Lashlee: 'It would be criminal' to leave SMU out of CFP

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — SMU's magical first run through the Atlantic Coast Conference included an unbeaten regular-season record and a spot Saturday night in the league championship game. It ended with a painful final-play loss after a terrific comeback.

And now the eighth-ranked Mustangs wait to find out if it somehow derails their chances at a College Football Playoff bid.

“It would be criminal if we're not in,” SMU coach Rhett Lashlee said after the 34-31 loss to No. 18 Clemson.

The Mustangs fell behind by 14 in the opening five minutes and trailed by as many as 17 in the third quarter before rallying with a final-minute touchdown to tie it — only to see Nolan Hauser kick a 56-yard field goal as time expired that pushed the Tigers to the win. It was a shocking finish coming moments after Kevin Jennings had connected with Roderick Daniels Jr. for the tying 4-yard score with 16 seconds left.

As Clemson's players began spilling onto the field to celebrate, SMU players stood in stunned disbelief amid the chaos or squatted down in anguish. SMU linebacker Ahmad Walker stood still amid the Tigers' party, staring at the end zone where Hauser's kick — a record length for the ACC championship game — had split the uprights as he held his helmet down by his side.

And so marked the first league loss for the Mustangs (11-2), who went from being picked seventh in the league to going 8-0 in the regular season while trailing only four games all season. They had trailed by as many as 11 only once all season, coming in the opener against Nevada.

Now they can only wait to see if their CFP ranking from earlier this week (No. 8) holds up well enough for the unveiling of the 12-team bracket Sunday.

The playoff had been a frequent topic in the days leading up to the game. ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips — leading a league still stinging from last year’s omission of unbeaten champion Florida State from the four-team playoff — had gone on the offensive to say that SMU should be in regardless of the Clemson result and that a team shouldn’t be penalized for losing a game it had to earn through a season of success.

Additionally, Lashlee had shrugged off any idea of opting out of the game to protect that playoff positioning out of fear of a loss in the ACC title game.

“I don’t get how you could punish anybody for that, I just don’t,” Lashlee said Friday.

This one looked like it was on the verge of getting away as they trailed 31-14 late in the third quarter, the kind of lopsided margin that seemed perilous for those CFP chances, before rallying behind the dynamic play of Jennings (310 yards passing, three TDs).

Yet the Mustangs came one play short of completing that ACC title push, giving the Tigers the certainty of knowing they'll play for a national championship.

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