“I have raised the issue of that potential change,” said Sankey, an unlikely ally for Notre Dame. “I recognize it’s difficult…I don’t know if it’s impossible.”
The Sugar Bowl was delayed 18 hours from its original Jan. 1 kickoff time because of a terror attack in New Orleans that killed 14 people that morning.
Because of that delay, Notre Dame will have one fewer day of rest than it originally would’ve had. Penn State defeated Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 31, so it has an extra day of prepartion for the semifinal.
CFP officials, however, declined to oblige Sankey’s request to flip the dates of the Orange and Cotton bowls.
“Logistics are very complicated, disruptive to the other teams involved that have schedules in place, especially Texas and Ohio State,” CFP executive director Rich Clark told ESPN. “Fans have made arrangements already, and this creates issues for them. There’s more, but these are some of the major points.”
Having one fewer day to prepare for the Orange Bowl likely isn’t as detrimental as Sankey thinks it is.
At this point in the tournament, it’s too late and difficult to make yet another schedule adjustment, but good teams can pivot successfully.
“Sometimes, just like within a game, you have to adapt, you have to adjust,” Sankey said. “Right now with the schedule set, these teams will have to adjust their preparation based on the schedule that lies ahead.”
The bigger concern for CFP organizers should be the fact the top four seeds, each of which had a first-round bye, were eliminated in the quarterfinals.
