like every NC in college football until there actually became a playoff. The NC was voted NC, not decided on the field. Did the voters get it right every year? No, but that was the systems in place. It's irrelevant who BYU played, their record, etc. BYU never named themselves NC. In fact, Edwards hardly even proclaimed BYU as "best team in the country" that year. Was BYU the best college football team in 1984? Unknown, unable to prove, just like almost every year up until the playoffs began.

If you could go back in time an magically insert a playoff into every college football season, I'm willing to bet that 1/2 the teams that got voted NC, would not win the NC playoff.

What was BYU suppose to do in 1984, decline the NC trophy? Loose a game on purpose? Not claim to NC when the sports world told them they were?

They went undefeated and got voted NC. BYU did not campaign for it, they just went out every week and won.