This is not a drill, dream, or hallucination; BYU football is a perfect 8-0 and fresh off their strongest win in the season after taking down Iowa State in Ames. A 14-point victory in Ames -- especially after being down 10-24 to a Matt Campbell team fresh off a bye -- is nothing to scoff at. Ignore the fact that the Cyclones entered the meeting off two losses; this was a tall task for any team, and Kalani Sitake's team weathered storm after storm to enter a bye week of their own.
Take a breath, that was intense.
BYU, despite their unblemished loss column, has not had an easy path through the first eight games of the year. Comeback victories have been the name of the game in Big 12 play, and I don't care how good they are at climbing back into the game, nobody wants to play from behind every single week. It's nerve-wracking. It's anxiety-enducing. It's exhausting. Most of all, winning games by multiple scores is far preferable.
The Cougars had it both ways in Ames. A two-touchdown differential in a game where they trailed by the same total in the first half -- all thanks to a casual 31-3 swing. But BYU's next opponent is Texas Tech. Cincinnati looms. Even TCU stares ahead as the Cougars are staring down a gulf of potential disappointment.
But if -- if -- the Cougars can weather the storm, a date with the College Football Playoff remains on the road map. So what is that map? What are the greatest obstacles in the Cougars' unfolding journey?
BYU football's College Football Playoff road blocks
Obstacle 1: Awaiting Big 12 contenders
BYU has played eight football games to this point in the year. This is a university, and any university educated individual can deduce that means these Cougars still have four more games to play in their 12-game regular season. And frankly, at least two of the remaining contests could very well be losses.
9. @ 13 Texas Tech (7-1)
10. TCU (6-2)
11. @ 17 Cincinnati (7-1)
12. UCF (4-3)
That's right. Every single team on BYU's remaining schedule currently holds a winning record through this week. Even TCU and UCF, two teams that carry (relatively) very little prestige in the league at the moment, will be home tests for the Cougars.
And I haven't even mentioned the two ten-ton gorillas in the room -- giants in Texas Tech and Cincinnati. If these Big 12 schools had "SEC" on their shoulders, they'd both be top 10 squads nationally (and BYU would likewise be much higher, but that's besides the point). TCU and UCF are buffer teams between two heavyweight title bouts, and BYU has no choice but to square off against them.
On the bright side, BYU seems just as formidable as their two marquee matchups to this point in the year. They're the lone rangers -- the last squad standing unbeaten in the parity-rich Big 12. On the dark side, however, the Cougars are unfortunate enough to have to play both of those contests on the road. At the beginning of the year, this was seen as one of the easiest power four schedules in the nation. Very few would wish to trade places with BYU now.
Obstacle 2: The injury bug
BYU's workhorse running back, LJ Martin, exited the Iowa State game early with a shoulder injury. Jack Kelly similarly wound up in a shoulder sling after BYU claimed Ames. Bumps and dings have spattered Kalani Sitake's depth chart, as they have with every team in the nation (despite what Kyle Whittingham's injury report may lead one to believe). But if Martin, Kelly, and crew aren't at 100%, that leaves the Cougars at a complete disadvantage.
On the plus side, BYU may get a taste of recovery instead, with potentially returning faces like JoJo Phillips and Raider Damuni arriving to reinforce after the bye week.
BYU gets a break this weekend sandwiched between stops in Iowa and Texas, and they'll use that time to rest and recover. Because if Martin, Moa, and Rex are still injured at the running back spot, BYU's sputtering depth in that position may grind to a halt on the side of this highway.
BYU controls their fate more than any team in the Big 12 Conference. Win and you're in, Cougs.