Why Pete Bevacqua Faces an Existential Challenge as Notre Dame AD
Notre Dame ADs have come and gone over the decades, each facing unique challenges given the time period in which they oversaw Irish athletics.
Current AD, Pete Bevacqua, may be the one with the most pressure on him yet.
Why? The sport of college football is changing fast, and Notre Dame must ensure it positions itself for whatever comes next while trying to maintain independence. This is a tough needle to thread.
What will the CFP look like in the future?
The main off-season chatter surrounding the sport of college football this summer has to do with the future of the CFP. As each conference holds its annual meetings, each promotes talking points that display their group in the best light, as the powers that be debate what will come next for the CFP.
Does the bracket remain at 12 teams, move to 16, or jump right to a 24-team field? And more importantly for Notre Dame, what would these changes mean for the Irish's scheduling model?
As teams schedule for playoff admittance and loss prevention, it's becoming harder for the Irish to put together a compelling year-to-year schedule, especially with USC off the board and teams like Texas wavering over honoring their contracts for future games with Notre Dame.
The 2026 Notre Dame Football schedule is here
- Notre Dame Football (@NDFootball) January 23, 2026
https://t.co/2hJkcm0uz4#GoIrishpic.twitter.com/vF2fjKnJTK
What Pete Bevacqua can do
With all of this uncertainty and instability regarding the CFP and future scheduling, Pete Bevacqua finds himself in an interesting position. He should plan ahead for every possible outcome of this fast-paced CFP project.
If high-profile Power Four teams like Alabama and Texas back out of games with the Irish, where does Pete turn schedule-wise, and can Notre Dame maintain independence?
This discussion is an existential one for Notre Dame. Sure, the BIG would love to add Notre Dame to its resume, and Irish schedules in the conference would be significantly more interesting than the five-game ACC agreement Notre Dame is currently operating under, but at what cost?
No AD at Notre Dame wants to be the one to pull the plug on Independence and give up so much of what has made the Irish so unique over the decades.
Can Pete Bevacqua thread the needle in these tedious times in a way that allows for competitive modern CFP era schedules while maintaining Independent status? This is the task that awaits Bevacqua.
He must stay patient, nimble, and be one step ahead on each contingency plan.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/notredame as Why Pete Bevacqua Faces an Existential Challenge as Notre Dame AD.
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This story was originally published June 2, 2026 at 9:20 PM.