Miami AD Calls for ACC Tiebreaker Reevaluation After Duke’s Championship Game Slot Stirs Debate
Miami's athletic director Dan Radakovich has urged the ACC to reassess its tiebreaker system. Duke claimed a spot in the ACC title game over Miami, despite Miami's higher rank in the College Football Playoffs (CFP) standings.
Radakovich described the tiebreaker system as "too complicated" and called for a straightforward approach, especially when multiple teams end up tied. The current setup had a hard time dealing with four or five teams competing for second place, Radakovich told theacc.com.
Virginia secured the top spot in the ACC with a solid 7-1 record. Duke finished 6-2 in conference play, ending at 7-5 overall. Duke's advantage came from their opponents having better conference win percentages compared to Miami and other tied teams.
Five teams ended with a 6-2 record: Miami (10-2), Georgia Tech (9-3), Pitt (8-4), and SMU (8-4). Duke came out on top due to the winning percentage of its opponents as the deciding tiebreaker.
Miami is just two spots away from securing the last at-large CFP berth. The ACC risks being left out of the playoff if Duke wins the ACC title and James Madison wins in the Sun Belt.
Since getting rid of divisions in 2023, the ACC now has 17 teams playing eight conference games. This frequently negates head-to-head tiebreakers. Duke's edge partly came from playing Virginia, whose strong 7-1 record bumped up Duke's opponent winning percentage.
If Duke beats Virginia in the ACC title clash and James Madison wins their conference crown, the ACC champion might rank below other winners. This could lead the CFP committee to give two automatic spots to non-Power 4 teams or extend an automatic berth to an 8-5 Duke team.
The SEC also uses opponent winning percentage as a tiebreaker. A similar issue came up in 2025 with a four-way tie for first place, showing these challenges aren't unique to the ACC.
The American Conference takes a different approach, giving preference to teams ranked in the CFP top 25 to secure playoff entry, a measure the ACC and other power leagues have yet to adopt.
Radakovich has openly criticized the CFP committee for ranking Notre Dame above Miami, despite Miami's head-to-head victory, insisting that on-field outcomes should carry more weight in playoff selections.
Critics argue Duke, seen as the weakest in the tie, shouldn't have made the championship game, raising concerns about whether the flawed system jeopardizes the conference's College Football Playoff hopes.
