Again and again, Sitake reiterated his belief that Texas Tech is the best team in the country, and that his team shouldn’t be penalized for taking it on the chin to a team that he designates as such in relation to receiving an invite to the College Football Playoff.

“So, I’m not on the playoff committee, but I can tell you one thing, who has played the best team in the country twice? We have,” Threw out Sitake in his team’s defense. “Does that mean that you’re not one of the best 12? I have no idea. I’m not in that committee. I don’t

make the decisions. But others will find out.”

BYU better hope others find out, considering what transpired during Saturday’s demolition.

Things started well enough, with BYU setting out to a 7-0 lead early before everything unraveled considerably in yielding 34 straight points to the Red Raiders. Questionable play-calling, way too many opportunities missed and turnovers all played big roles in serving up exactly the type of loss the Cougars could ill-afford to take in their quest for inclusion within the coveted 12 spots allotted for the CFP.

“Honestly, when you look at it, the way the game went, pretty similar, right, in a lot of stat categories,” bluntly stated BYU safety Tanner Wall. “We lost the turnover margin 4-0. Last time 3-0. I thought, defensively, we fought and battled in some of those short fields to try to force them into field goals or no points. But, honestly, just looking at the way the game went, it felt like they made more plays than us, right? Their playmakers made plays that changed the momentum of the game, and we really weren’t able to do that on our end.”

Missing out on making plays comes at a premium cost against a team like Texas Tech, and on Saturday, particularly early on, there more more than several opportunities missed.

Take Texas Tech’s first possession, when BYU safety Faletau Satuala just missed on an interception that would have almost definitely been returned for an interception as just one example.

“Obviously you can tell that we should have made more plays on defense,” Satuala said. “And when it comes to big games like this, you know, it just really comes down to the team who makes those big plays and takes advantage of those opportunities. Defensively, I feel like we had a lot of times where we could make plays like that, get interceptions, sacks.”

And that’s just the defensive side of the story.

On offense, it was far worse, although it’s hard to argue the offense just missed out on any opportunity considering what was presented by Texas Tech’s stifling defense, which held Bachmeier to just 115 yards passing and the entire Cougar offense to just 200. Making matters worse was the fact that almost half of BYU’s total yardage came during its opening possession when Bachmeier directed a 14-play touchdown drive that covered 90 yards and ended with an LJ Martin touchdown run from 10 yards out.

“I mean, like it was last time we played them, we just weren’t executing,” said BYU receiver Parker Kingston, whose four receptions for 44 yards led all BYU receivers. “We weren’t playing our brand of football, and we let that game get out of hand because we weren’t making plays.”

Hindering BYU’s offensive production considerably was a hit Bachmeier sustained during his team’s second possession, and was never the same afterward. The play-calling seemed to mirror Bachmeier’s uncertainty with a bevy of runs and short passes called in lieu of attempting to beat the Red Raiders over-the-top.

“He was banged up, you know? So when you have a lower-leg injury that causes issues for you to throw the ball,” Sitake admitted. “But that’s not an excuse. I mean, I think — was it Ben that made the one-handed snag? Come on, man. They made some amazing plays, great defense, and offense was efficient.”

The Ben mentioned by Sitake refers to Texas Tech safety Ben Roberts, who snagged two interceptions on the afternoon during BYU’s ultimately unsuccessful comeback attempts in the fourth quarter. And as mentioned, that was the story of a game which saw Texas Tech cash in on its opportunities while BYU did not.

Still, the Cougar players, along with Sitake, were passionate regarding their advocation for inclusion into the college football playoff, with Kingston giving the most heart-felt defense.

“To be 11-1 in a Power 4 conference is something that’s really hard to do, and the fact that we aren’t getting the respect we deserve or the Big 12, even, we’re not getting respected is, I mean, it pisses you off, right? It makes you mad,” Kingston said. “And to have the conference championship as the reason why we can’t go or get in, I think, is not right. I mean, what’s the point of even getting in the conference

championship if it’s going to hurt your odds in getting into the playoff or not?”

It’s easy to agree with Kingston, and there’s certainly a lot of arguments to be made for BYU’s inclusion into the playoff. Unfortunately for Kingston, and everyone else involved, the strongest argument could have come with the Cougars standing toe-to-toe with Texas Tech on Saturday, even if ultimately dealt the loss. But unfortunately that did not happen, or come close to happening, leaving the comments and subsequent arguments not worth considering, at least in the minds of those who matter.