Could Texas Tech, BYU football both make the CFP regardless of Big 12 title?

Talking points have already started to come about for the Big 12 Championship game between the Texas Tech and BYU football teams.

Both the Red Raiders and Cougars enter Saturday's showdown with 11-1 overall records after going 8-1 in Big 12 play, Texas Tech's loss coming at Arizona State without starting quarterback Behren Morton and BYU's setback being the 29-7 loss in Lubbock in early November.

Based on those two factors, plus many other metrics that swing in favor of the Big 12 teams, commissioner Brett Yormark and head coaches Joey McGuire and Kalani Sitakes made their stance clear during Monday's Zoom press conference: both teams should be in the College Football Playoff regardless of the outcome in AT&T Stadium in Arlington.

"Both programs are not only worthy of competing in the Big 12 title (game)," Yormark said, "but they both deserve to be in the CFP based on their resumes and their bodies of work. Texas Tech's terrific season has them firmly in the CFP. No doubt. They are a shoo-in."

The Red Raiders have the best argument for getting to the CFP, even with a potential loss to the Cougars. Texas Tech ranked fifth in last week's CFP rankings and could find its way into the Top 4 this week, which would put it in position for a bye to start the playoff.

With a small date sample available, Texas Tech can look to last year's SMU team as a reason to feel comfortable in the field. The Mustangs were 8th in the final CFP ranking before the ACC Championship game and dropped just two spots after losing to Clemson.

BYU is considered a fringe team for the CFP, ranked just outside the cutline for an at-large bid. The Cougars could take care of that themselves by avenging the earlier loss to Texas Tech, and they have Yormark's full backing.

"BYU's body of work at 11-1 is being undervalued by the CFP committee at No. 11 in the rankings. Let's not look at logos. Let's look at resumes. Any blind resume comparison has BYU Top 10, no question about it. In comparison with Notre Dame, as an example, BYU has a better overall record, better strength of record, and better strength of schedule. I am confident that the CFP will get it right for BYU."

McGuire, in a more suitable position this time of year, piggybacked off Yormark's comments and stumped for both Texas Tech and BYU to be included in the final field.

"I think that without a doubt we both should be in the playoffs," McGuire said, "no matter what happens on Saturday. I think we've earned a right and I think whenever you look at it, they're discounting both of us, whenever you're talking about lower rank. I think we're as good as anybody in the country and we're going to put on a great game."

Sitake's attention, though, may be somewhat divided this week. Multiple national reporters have linked Sitake with the head coaching position at Penn State, which fired James Franklin earlier this year. Sitake isn't taking the bait, though, focusing instead on keeping the Cougars off the CFP cutline.

"They're used to me saying, hey, this is a good sign, you know, that things are going well for us," Sitake said. "But I will say that this isn't about me. What I've asked our team to do is to be focused on what we're trying to accomplish."

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Big 12 begins CFP campaign for both Texas Tech, BYU football teams