Steve Sarkisian and the Texas Longhorns earned a signature win to end the regular season, a 27-17 triumph over previously-unbeaten Texas A&M. That rivalry result sparked a multi-spot rise in Sunday’s Week 15 Coaches Poll. Now slotted at No. 14 with the Aggies sliding to No. 7, Texas awaits its College Football Playoff fate as a bubble team.
The Longhorns previously ranked 16th by the selection committee and need to get to No. 10 on Tuesday night to have a legitimate shot at the bracket. Texas would be the first three-loss, at-large selection to ever make the field if it happens.
“I think we’re absolutely a playoff team,” Sarkisian said. “We’re the first team since the 2019 national champion LSU team to beat three top-10 ranked teams in the same season during the regular season. Let’s just chew on that for a second.”
Unbeaten Ohio State maintained its No. 1 ranking in the Coaches Poll following its win at Michigan, which snapped a four-game losing skid in the Big Ten rivalry series. The Buckeyes play second-ranked Indiana in the conference championship finale next week, a matchup that will determine the top-seed in the playoff.
First-place votes in parenthesis.
Week 15 Coaches Poll
1. Ohio State (63)
2. Indiana
3. Georgia
4. Oregon
5. Ole Miss
6. Texas Tech
7. Texas A&M
8. Oklahoma
9. Notre Dame
10. Alabama
11. BYU
12. Vanderbilt
13. Miami
14. Texas
15. Utah
16. Virginia
17. USC
18. Michigan
19. James Madison
20. North Texas
21. Tulane
22. Arizona
23. Georgia Tech
24. Tennessee
25. Navy
Schools Dropped Out: No. 24 Pittsburgh; No. 25 SMU
Others Receiving Votes: Iowa 85; Houston 73; Missouri 52; SMU 28; Washington 18; UNLV 17; Pittsburgh 15; South Florida 12; Illinois 9; Louisville 6; Connecticut 6; TCU 5; Penn State 5; Old Dominion 2; New Mexico 2; Arizona State 2; San Diego State 1
ACC conundrum
Pittsburgh and SMU dropped out of this week’s Coaches Poll after losses to Miami and California. The Mustangs controlled their own destiny in the ACC Championship picture and erased a 17-point deficit in the fourth quarter before falling on the road, which puts Duke in the league title matchup with Virginia.
If the five-loss Blue Devils beat the Cavaliers, the Group of Five could produce two playoff entries. The playoff selection committee has not yet ranked James Madison, but that could happen in Tuesday night’s penultimate top 25.
Virginia will be the 11-seed in the final bracket if Tony Elliott’s team beats Duke with the 12-seed going to the American champion — either Tulane or North Texas. Both of those teams are ranked in the updated Coaches Poll.
And for Miami, the Hurricanes simply needed chaos to unfold during rivalry weekend to have a legitimate shot at reaching the playoff. No teams ahead of Miami nearby on the bubble lost.
“This is a College Football Playoff team,” Miami coach Mario Cristobal said after Saturday’s win. “We’ve all seen it. We know it. Proud of the way our guys came out, dominated from start to finish. We left a lot of points on the board as well. We’re really starting to click. Complete dominance. We’ve got great players in all phases, and we’re playing great football in all phases. The best part about football is you get to settle it on the field, where head-to-head is always the No. 1 criterion.”
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