To be fair, Joel Klatt probably has a bias towards his alma mater. But the FOX Sports lead college football analyst believes the No. 8 Colorado Buffaloes should be considered for the College Football Playoff should they upset No. 4 Washington in Friday’s Pac-12 Championship.

Klatt was on The Herd with Colin Cowherd Friday to make his case.

“First and foremost,” Klatt says, “They have not been beaten when their starting quarterback has played four quarters of football.”

The Buffs are 9-0 when Sefo Liufau has been on the field as the final whistle blew. They are 0-2 with losses to Michigan and USC (both on the road) with Steven Montez closing out games. Montez also won a critical matchup in Eugene, Ore. Liufau left the game against Michigan in the third quarter and Montez played wire to wire against the Trojans.

“They had the lead against Michigan in Ann Arbor in the middle of the third quarter, which is far more than Penn State can say in the same environment in Ann Arbor,” Klatt notes.

No. 7 Penn State, who will face No. 6 Wisconsin for the Big 10 Championship on Saturday, lost 49-10 in the Big House the week after Colorado (then unranked) nearly pulled the upset. Colorado eventually lost 45-28, giving up 21 unanswered points in the second half – 14 after Liufau departed the game.

The Nittany Lions, Badgers and Wolverines could all sneak into the No. 4 spot in the College Football Playoff should Colorado knock off Washington.

“They lost to USC, yes,” says Klatt, “but only by four points, on the road, without their starting quarterback.

“If the committee is going to take into consideration who’s on the field and who’s not, then Colorado should deserve inclusion if they win this game.”

Of course, Colorado must go out an win before any of that matters.

The Buffs are nine-point underdogs just a few hours from kickoff.

Klatt quarterbacked Colorado to its last conference championship game, 2005 against then No. 2 Texas. The Buffs lost 70-3.