Lashlee -- No SMU in CFP would be 'wrong on so many levels' - ESPN

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — SMU coach Rhett Lashlee said it would be «criminal» if his team is left out of the College Football Playoff after a last-second 34-31 loss to Clemson in the ACC championship game Saturday night.

The No. 8 Mustangs (11-2) finished the ACC regular season as the only undefeated team in league play. Against Clemson, they overcome a 17-point halftime deficit only to lose on a 56-yard field goal by Nolan Hauser as time expired.

«It'd be criminal if we're not in,» Lashlee said in his postgame news conference. «It'd be wrong on so many levels. Not just our team. It'd be wrong to what college football stands for. Our team deserves a chance to be in. It doesn't matter what I say, but it would set a really bad precedent. It would break all the principles of what we've been told. We showed up, and we competed our butts off. We should be in. They know we should be in. So, we'll see what happens.»

After trailing 24-7 at halftime, SMU came all the way back — culminating with a 4-yard touchdown pass from Kevin Jennings to Roderick Daniels Jr. in the corner of the end zone with 16 seconds left to knot the score at 31.

But Adam Randall returned the ensuing kickoff 41 yards, and Cade Klubnik threw a 17-yard completion to Antonio Williams with 3 seconds left to set up the field goal attempt. Hauser nailed it through the uprights, setting off a wild Clemson celebration.

SMU players walked dejectedly off the field, some stopping to watch the Tigers celebrate their eighth ACC title in the past 10 years, locking up the conference's automatic spot in the playoff. That left the Mustangs wondering whether they would get an at-large spot in the CFP or be left out entirely.

The final CFP selection committee rankings will be