Big 12 Championship: How Oklahoma or Iowa State can make the CFP

Iowa State football and Oklahoma football may have a shot at the College Football Playoff.

I am telling you there is a chance Iowa State football or Oklahoma football can make the top four.

It requires either the No. 6 Iowa State Cyclones or the No. 10 Oklahoma Sooners to win the Big 12 Championship over the other. Odds are, the two-loss Power 5 champion will have to settle for a Cotton Bowl Classic berth, but both schools would see that as a massive accomplishment, given all they have had to overcome this season. So how on earth can either team make the playoff?

Iowa State or Oklahoma will need a win and a bunch of chaos to happen

Ultimately, there is not a ton separating Iowa State from Oklahoma on their quests to crash the College Football Playoff field. If there is anything Oklahoma needs that Iowa State does not, it would be the No. 23 Tulsa Golden Hurricane to beat the No. 9 Cincinnati Bearcats in the American Athletic Conference Championship game. Here is what a Tulsa win can do to help Oklahoma out.

The most important thing it does is removes the Cincinnati from the playoff equation entirely, once and for all. It also gives Oklahoma’s win over the Oklahoma State Cowboys a bit more gravitas, as Mike Gundy’s group beat Tulsa in Stillwater at the start of this one-of-a-kind college football season. Conversely, it also makes Iowa State’s lone Big 12 loss to the Pokes look a little better by comparison as well.

Alright, prepare yourselves for what it will inevitably take for either Iowa State or Oklahoma to get in as the No. 4 seed in the College Football Playoff besides a little help from the Golden Hurricane…

In addition to winning the Big 12 Championship, both teams would need the No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide to slaughter the No. 7 Florida Gators in the SEC Championship game. Alabama probably will, but what this does is guarantee a two-loss SEC champion Florida does not get in over a two-loss Big 12 champion Iowa State or Oklahoma. They need Florida to lose a third time.

While the Big 12 champion could still get in regardless of what happens in the ACC Championship game, it would prefer the No. 2 Notre Dame Fighting Irish to beat the No. 3 Clemson Tigers for a second time this year. Notre Dame is like Alabama in that the Golden Domers are getting in any way. Having a two-loss, non-champion Tigers team out of the mix leaves one of two spots open.

Next, let us turn out attention to the Big Ten. It would be very, very helpful if the No. 4 Ohio State Buckeyes fell to the No. 14 Northwestern Wildcats in the Big Ten Championship game. While a shocking upset could get Northwestern on the precipice, only an undefeated 6-0 Ohio State team is getting in out of Big Ten country. A 6-1 Northwestern team or a 5-1 Ohio State will not cut it.

Now, let’s turn our attention to the No. 5 Texas A&M Aggies’ game vs. the hapless Tennessee Volunteers. Texas A&M could get in as a one-loss non-champion at 8-1 if the Aggies beat Rocky Top. Either a Clemson loss or an Ohio State loss coupled with a victory over Tennessee potentially gets the Aggies in over a Big 12 champion. If Texas A&M should falter, the Aggies are out of it.

And finally, we need to see the No. 19 Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns beat the No. 12 Coastal Carolina Chanticleers in the Sun Belt Championship game. This would give the Cajuns an outside shot at the New Year’s Six bowl, as well as give even more value to their early-season win over Iowa State. Louisiana and Tulsa are the Big 12’s best friends out of the Group of 5 this weekend.

So do the Cyclones or the Sooners have a realistic shot of getting in? Not really, but it is possible. The simplest path for either to get in is to win the Big 12, have Alabama win the SEC, Notre Dame win the ACC and have Northwestern win the Big Ten. Texas A&M could get the other spot and it would not matter. This scenario would give way to a two-loss Big 12 champion to shock everyone.

Could the Big 12 be the first Power 5 conference to get a two-loss champion into the playoff?

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