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Nov 26, 2024
2:16:06pm
LeftOfNormal All-American
Very bored at work CCG scenarios breakdown and musings.
Because I'm bored at work, since half the team at work is out already and the other half is checked out already, I thought I'd break down the conference scenarios. Continue at your peril.

There are still a total of EIGHTEEN different possible matchups in the conference championship game. That alone kind of blows my mind.

Arizona State could play one of five teams: Baylor, BYU, Colorado, Iowa State, or Kansas State
Baylor could play one of six teams: Arizona State, BYU, Colorado, Iowa State, Kansas State, or Texas Tech
BYU could play one of five teams: Arizona State, Baylor, Colorado, Iowa State or Kansas State
Colorado could play one of five teams: Arizona State, Baylor, BYU, Iowa State or Kansas State
Iowa State could play one of five teams: Arizona State, Baylor, BYU, Colorado, or West Virginia
Kansas State could play one of six teams: Arizona State, Baylor, BYU, Colorado, Texas Tech or West Virginia
Texas tech could play Kansas State
West Virginia could play Iowa State or Kansas State

Interestingly, there are only two possible CCG matchups in which the weekend's results could affect which team in that matchup gets which seed. Granted, in a neutral site game, that amounts only to laundry, so it's not a big deal either way, but it's interesting that the only matchups that could switch which is the CCG "home" team and which is the "away" team are Arizona State v Iowa State, and BYU v Iowa State. In all other matchups, all iterations of the 1 seed vs 2 seed are already mathematically determined.

7 of the final 8 conference games MAY affect which teams play in the CCG. The only game that has no possibility of any bearing on the Championship race is Utah v. UCF (🤣).

That means there are 128 different unique outcomes (2^7=128). Note, the following is not probability, it's simply possible outcomes. Understand also that depending on the result of some games, other games may end up not affecting the final result. For example, in the majority of unique outcomes, the TCU v Cincinnati result won't affect the CCG entrants, but if Baylor beats Kansas, all the sudden the TCU v Cincinnati result will indeed affect the final outcome due to tiebreakers "downballot."

Of the 128 unique combinations of results:
65 send Arizona State to the CCG
61 send Iowa State
50 send BYU
36 send Colorado
23 send Kansas State
16 send Baylor
3 send Texas Tech
2 send West Virginia

In 29 of them, Arizona State plays Iowa State
In 18, BYU plays Iowa State
In 16, Arizona State hosts BYU
In 11, Colorado hosts Arizona State
In 9, Colorado hosts Iowa State
In 8, Colorado hosts BYU
In 7, Arizona State hosts Kansas State
In 5, Colorado hosts Kansas State
In 5, BYU hosts Kansas State
In 4, Iowa State hosts Baylor
In 3, BYU hosts Baylor
In 3, Kansas State hosts Baylor
In 3, Colorado hosts Baylor
In 2, Arizona State hosts Baylor
In 2, Kansas State hosts Texas Tech
In 1, Baylor hosts Texas Tech
In 1, Iowa State hosts West Virginia
In 1, Kansas State hosts West Virginia

Amazingly there are also no iron-clad "win and you're in" teams. Everybody's been saying Arizona State is, and in 63 of 64 cases (not 128, since half of those would be accounting for an Arizona win), that's accurate. However, wins by Colorado, Baylor, Texas Tech, Cincinnati, Iowa State and Houston would put Arizona State on the outside looking in even with a win (😄). For obvious reasons we don't want that to happen, but it would indeed be a nice consolation prize if the worst happened and BYU fell to Houston, to see that result kick Arizona State out of the title game in favor of Colorado and Iowa State.

There are also two remaining possible back-into-the-CCG-even-with-a-loss teams:
Arizona State, with wins for Oklahoma State, Kansas, West Virginia, and Houston (interestingly, the KState ISU game only determines who ASU would play, but neither result would eliminate them)
...and as krindorr mentioned earlier, BYU, with wins for Oklahoma State, Kansas, Texas Tech, Arizona and Iowa State.

Interesting random oddities to note: Sadly, the real longshots' (WV and TT) only possibility of success is at the hands of a BYU failure, so we'll not be rooting for that, of course, but their only chance rests on the result of games long before BYU's, so the concern will very likely be moot by the time BYU kicks off. Both WV and TT are depending on Oklahoma State to upset Colorado, and that is at present the most lopsided line of the 8 remaining conference games. Interestingly, BYU sees a path forward in almost the same number of scenarios pending that result. 26 iterations have BYU in the CCG with an OSU win, and 24 with a CU win. Now again, not all possibilities are created equal, but it is interesting. And it is nice that the OSU/CU game will winnow down the possible scenarios. For BYU, a Colorado win would do one thing in particular - limit BYU's possible CCG opponent to one of the other "big" three currently tied with BYU for first place, and extinguish any hopes KState might have of payback against us (maybe a good thing, maybe not). Considering the Big12 is already flirting with disaster as far as placement in the CFP is concerned, it'd be nice that at very least a CU win would almost guarantee two ranked teams in the Big12 CCG.

Bottom line for BYU, though, is we're all Wildcat fans this weekend. If either of them wins, given a BYU victory, BYU is 100% in. If neither of them win, BYU is 100% out.
LeftOfNormal
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