KSL BYU and college sports reporter
ARLINGTON, Texas — BYU head coach Kalani Sitake had plenty of his Big 12 peers lobbying for his team to make the College Football Playoff, including commissioner Brett Yormark and Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire.
But the 11th-ranked Cougars didn't do much politicking with their play 24 hours before the selection committee seeds the 12-team bracket.If the "eye test" is what keeps BYU out of the playoff with an 11-2 record, then the Cougars didn't look like much of a CFP team in either of their losses to Texas Tech .That's plenty of credit to the Red Raiders, who haven't lost a game with starting quarterback Behren Morton and held BYU to its fewest yards of the season and four fewer rushing yards than the 67 the last time the two teams played."I think if you look at what Texas Tech has done, they're the best team in the country for a reason," Sitake said after a 34-7 loss to Texas Tech at AT&T Stadium. "You look at when they're a full-strength team, they're dangerous."I'm not on the playoff committee," he added, "but I can tell you one thing: Who has played the best team in the country twice? We have. Does that mean that you're not one of the best 12? I have no idea. I'm not on that committee. I don't make the decisions, but others will find out."The Cougars' two losses to one opponent made Texas Tech look like the best team in the country, or at least every bit deserving of their top-four ranking that should earn a first-round bye in the playoff when the bracket is released Sunday on ESPN.But is there a spot in that field for BYU, whose quarterback Bear Bachmeier threw for a season-low 115 yards and two interceptions while at times hobbling on one leg after a first-half lower-leg injury? "I truly believe the Big 12 deserves two spots in the playoff."Texas Tech head coach Joey McGuire makes a case for BYU to be given a spot in the CFP. Do you agree? pic.twitter.com/kMYtvWKyUc— FOX College Football December 6, 2025 McGuire thinks so, saying the Cougars "deserve" to be in."I have so much respect for Kalani," he said unprompted in opening his postgame press conference. "That's a really good football team. I hope the committee looks at it because there are going to be two-loss teams out there, but there's not going to be an 11-2 team. They did a great job throughout the season getting here."Same for Yormark, who lobbied for the Cougars to start the
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