Urban Meyer defends Notre Dame's bowl decision with the Irish still getting bashed

Marcus Freeman and the rest of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish must be feeling good about their decision to opt out of the postseason after hearing what Urban Meyer had to say.

On The Triple Option, Meyer's podcast with Rob Stone and Mark Ingram, the former Ohio State and Florida head coach surprisingly defended the Irish's decision to decline their bowl invitation after Notre Dame didn't earn a spot in the College Football Playoff.

"If [the Notre Dame Fighting Irish did go to a bowl game, I’m saying half that team would refuse to play," Meyer said.

Urban Meyer thinks Marcus Freeman made the right choice

Instead of the Playoff, the Irish were invited to play in this year's Pop-Tarts Bowl, a far cry from the expectations that Freeman and his staff have set for their program.

Beyond the shock of a former Ohio State head coach defending a choice by Notre Dame, Meyer's statement goes against what almost everybody else in the country has said about the Fighting Irish opting out of the postseason game.

However, Meyer's sentiment also makes a whole lot of sense when you think of the amount of talent on Notre Dame's roster that is, more likely than not, heading to the NFL Draft in the spring.

Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love is one of the most prominent names in the upcoming Draft class, much less on the Irish's roster. Alongside Love in a lot of experts' projected Draft orders are offensive tackle Aamil Wagner and linebacker Drayk Bowen.

Now, the Fighting Irish will obviously lose more than just three players as eligibility runs out and more declare for the draft.

So, as those players turn their attention toward what's next (whether that be preparing for the NFL Combine and Pro Day, or finding a job in the "real world"), Meyer's argument completely checks out and should only further cement Freeman's decision as the right one for his program.