AAC Commissioner Attempts to Make CFP Case for Army At-Large Bid

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Matt De Lima | Last updated Dec 7, 2024 3:58 PM ET

With an 11-1 record, the Army Black Knights are on the outside looking in at the College Football Playoff. The American Athletic Conference's top team with an undefeated record during interconference play was only beaten once, 49-14, by the No. 6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

Army has one game left on its schedule, its heralded rivalry game against Navy on December 14 at 3 p.m. EST. However, that game will not affect the CFP as its verdict will be delivered on Sunday. After a decisive 35-14 win over Tulane in the AAC Championship, AAC commissioner Tim Pernetti tried to make the case, unconvincingly, that Army deserves an at-large bid in the CFP, per Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports.

“The so-called hierarchy in college football is not relevant, There are 9 conferences competing in FBS. The playoff is about putting in the best programs. We don’t understand the logic of 3 loss teams being considered over Army.”

Considering Army's strength of schedule and only loss coming in a blowout against Notre Dame, the number of quality wins over ranked opponents has to count for something.

While it's commendable that commissioner Pernetti is sticking up for his conference members, Army had the opportunity to make their case best when playing Notre Dame. In that contest, the Black Knights were held to 233 total yards. Meanwhile, the Fighting Irish put 49 points on the scoreboard with just 20:11 in time of possession, suggesting they could score easily and effortlessly.

Army will be rewarded with one of the nation's top bowl games, but a win over Notre Dame would have served as their play-in game into the CFP.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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