SOUTH BEND, Ind. (WNDU) - Notre Dame Athletic Director Pete Bevacqua said the program was caught off guard by the College Football Playoff selection committee’s decision to exclude the Irish from the 12-team field.

Bevacqua held his annual end-of-year athletics news conference on Tuesday, focusing primarily on Notre Dame’s playoff snub after the team had been ranked ahead of Miami throughout most of the season.

The Irish had been ranked as much as eight spots ahead of the Hurricanes in previous playoff rankings, only to be jumped by Miami in the final selection on Sunday. Notre Dame finished 11th in the final rankings, one spot behind Miami.

“We were just led to believe all season long that if we took care of business we were going to be in,” Bevacqua said. “To have that shock and sur

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