Former Tennessee Vols head coach Derek Dooley doesn’t hold back on Notre Dame’s decision to opt out of bowl game
Former Tennessee Vols head coach Derek Dooley didn’t hold back while commenting on Notre Dame’s decision to opt out of a bowl game.
Former Tennessee Vols head coach Derek Dooley went scorched earth on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish’s decision to opt out of a bowl game.
Notre Dame was left out of the 12-team College Football Playoff despite finishing the regular season with a 10-2 record.
The Irish are certainly a playoff-caliber team. But with several 10–2 teams in the mix for the final at-large bid, Notre Dame was left out because of its head-to-head loss to the Miami Hurricanes in the season opener.
Notre Dame’s decision to opt out of a bowl game is their way of sending a message to the College Football Playoff committee.
Derek Dooley is not on board with Notre Dame’s decision
Dooley, the son of legendary former Georgia Bulldogs head coach Vince Dooley, took to Twitter/X.com on Sunday to respond to the Notre Dame situation.
The former Tennessee head coach, who is a Georgia super fan these days, ripped Notre Dame for their decision.
“I’ve been quiet about this college football season,” said Dooley. “And it’s been hard on me, but I can’t take it anymore after I just saw that Notre Dame, who didn’t get into the College Football Playoff, is now going to take their ball and go home and not play in a bowl game because they’re upset. And you’ve heard me a lot say that leadership matters, and you know what? It matters here. I mean, this is a terrible example for our young people on how to behave when things don’t go your way, and all of us Georgians should be damn proud of the leadership at UGA over there.
“And I’m not talking about just Kirby (Smart). Hell, we know he’s the best in the country. But I’m talking about Josh Brooks, our AD, and Jerry Morehead, our president, because it reminded me of several years ago when Georgia was No. 1 in the country. They get beat in the SEC Championship Game and get knocked out of the playoffs — even though they were clearly one of the best four teams. And what did they do? Of course they were upset. But they went to work, and they went and beat the brakes off of FSU, who, by the way, was also complaining that they didn’t get in the College Football Playoff. All they did was bitch and moan about everything, and how’d that turned out for them? That’s why, still today, the dogs are the gold standard in college football.”
Dooley is really leaning into his Georgia roots. The Bulldogs, by the way, are far from the only team to get left out of the playoff and still show up in their bowl game.
As for Dooley’s comments about Notre Dame, I certainly think he makes a fair point. I get that Notre Dame is trying take a stand. But while the playoff system is clearly a mess, it’s unlikely that the Irish’s decision to opt out of a bowl game will be the move that turns the ship in the right direction.
Tennessee Volunteers News
Kirby Smart may have taken a subtle shot at the Tennessee Vols after Georgia’s win over Alabama in the SEC Championship Game
Georgia Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart may have taken a subtle shot at the Tennessee Vols on Saturday in Atlanta.
