With a win over a quality opponent by 17 points will BYU crack the Top 10 in either poll?
Probably move up one or two with NC dismal showing
I think teams that postpone should drop in the rankings. Enough of this.
I will hazard my best guess and say they will go up in the polls, but NOT crack the top ten. My reasoning is simply that Big Money and P5 football are so entwined that there is little room for any other programs. There is still some residual contempt for their National Championship in 1984 and failed bid for inclusion in the expanding PAC12. I do believe there are signs of grudging acceptance, at least among college football analysts, sports casters and media personalities but those who have the most control over who gets the money (conference affiliation, bowl bids, etc.) are reluctant to include BYU regardless of their success on the field. This is just my opinion from past statements and actions, but I would love to be wrong…
During the Georgia-Alabama game on CBS, the mentioned Posted Wilson along side Lawrence from Clemson in the Heisman watch. BYU is getting some love this year.
My 2 cents is that BYUcanpass is accurate in his assessment. IF the Cougars go up in the rankings it will be 1 or 2, possibly to # 11. From there it will be much harder to go further up in the polls. As the SEC, PAC 12 and the other “big boys” get going, there will be more and more complaints about BYUs weak schedule. Those complaints will overshadow Holmoe’s fine work in doing the best job he could in cobbling together a 10 game schedule. Big money rules the roost.
My own doubts about where the Cougs belong in the 2020 world of college football will be assuaged by a 0 loss record. I would guess that with no losses, BYU would get into a new years day bowl game but not allowed into the NC hunt.
I am in agreement that BYU will move up 1 or 2 spots. It will be take some further scheduling magic from Holmoe and some luck to get into the top 6. Covid and love of money by other P5 teams could be our best allies this season. Of course there will be game cancelations in the P5 conferences. If a team on the CFP cusp gets an opponent cancelation they will likely not want to sit idle. Since the P5 boys decided to play conference only they are stuck with a cancelation and can’t improve their chances without a game against a high quality opponent. Enter BYU in the 3 weeks that BYU could have an opening OR BYU cancels a current game if an opportunity arises to play a big boy P5 team. We would have to buy out the currently scheduled weak team but ESPN could easily handle that issue for us. I suspect that if we have a shot at a NY6 Bowl we could be a wanted target by any number of top teams who want to play us … because they could really improve their place in the polls AND you all know they would think they can beat BYU. That is our opportunity… we are a bait team who has to be inventive, helped by ESPN, and we have to stay undefeated! That will be the hardest part of the equation. Covid and our independent status could be a huge plus this season for BYU. But if we lose a game, the sliver of hope is dashed!
I think Holmoe did a horrible job with Dave Rose, Nick Emery and contract extensions but he has now done an amazing job with Pope and staff, BYU FB scheduling and managing Covid within the athletic dept! So I give credit to him for a job very well done on a lot of recent issues. We need a PAC 12 cancelation for Utah or Arizona State or Oregon and slide into a game vs a top 10 ranked team and actually beat them! I know that is the hard part but I think this current season is giving us opportunity that wouldn’t have been there with our old schedule. An Auburn, ND, Georgia, Alabama or Ohio State May get a cancelation and want a game that will give them an advantage on SOS in getting into the CFP. BYU is the ticket for them. Holmoe has to be alert and sell the idea … the money issue will be on his side and that never hurts!
While I am dreaming … if we stay undefeated and get some Covid help with a cancelation of a top 10 team game in a P5 conference, it will be a spur of the moment type set up of the BYU replacement game. In other words neither of the teams will be able to have more than a week … maybe only 4-5 days of preparation time! That bodes well for BYU because the P5 team will be somewhat over confident and maybe just maybe BYU can have a great game and Sitake will call all defensive schemes for the game! IF we pull the upset we will be a CFP team and that is our only road to a possible final 4 CFP team! The road is there but we don’t want to be embarrassed so it is up to the players and coaches on how they perform and how serious they will be to stay out of Covid themselves! Holmoe will go down in history as the best AD to ever have had the job if he maneuvers us into a P5 game with a top 10 team!
IMHO I doubt that a top P5 team would want to schedule BYU, if BYU has not lost a game. There would be concerns of losing to a good offense and decent defense. I bet there would be safer bets out there to schedule with. Just conventional wisdom having watched college football for several decades.
Not if that P5 team may have to have a top 12 opponent on their schedule to improve their prospects of leaping over another P5 favorite for the CFP. They will probably think BYU is more beatable than other options in part because of our weaker schedule. We shall see.
Remember that if a P5 team has a game cancelled by another decent P5 and they can’t make it up … their SOS will go down and voters will not give them the nod. The temptation of wanting to make the CFP and needing the resume’ to make it … will entice them to think outside the box in this Covid season. An undefeated BYU might be a risk not worth taking in a normal year but in this Covid year … my bet is they will take the risk because 1) They need the SOS and 2) They think that BYU will be the most beatable highly ranked team in the country and certainly the most available team on the landscape.
We shall see what happens. Again BYU has to win their games and they have to prepare to score an upset on a one off basis to have a shot at the CFP. Winning all their games with NO P5 teams on their schedule will result in a NY6 bowl at best.
I agree with thawk that BYU will need more than just winning out our current schedule to get a shot at the CFP. Just the fact that we are even close says a lot for Kalani Sitake’s coaching staff and the amazing skill set and work ethic of Zach Wilson. I am happy to admit I was wrong when I guessed that we would not move up into the top 10. Being ranked Number 9 in ESPN’s College football Power Rankings for Week 7 is largely due, in my humble opinion, to those 29 unanswered points that put us commandingly ahead at the end of the Houston game and the spectacular highlight footage of Zach Wilson’s amazing performance in that game. The commentators could not heap enough praise and sincere adulation upon Wilson’s skills and mature understanding of his position and the game itself. Go Cougars!.
We are tied with Miami for 11th in the Coaches Poll and behind Miami at #12 in the AP. My feeling is no team that hasn’t played should be ranked until they have played a few games. The COVID19 is my reason for this. Had those teams did a much better job at handling the virus they would be playing. And, having a couple sick but quarantined isn’t a reason not to play.
grasshopper, I agree. We will see what the future holds for this very special team.
The problem, Scott, is that the university presidents and the league made the decision not to play. Individual coaching staffs or ADs didn’t get to make those choices.
Then they should take the heat for their decisions. But teams who haven’t played or played very little shouldn’t be cutting in front of those who have been doing. While those working and getting hurt and banged up are penalized for their efforts.
Scott: “Then they should take the heat for their decisions. But teams who haven’t played or played very little shouldn’t be cutting in front of those who have been doing.”
I concur. The problem is the words “should” and “shouldn’t” Money and power rules, not morality.
I’m not really concerned about the post season right now. BYU has 3 games that should be wins left-a tough game in Boise and a tough game at home with San Diego State. With Covid, nobody even knows whether the next game gets played. Every day I’m checking on the health of the players and hoping to get injured and sick players back to full strength. The next two games should be an opportunity to get lots of players involved and banged up players some rest. Key areas to concentrate on are having the OL intact and dominating going into Boise. Gunner Romney needs time to get to 100%. It would be nice to see Hall and Romney get qb reps as Wilson could theoretically jump after this year. The entire defense can work on not being so predictable and the db’s need to practice flying to the ball. Plenty to work on the next couple of weeks without getting caught up in other stuff
On CBS yesterday during the Alabama-Georgia game, they featured 2 QBs for the Heisman, Lawrence and Wilson. I don’t think the coaching staff is going to hurt Wilson’s chances even though Lawrence is the odds on favorite to win it. Don’t think they will sit Wilson unless he’s hurt.
Despite my potential avenue for a BYU year end Big Bowl, I agree with Burton and feel that if there is a team that can get over confident quicker than BYU … I have yet to find them. Jarom Jordan and Spencer do nothing but get the players thinking they are great. I wish they would Covid out Sports Nation until just before the bowl game! We can’t be worrying about anything except winning the next game and I would say Wilson’s possible award is secondary to BYU staying healthy … although they probably would still be undefeated with Romney at QB. We have 2 great passers on the team.