Cincinnati's standing in latest playoff rankings 'indefensible,' conference commissioner says

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Mike Aresco, the commissioner of the American Athletic Conference, doesn’t understand why Iowa State is ranked ahead of Cincinnati in the latest College Football Playoff rankings.

When the rankings were revealed on Tuesday night, Iowa State was No. 7 after a big win over West Virginia. And Cincinnati, which hasn’t played since Nov. 21 due to COVID-19, was bumped down to No. 8, despite a perfect 8-0 record.

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On Wednesday, Aresco talked about Cincinnati’s ranking.

“It really can't be defended. It's indefensible," Aresco told The Cincinnati Enquirer. "This team [Iowa State] has two losses. Why do we bother to play the games? The team ahead of [Cincinnati] lost by 17 points, 31-14, to Louisiana. That team also lost another game to Oklahoma State.”

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Gary Berta, the playoff committee chairman, and Iowa athletic director, said on the playoff selection show that Iowa State’s impressive jump to the seventh spot was more about the Cyclones and nothing to do with Cincinnati.

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“So it was really the committee’s respect for what Iowa State has done and not a penalty against Cincinnati,” Barta said on Tuesday.

The playoff committee is certainly in favor of teams in the Power Five conferences. No team outside of Notre Dame, the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, and SEC has ever made the playoff.