A 24-team playoff field would have benefited BYU
A 24-team playoff field would have benefited BYU
Jeremy Mauss, BYU Cougars WireSun, May 10, 2026 at 5:01 AM UTC
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All signs are pointing to the College Football Playoff expanding to 24 teams as more coaches are getting on board. The current iteration of the playoff is 12 teams for this upcoming season.
The expanded playoff will provide more opportunities for many teams, including BYU, which has been close to breaking through in the 12-team field in each of the past two seasons. However, if the field were expanded to 24 teams, then the recent past of the Cougars football program would look a lot more rosy than it already is right now.
If we take a look at the Kalani Sitake era, which dates back to 2016, the Cougars would have made a 24-team playoff field in four of those years. All four of those appearances would have been in the 2020s.
2020 Season
The COVID-19 year was a wild one in more ways than one. The Cougars powered through the season and set up a game on a week's notice against Coastal Carolina. That was a game BYU lost and would be its only defeat of the year.
Oct 24, 2020; Provo, UT, USA; BYU quarterback Zach Wilson (1) throws against Texas State in the first half during an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 24, 2020, in Provo, Utah. Mandatory Credit: Rick Bowmer/Pool Photo-USA TODAY NETWORK
Even with that loss, the final standings in the College Football Playoff would have had BYU ranked No. 16 and USC at No. 17. This would mean that the Cougars would have hosted the Trojans in a playoff game at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
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2021 Season
The Cougars had a great year in 2021, and their final College Football Playoff ranking would have been on the doorstep of a 12-team field by being ranked 13th. In an expanded 24-team field, BYU would not have had to play in the low-level Boca Raton Bowl. Rather, they would have hosted back-to-back playoff games, and this one would be against a future Big 12 opponent in the Houston Cougars.
2024 Season
It would take a few years for BYU to get back into playoff consideration under Kalani Sitake. This year, the Cougars would make the field as the 17th seed and go on the road to the East Coast to take on Clemson, who is the 16th seed. Whatever team that won would have had the privilege of taking on No. 1 seed Oregon.
BYU Cougars football head coach Kalani Sitake celebrates after a defensive stop against Iowa State during the fourth quarter at Jack Trice Stadium on Oct. 25, 2025, in Ames, Iowa.2025 Season
The Cougars had a real argument to make the 12-team field last year, but they were held out of the field and were held to a different standard than Alabama, which also lost in its conference title game. BYU would be the 12th seed and host the Big 12 foe Houston.
If this 24-team playoff comes to fruition, BYU will likely be a participant more years than not, and especially with the momentum the program has had this decade.
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This article originally appeared on BYU Cougars Wire: Where would BYU have been in a 24-team playoff?
Source: “AOL Sports”
