BYU at 3-0 has schedule power to enter CFP debate

Subscribe to The School Soccer Enquirer
Apple Podcasts • Stitcher • Google Podcasts • Spotify

In relation to the subject of doable School Soccer Playoff crashers (i.e. a group from exterior a Energy 5 convention) all of the dialogue this yr have centered on the College of Cincinnati. The Bearcats, in any case, returned quarterback Desmond Ridder and the majority of their starters from a 9-1 season.

UC has accomplished its half thus far, climbing to No. 8 within the AP ballot and sitting at 3-0 heading right into a important journey to Notre Dame on Oct. 2.

Possibly it’s not the Bearcats who’re the almost certainly interloper. Three weeks into the season and BYU, an impartial, has three victories over Pac-12 opponents (Arizona, Utah and Arizona State). Jaren Corridor has stepped in properly for Zach Wilson at quarterback and the protection has been terrific.

Coach Kalani Sitake’s group is now ranked fifteenth by the AP, which carries no precise weight however does signify nationwide respect. BYU was twenty third final week earlier than its 27-17 victory over ASU on Saturday evening.

Going unbeaten is extraordinarily troublesome, however BYU has proven to be the sort of group that may not less than entertain it. The School Soccer Playoff committee could not wish to embody the Cougars within the four-team discipline, however a 12-0 group would have a really sturdy argument relying on how the highest of the Energy 5 leagues shake out.

It could nonetheless be September, but it surely’s price questioning if BYU is a legit playoff contender. That’s one matter that was mentioned on the “School Soccer Enquirer’s” Monday Overreaction podcast.

Purchase or promote on BYU?

Story continues

“We haven’t gained by the most important distinction in rating, however we grind it out from the start to the tip,” Corridor stated. “Even when issues really feel down, I don’t assume we ever lose our vitality. This can be a group of men who love one another and love Coach Kalani and every little thing he teaches us. We’re bonded to this tradition and it’s contagious. I believe it is a completely different group than you’ve seen prior to now at BYU.”

The Cougars had been topped nationwide champions in 1984 however has only one top-10 AP ballot end since (1996). It went 11-1 final season, however a lot of that schedule was weak, a cobbled collectively slate attributable to COVID-19.

That is completely different. Three Pac-12 victories with the possibility for extra to come back. BYU nonetheless has video games towards Energy 5 groups Baylor, Washington State, Virginia and USC, to not point out rival Boise State.

That leaves the chance for seven Energy 5 victories (and Boise). No, it’s not the meat grinder of the SEC West, however that’s a really favorable slate and much stronger than what most “mid-majors” carry to the desk.

In fact, the Cougar’s largest victory this fall was securing membership within the Large 12 Convention beginning subsequent yr, a nod to its sizable fan base and wonderful potential as a program.

That’s the longer term although. The current is making a push for the playoffs. The committee could shut out the Cougars. However a 12-0 BYU group in December can be a really difficult dialogue in that committee assembly, one thing that perhaps nobody exterior of Provo thought doable this yr.

Additionally mentioned on this version of the “School Soccer Enquirer:”

* Do shut video games that includes Alabama, Oklahoma, Ohio State and Clemson imply that the stranglehold on the playoff discipline could be loosening?

* A have a look at Alabama’s hard-fought victory over Florida.

* Penn State now owns victories over Wisconsin, Auburn and MAC favourite Ball State. Are the Nittany Lions the favorites within the Large Ten East? What about Michigan, a fast rising Michigan State program and even (gulp) Rutgers in that division?

* Cincinnati rallies to beat Indiana, retains its title goals in place.

* Folks’s Court docket: Ought to Notre Dame have let Purdue carry its large drum into Notre Dame Stadium?

* BYU and the Playoff.

* The coveted Small Pattern Heismans are handed out and we attempt to “Say One thing Good.”

Examine all of it out right here.