4 weeks ago
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SMU head coach Rhett Lashlee has not been shy about speaking out against anything that he feels is unloaded on his team unfairly, with ESPN being his most-recent target.
Being at the head of the upstart Mustangs, who were elevated to the Power Four as part of the Atlantic Coast Conference's expansion, made the College Football Playoff last year.
Yet, ESPN's Football Power Index ranked SMU as the No 19 team in the country entering the season, while also dropping league powerhouses Clemson and Miami to Nos 16 and 17 overall, the three highest teams from the ACC.
The movement to downgrade the ACC against the rest of college football led to Lashlee speaking out on social media.
'Because the whole thing is rigged,' the Mustangs head coach said.
Clemson is the highest-ranked team in the FPI not playing in the Southeastern Conference, Big Ten Conference, or Notre Dame.
SMU head coach Rhett Lashlee has called out ESPN's Football Power Index for being 'rigged'
The index has downgraded the rankings for ACC teams, including SMU coming in at No 19
The FPI was created by ESPN to be a 'measure of team strength that is meant to be the best predictor of a team’s performance going forward for the rest of the season.'
Essentially, it means based on how strong a team is now against what their maximum strength will be with its schedule. It shows the FPI is not high on the ACC, and even less so about the Big 12.
Texas, Georgia, and Alabama hold the top three spots in the index, with all three playing in the SEC.
The 42-year-old Lashlee is expected to have SMU competing for a CFP place again in 2025, having led the Mustangs to back-to-back 11-win seasons.
That chip on his shoulder, which led to the call-out of ESPN is sure to come up again throughout the college football season, especially if the Mustangs out-perform expectations for a third consecutive year.
