Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher saved his College Football Playoff opinions for the conclusion of the No. 5 Aggies’ regular season.
“I haven’t lobbied, I haven’t said a word,” Fisher said after A&M’s 34-13 win over Tennessee on Dec. 19.
Prior to Saturday, Fisher had only mentioned the playoffs in passing with phrases such as, “I’m not going to touch on that,” and “We’re focusing on this game.”
But now that the regular season is concluded, Fisher and players have finally voiced their opinion on the College Football Playoffs.
“We’re 8-1 in the SEC,” Fisher said. “We lost to the No. 1 team in the country. I want to see someone else go 8-1 in this league, and stand up and do it. We can play with anybody, we can. We do deserve to be in [the playoffs].”
Senior quarterback Kellen Mond has led the way for his team throughout the shortened SEC-only slate, shattering four school records and within reach of a fifth.
Mond said at this point, being placed in a bowl game instead of the playoffs would be disappointing.
“[If we don’t make the playoffs] we’ll find out who we’re playing in a bowl game and go play them,” Mond said. “I think I would be disappointed because that’s something that we work for and that’s a goal. We control what we control. Whatever happens, happens.”
However, Mond did not stop there.
The team captain continued and said they deserve to be in the playoffs.
“We should be in,” Mond said. “That’s my pitch. We’ve played well all season and we knew coming into this season with the COVID[-19] stuff and it being an all-SEC schedule that it was going to be difficult. We came out, finished the season with the most SEC wins in Texas A&M history, lost one game to a really good team. We beat some really quality teams. So that’s my pick.”
However, not all players or coaches have been as vocal about their opinions.
Senior linebacker Buddy Johnson remained quiet on his stance on the playoffs.
“I’m still humble,” Johnson said. “I’m just going to enjoy today. It’s about this team. That locker room after we lost to Alabama was very down. But the leaders kept it up. For me, it’s just about keeping [the] guys composed no matter what they give us. We’re excited; we’re fired up. This team deserves the world, we’ve put in so much work, and look at where we are now.”
Many A&M fans have questioned the CFP selection committee’s decision to place Ohio State at No. 4 in the rankings, since they have only played six games.
Fisher also questions this decision.
“[We have] seven straight SEC wins,” Fisher said. “Some schools haven’t even played seven games. If you want to pick the best four teams, we’re one of them.”
The Aggies finish the regular season with an 8-1 record in Fisher’s third season at the helm.
The NCAA’s top four teams who will be competing in the playoffs will be announced on Sunday, Dec. 20, at 11 a.m.
Fisher said it is up to the committee to do its job to the best of its ability.
“That’s up to the committee,” Fisher said. “That’s their thing. But I believe that [we should be in] firmly. I’ve watched the games, we can play with anybody.”