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We finally know who has been included in the first ever College Football Playoff as well as who remains on the outside looking in.
| College Football Playoff Rankings | ||
| RK | TEAM | RECORD |
| 1 | Alabama Crimson Tide | 12-1 |
| 2 | Oregon Ducks | 12-1 |
| 3 | Florida State Seminoles | 13-0 |
| 4 | Ohio State Buckeyes | 12-1 |
| 5 | Baylor Bears | 11-1 |
| 6 | TCU Horned Frogs | 11-1 |
After occupying the two spots just outside of the College Football Playoff, the Big XII Commissioner, Bob Bowlsby said the conference will reevaluate how the conference declares their champion.
In a phone interview on the College Football Playoff Selection Show, Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby told ESPN's Rece Davis: "It's clear that we were penalized for not having a postseason championship game. It would have been nice to have been told that ahead of time." - via ESPN
It's a known fact Bowlsby submitted "co-champions" or two programs to the playoff committee after both TCU and Baylor won their final regular season matchups. An odd submission for the commissioner to make after the Big XII released multiple promotional clips with the slogan "10 Teams, 9 Games, One True Champion."
Instead, the round-robin format produced two teams with a single conference loss. Now, the Big XII looks to point a finger or use the excuse "we didn't know." In fact, Bowlsby said in July that "if there was a tie for conference champion, they would go to tiebreakers, meaning head to head." This leaves the TCU Horned Frogs and Baylor Bears to suffer the consequences of poor decision making and management.
Art Briles continues taking issue with the the handling of the situation, criticizing the conference bigwigs. Needless to say, the Big XII got what they deserved. Anyone who thinks the conference received punishment for failing to produce a championship game is wrong. The real reason for being left out of the college playoff rest squarely on the notion that the conference simply could not decide a champion.
If the Big XII fails to declare "One True Champion," why should the playoff committee be forced to do it for them?
Change must occur to secure the future of the conference. Whether that means discovering a new method to the madness in submitting a single champion in a round robin format or adding two teams to force a championship game, something must change. Will it? Only time can uncover the answer to that question.