Joel Klatt breaks down Big 12 teams still alive in College Football Playoff race

The finish line of the college football regular season is a month away, which means the first 12-team College Football Playoff is right around the corner. In the meantime, experts and fans alike will try to forecast what the first postseason bracket will look like ahead of its highly anticipated reveal next Tuesday.

A big topic of conversation is how many teams from each conference will make the 12-team field. College football analyst Joel Klatt analyst specifically broke down for the Big 12 Conference recently on The Joel Klatt Show.

“I believe that the top four teams in the conference currently are the only teams in the conference that have a realistic path to a College Football Playoff berth,” Klatt said. “So that means the two undefeateds, certainly there, BYU and Iowa State. That means the one loss team, Kansas State is there. And that means the team that still has an opportunity to play themselves into the Big 12 Championship game, Colorado, is still alive for a College Football Playoff berth.”

BYU and Iowa State’s paths to the playoff are clear, both undefeated and not facing one another in the regular season. That gives each program a golden opportunity to run the regular season table and punch an automatic ticket to the College Football Playoff and a first-round bye with a conference championship.

But is there potentially room for two Big 12 teams in the CFP in what will likely be a crowded list of playoff contenders across the country?

“Let’s just say, sake of argument, BYU and Iowa State play as undefeateds in the Big 12 Championship game. That would mean that the winner would be 13-0 and the loser would be 12-1, 12-1,” Klatt repeated. “That would be, in a lot of cases, two more wins over some of these teams that they would be arguing against on the bubble that are 10-2. So I do think that there is a path for two teams out of the Big 12. I do think those are the only two teams that could go.”

Kansas State has one loss already this season to BYU, but does control their own fate with an opportunity to defeat Iowa State in their regular season finale and punch themselves a ticket to the Big 12 Championship. But Klatt believes the only way the Wildcats or the Buffaloes make it to the CFP is with a conference title victory, with Colorado needing a little bit more help.

“So the top three in the Big 12 control their own destiny to get to the College Football Playoff. That’s not the case for Colorado. What Colorado is going to need to happen is that they’re going to need Kansas State to beat Iowa State to give them that loss, they’re going to need BYU to trip up along the way, and then they’re going to need to win a tie breaker. That’s how they’re going to get into the Big 12 Championship game,” Klatt explained.

“Now if they do, now it’s 60 minutes and you’ve got a chance to go to the College Football Playoff.”

The Big 12 has been unpredictable this season, with four more weeks of the regular season remaining for more chaos to unfold. Which will set the table for an exciting 12-team College Football Playoff field where more teams than ever before will have a shot at competing for a national championship.