The CFB Committee Hates Miami

MIAMI, FLORIDA– After releasing their Week 14 College Football Playoff rankings, the CFB committee has been under serious fire, particularly for leaving out teams such as No. 12 Miami, No. 11 BYU, and No. 14 Vanderbilt. Fans, experts, players, and coaches are furious at the committee’s decision-making.

ESPN’s very own, Paul Finebaum, has gone on record arguing that Miami should be ranked above Notre Dame. Finebaum stated, “But I really believe… that head to head should matter. Notre Dame versus Miami, does anyone remember that game…? I vaguely remember Miami beating Notre Dame. But apparently everyone on this committee and everyone that covers college football has conveniently forgotten that.” 

Miami head coach, Mario Cristobal, in an interview after a season-ending 38-7 win over No. 22 Pitt, said, “Head to Head should matter.” Cristobal would absolutely be correct, in every sport head to head has always mattered. The greatest statistic to compare two teams to one another is to see how they match up on the field. Oh yea, that’s right – just as Finebaum stated, I also remember Miami upsetting Notre Dame on the first night of college football on the national stage. But for whatever reason, the committee is now throwing that out the window and refuses to use that as a meaningful metric. 

Fine.If you’d prefer to throw out the head to head let’s take a look at common-opponent scores. 

No. 10 Miami Vs. No. 6 Notre Dame: Miami wins 27-24

No. 12 Miami Vs. No. 22 Pitt: Miami Wins 38-7 

No. 9 Notre Dame Vs. No. 22 Pitt: Notre Dame Wins 37-15

No. 9 Miami Vs. Stanford: Miami Wins 42-7

No. 9 Notre Dame Vs. Stanford: Notre Dame wins 49-20

No. 15 Miami Vs. NC State: Miami Wins 41-7

No. 16 Notre Dame Vs. NC State: Notre Dame Wins 36-7

Now, if you really don’t believe the head to head should hold as much weight as it historically has, what do you have to say now? Against common opponents, Miami outscored Notre Dame in every game and had an equal or better defensive performance in each win, excluding the outlier game where both teams faced off against Syracuse and both won, yet Notre Dame put up better statistics. 

Both teams are not separated by much. Miami has the 44th-ranked strength of schedule, while ND sits at 42nd, with both of their teams’ FBS opponents’ winning percentages only separated by .001%. Throughout the season, Miami recorded four ranked wins compared to Notre Dame’s two. For what it’s worth as well, Miami’s record against the current CFB Top 25 is 1-0, while Notre Dame’s is 1-2. 

At the end of the day, this is a very tough toss up between two highly skilled teams. If only there were a simple way to decide this… oh wait – A head to head match up where both teams played against each other… 

The CFB committee will have a serious stain and asterisk on their name if they don’t make the right decision this upcoming Sunday. With the entire media, personality, athletes, and even politicians at their throats – minus Notre Dame fans – the Committee has to hear the voices of the people and ensure they make the right decision. Rather than Hunter Yurachek, the Committee Commissioner, going on a power trip over a perceived prejudice against Miami and a strange preference for the non-conference Notre Dame. 

Hunter Yurachek did mention on ESPN that, “...Teams that are idle can move up or down. Following the championship games, we will re-rank the top 25 teams and see where they will fall.” In theory, the Canes have a shot. But referring back to the interview with Rece Davis, the smirk and smug look on Yurachek gives reason to believe that he is hearing all the chatter about Notre Dame being ranked above Miami – and has shown no signs of changing that. 

Make. The. Right. Decision. Hunter.