BYU Football: 6 games that can pave path for Cougars to playoff
By John Scimeca
BYU football enters Week 14 as a 9-0 team ranked No. 8 in the AP and No. 13 in the playoff poll. Which games could pave a playoff path for the Cougars?
This year has upended many things in college football and many more things beyond the sports world. What hasn’t changed, however, is the exclusive access to the College Football Playoff to the members of the “power five” conference programs (using quotations because the Pac-12 is included in this number).
Cincinnati and BYU are this year’s non-power conference teams getting the short end of the stick. They may both finish the season undefeated yet still lack the buoyancy to float beyond the No. 5 ranking to reach NCAA football’s “Final Four”.
Sure, it’s likely to be all for naught if two-loss teams like Georgia (despite two double-digit setbacks) and Iowa State (despite losing to a Sun Belt team) are currently ranked ahead of BYU. For BYU, though, there are several games left on the 2020 season’s calendar that can give the Cougars the best chance of reaching the CFP.
For these games to help BYU, one must of course assume that the Cougars will finish the season undefeated with a convincing win against San Diego State in Week 15.
For BYU fans and those cheering for the underdog to make it to the big stage, here are six games that can most help the Cougars: