MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- It was January 1995, and Dr. Chris Howard was flying solo in a T-37 jet trainer.
He was practicing a maneuver called a Cuban Eight when his jet began to nosedive and he couldn't recover.
The young pilot raised his arm handles about 6 inches and squeezed the triggers. Within seconds, his entire seat was ejected, and the parachute opened.
"Had I not punched out," said Howard, now 48, "I would have died."
Eight weeks later, Howard was back in the cockpit -- one of many remarkable stories that make his new responsibility as a College Football Playoff selection committee member pale in comparison to the lofty decisions he has already made.