BYU football's playoff hopes are dashed thanks to rival AD joining the committee

It's doomsday in Provo, Utah. With the BYU football team's hopes for a College Football Playoff berth already wobbling over a cliff, the selection committee selected the most anti-BYU athletic director in the entire nation: Mark Harlan of the University of Utah.

Yes, the very same Mark Harlan who was penalized in last season's Holy War against BYU for entering the field to berate the officials while the game was still being played, and spreading icing on the cake by taking to the press box to let loose a tirade about how the game was "stolen" from Utah, how he was no longer happy to be a member of the Big 12 Conference, and that he'd be having a word with the league's commissioner over the result of the game.

A result, which, for the record, was decidedly fair and within the rules of the sport.

With the stepping down of Baylor AD Mack Rhoades, Harlan was recommended by the league to represent the Big 12 in the playoff selection committee.

I have a sinking suspicion that BYU's playoff chances are about to be stolen from them.

I say all this tongue-in-cheek, of course, as the Big 12 wouldn't recommend an athletic director whose motives are in direct contrast with the interests of the conference at-large, and in fact Harlan will likely be one of the major voices advocating for the Cougars in the weeks ahead, as resumes are compared and the final changes are made in preparation for the bracket's finalization.

But with the Cougars and Harlan's Utes positioned adjacent one another in the most recent College Football Playoff rankings, a scenario where an 11-2 BYU and a 10-2 Utah are both vying for an at-large bid in the playoff is a very realistic possibility, and it's hard to imagine the Utes' athletic director shedding all biases to advocate for his rival to the South.

Related: Exploring BYU's path to the College Football Playoff, threats in the way

If I were in such a position, I'd certainly struggle to ignore my personal feelings for the betterment of the sport as a whole.

All the same, stressing over a potential future is an exercise in futility. BYU fans, however, will have this detail haunting the back of their minds if the Cougars fail to secure the Big 12's automatic qualifier.