Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian could lead a 9-3 team into the College Football Playoff if the team loses to one of the Georgia Bulldogs or TAMU Aggies down the stretch, if enough other things break right.
The Athletic’s Ralph D. Russo believes the Longhorns’ wins against the Oklahoma Sooners in the Red River Rivalry and against Vanderbilt this past Saturday at DKR Stadium would be enough, combined with a win over UGA or TAMU, to overcome one more loss to a top-six team in the CFP’s first rankings release.
Texas lost 14-7 to the Ohio State Buckeyes in Week 1, which Russo acknowledged could overcome a loss to the Bulldogs/Aggies and their 29-21 loss to the Florida Gators in Gainesville.
“The haters will say it’s not real, but at least a couple of SEC teams could finish 9-3 and make a case to be in the CFP, none more so than Texas, which could split with Georgia and Texas A&M and add that victory to wins against Oklahoma and Vanderbilt. Yes, Florida would be a bad loss, but as of no, nobody has played No. 1 Ohio State closer than Texas. This is already making fans angry,” Russo wrote.
Texas making CFP could keep Steve Sarkisian in Austin
There’s been a lot of talk about Sarkisian leaving Texas for the NFL or his alma mater, the BYU Cougars, which was ranked higher in the College Football Playoff Selection Committee’s first rankings release.
The Longhorns can at least make a good case to keep him by winning two of their last three against UGA, the Arkansas Razorbacks, and TAMU.
We’ll see if Arch Manning could continue his revival in Austin and lead Texas to what’d be an unlikely College Football Playoff berth in 2025.