The final 12-team playoff bracket caused some hell to break loose for several certified playoff-caliber programs. The playoff committee decided to put the Miami Hurricanes over what many believe were more deserving teams like BYU and even Notre Dame. That didn’t sit well with Cougar Nation. The BYU football team is now bringing receipts on why they should’ve been picked over Mario Cristobal’s Miami.

The biggest argument comes down to the numbers. And the data seems to back up BYU. Their strength of schedule (SOS) was ranked 22nd in the nation, which is much tougher than both Miami (45th) and Notre Dame (44th). Their strength of record (SOR) was 9th. That’s noticeably better than Miami’s 14th and Notre Dame’s 13th.

Playing a harder schedule and having a better record against that difficulty usually matters a lot to the playoff committee. BYU fans are scratching their heads about how they got jumped. On December 7th, BYU’s official took the case over to X court:

Another big point for the Cougars is that they actually earned their way into the Big 12 Championship Game. Meanwhile, the Hurricanes didn’t even qualify for their conference title game. A 7-5 Duke football team took their spot. Notre Dame is independent, so there’s no conference game at all.

Playing in a high-stakes conference championship should help a team’s playoff case, not hurt it. BYU shouldn’t be penalized for playing an extra game against the No. 4 team in the FBS. Notre Dame and Miami were essentially on a free bye week.

Plus, look at the quality of their losses. Kalani Sitake’s BYU team only lost twice this season. Both losses were to Joey McGuire’s stacked, No. 4-ranked Texas Tech Red Raiders. One came in the Big 12 title game and the other in Week 10. Compare that to Miami’s losses. Both were to average 8-4 teams, SMU and Louisville.

The Cougars were one of eight Power Four programs that won 11 games. They were also the only one not to make the playoff. BYU fans argue that their losses are “better” because they came against far stronger competition. Even though Miami beat Notre Dame head-to-head, BYU fans feel the overall body of work should have placed BYU ahead of Miami in the first place. That would make the head-to-head tiebreaker irrelevant.

BYU fans are calling out the committee for cherry-picking stats and ignoring the full picture. Now, Kalani Sitake and the Cougars have to sit out the playoffs and head straight to a bowl game.

Which bowl BYU are playing?

The BYU Cougars are getting ready for their bowl game. They will be playing against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the Pop-Tarts Bowl, happening in Orlando, Florida. You can catch the game on Saturday, December 27th. The Cougars have a chance to make some history. A 12th win would mark their first time hitting that number since 2001.

Beyond this fun bowl game, things are looking great for the future of BYU football. Their head coach, Kalani Sitake, just signed a big new contract after turning down the Penn State job. BYU is probably running it back in the Big 12 next season. Plus, Bear Bachmeier exceeded all expectations. And as usual, Sitake somehow cooks up a top-five defense in the country every season. There’s nothing to worry about on the roster side.

Things are looking strong on the recruiting front too.This class sits at about 20th in the nation and ranks second in the Big 12.  They locked in five-star quarterback Ryder Lyons. They also managed to snatch up almost all of the best local players in Utah. This huge haul of top-tier talent is exactly what they need to hang with the big programs and keep the wins coming year after year.

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