SOUTH BEND, IND. ? Passed over for the lucrative Bowl Championship Series, Notre Dame coach Tyrone Willingham and his players showed no signs of disappointment about having to settle for the Gator Bowl.

Willingham, who had lobbied for a BCS berth, said he was excited about the No. 11 Irish (10-2) playing No. 17 North Carolina State (10-3) in the Gator Bowl on Jan. 1.

“We think the Gator Bowl provides us with a great opportunity to showcase our football team, our football program and our tradition,” he said.

Willingham wouldn’t say whether he thought the BCS bowls had made a mistake in passing over the Irish and allowing them to fall to the Gator Bowl.

BCS bowl games pay teams up to $13 million. The Gator pays $1.6 million.

Notre Dame athletic director Kevin White believes passing on the Irish was a mistake.

“If I were in a position, I would have put us in the highest opportunity that would have been available,” White said.

Rick Catlett, executive director of the Gator Bowl Association, was even more direct.

“To have an opportunity to have Notre Dame play, any bowl game in America would be absolutely standing on their head to make that happen,” Catlett said. “Some other bowls that decided not to take a 10-2 Irish, we’re just thankful they made that mistake.”

Notre Dame’s last shot at earning a BCS berth ended when Washington State beat UCLA 48-27 on Saturday. That left USC, which beat the Irish 44-13 on Nov. 30, with a guaranteed berth.

Notre Dame seniors Arnaz Battle, left, and Sean Mahan, right, wait their turn to talk to the media. The players were made available at a news conference Sunday in South Bend, Ind., after Notre Dame accepted an invitation to play in the Gator Bowl against North Carolina State in Jacksonville, Fla.

Iowa (11-1), No. 5 in the BCS standings, was the other at-large selection, joining six conference champions who were automatic qualifiers for BCS games.

Three Irish players who attended the news conference Sunday night said they did not watch Washington State or the BCS selection show, saying they did not know what bowl they were headed to until a meeting with Willingham.

“We realized there are some things we have no control over so it makes no sense to worry about things we have no control over,” strong safety Gerome Sapp said.

The Irish players said they were eager to prove that the loss to USC was simply a bad game.

“At the start of the season, nobody gave us a chance but us,” Sapp said. “Losing the way we did to SC, I think a lot of doubt has crept into a lot of people’s minds again. So going out and playing a great game this game is really going to make a statement toward this program and toward the people in this program.”