them in the final ranking, dropping the Irish to 11th. The change happened despite neither team playing

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