Lead
CFP committee chair Hunter Yurachek addressed why No. 9 Notre Dame and No. 13 Miami occupy different spots in the College Football Playoff rankings despite Miami’s earlier head-to-head win. Yurachek told ESPN the committee is currently weighing the quality of each team’s losses rather than applying a direct head-to-head tiebreaker. Miami earned an automatic ACC bid as the highest-ranked conference team, even though its position in the ACC standings makes a conference title unlikely. The committee indicated that if the two teams end up in the same comparative pool, the head-to-head result would become an important data point.
Key Takeaways
- Notre Dame sits at No. 9 in the CFP rankings while Miami is No. 13, with both teams carrying two losses.
- Miami received the ACC’s automatic bid as the highest-ranked ACC team despite being fifth in the conference standings behind four teams with one league loss.
- Yurachek said the committee focuses on the quality of losses: Miami’s defeats came to unranked opponents; Notre Dame’s losses were to teams ranked inside the committee’s top 13.
- Miami is not mathematically eliminated from the ACC title race but would require a perfect regular season and favorable results elsewhere to reach the championship game.
- The committee has not yet grouped Notre Dame and Miami in the same comparative pools, so a direct head-to-head comparison has not been used to separate them.
- When teams are placed in the same comparative tier—such as Oklahoma and Alabama earlier in the season—the committee has used head-to-head outcomes as a decisive data point.
- Teams ranked between Notre Dame and Miami (Utah, BYU and Alabama at 10–12) create a buffer that would need to change via losses for Miami to move up significantly.
Background
The College Football Playoff selection committee releases weekly rankings that shape which teams are considered for the four-team playoff. The committee evaluates wins, losses, strength of schedule and when teams suffered defeats; the chair, Hunter Yurachek, leads discussions and explains the panel’s reasoning to the media. This season Notre Dame and Miami both finished the recent poll with two losses—an equal count that invites comparison along other dimensions. Historically the committee has balanced objective metrics with subjective judgment, and head-to-head results have been a tiebreaking factor when teams are otherwise comparable in the committee’s assessment.
Miami’s path to the playoffs is complicated by conference dynamics. The Hurricanes secured the ACC’s automatic spot in the CFP as the highest-ranked ACC school at No. 13, but they sit fifth in the ACC standings behind four teams that have only one conference loss. That standing means Miami would need near-perfect results down the stretch and favorable outcomes elsewhere to reach the ACC Championship Game. Notre Dame, ranked higher at No. 9, has losses to teams the committee currently ranks inside the top 13—material the panel considers significant when comparing similar resumes.
Main Event
The ranking release prompted on-air questions from ESPN analyst Rece Davis, who asked Yurachek to explain the seeming contradiction of Miami beating Notre Dame yet being placed lower in the poll. Yurachek emphasized that the committee’s comparisons begin with the context of losses; he noted Miami’s defeats came against unranked opponents while Notre Dame’s were to ranked teams inside the top 13. Because those losses place the teams in different comparative groupings, the committee has not yet used the head-to-head result to separate them.
Yurachek also described how the committee arranges teams into “pools” for direct comparisons. He said Miami is trending into the range where a direct comparison to Notre Dame is possible, but that has not yet occurred. If Miami climbs into the same tier as Notre Dame, Yurachek explained the head-to-head victory the Hurricanes hold would become an important factor in the committee’s deliberations. He pointed to a prior instance—Oklahoma’s two-point win over Alabama—where a head-to-head result helped tip the balance among closely ranked squads.
Practical obstacles remain for the Hurricanes. Miami’s lower placement in the ACC standings reduces the likelihood of a conference title and the stronger pathway that often accompanies one. Yurachek acknowledged the teams ranked 10–12 (Utah, BYU and Alabama) create separation between Notre Dame and Miami; any movement among those teams through late-season losses would force the committee to re-evaluate relative placement. The committee’s messaging stressed that comparisons will shift as results accumulate in the closing weeks of the season.
Analysis & Implications
The committee’s emphasis on quality of losses over a single head-to-head result highlights the layered nature of CFP evaluation. With both teams at two losses, the committee looks beyond the binary result of one game and weighs the broader resume: opponent strength, timing of losses, and other comparative data. That approach reduces the chance that a single upset will automatically override a season-long pattern of results when the committee perceives a meaningful difference in opponent quality.
Miami’s high ranking despite its precarious ACC standing reflects how the CFP view can diverge from conference tables. The Hurricanes’ ranking suggests the committee considers Miami’s overall profile, not merely conference placement, when assigning its poll positions. Still, without a conference title or additional marquee wins, Miami’s margin for error is small; the team depends on late-season wins and losses by those ranked between it and Notre Dame to shift comparisons in its favor.
For Notre Dame, the committee’s stance is a cautionary signal: the Irish’s losses to top-13 teams have preserved their advantage in the ranking despite the head-to-head setback. If Notre Dame stumbles and Miami continues to win, the head-to-head result could be decisive—illustrating how the committee’s relative weighting can change as teams converge in comparative pools. The broader implication is that the committee will continue to mix measurable criteria with judgement calls, and teams with similar records must pay attention to opponent quality and timing.
Comparison & Data
| Team | CFP Rank | Losses | Head-to-Head | Conference standing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Notre Dame | No. 9 | 2 losses to teams inside CFP top 13 | Lost to Miami earlier this season | Higher CFP rank; not in ACC title context |
| Miami | No. 13 (ACC auto bid) | 2 losses to unranked opponents | Defeated Notre Dame earlier this season | Fifth in ACC; behind four teams with one conference loss |
The table shows the committee’s stated rationale: Notre Dame’s losses are to higher-ranked teams while Miami’s defeats came against unranked opponents, creating different evaluative pools. That divergence explains why Miami’s head-to-head win has not yet overridden the committee’s assessment of relative resumes. If results change—either by Miami rising or teams between the two losing—the committee will re-group teams into comparative pools and may weigh the head-to-head outcome more heavily.
Reactions & Quotes
CFP chair Hunter Yurachek addressed the question directly on ESPN after the rankings were released.
“We compared the losses of those two teams rather than putting them in the same bucket right now.”
Hunter Yurachek, CFP Committee Chair
Yurachek also explained how prior head-to-head outcomes have influenced rankings when teams were close.
“In cases where teams land in the same range, head-to-head can be a significant data point—as it was previously when Oklahoma’s win over Alabama helped separate them.”
Hunter Yurachek, CFP Committee Chair
On-air analysts and fans reacted to the apparent tension between Miami’s CFP placement and its ACC position, noting the committee’s focus on losses reshapes how the public interprets rankings. Media and pundits emphasized that late-season games and losses among the 10–12 window could prompt a meaningful shuffle in the weeks ahead.
Unconfirmed
- Whether the committee will place Notre Dame and Miami in the same comparative pool before the regular season ends remains unresolved; committee groupings shift with results.
- It is not publicly known how individual committee members privately weigh head-to-head versus loss quality in every scenario.
- Any internal vote tallies or detailed scoring the committee used to produce this specific ranking have not been released.
Bottom Line
The committee’s explanation makes clear that identical loss totals do not guarantee identical treatment; opponent quality and context matter. Miami’s head-to-head win over Notre Dame is an important piece of evidence, but the committee says it matters most when the teams’ overall profiles put them in the same comparative range. For Miami to convert that head-to-head advantage into a higher CFP position, it likely needs to win out and benefit from losses by teams currently slotted between it and Notre Dame.
Watch the closing weeks of the regular season closely: results by Utah, BYU, Alabama and other teams ranked 10–12 will determine whether Miami moves into a direct comparison with Notre Dame. If that happens, the committee has signaled the head-to-head outcome would be a substantial factor in final deliberations, potentially reshaping the playoff conversation.