No matter how this season finishes out, count Texas coach Steve Sarkisian a huge fan of the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff format.

“I love it. I’ll be honest with you. I love it,” he said Thursday. “I’ve been banging for this playoff now for some time.”

It probably helps that Sarkisian’s Longhorns are front and center of the discussion. Texas was ranked third overall and seeded second in the bracket during Tuesday’s CFP selection show. What that means is the committee projects the Horns to win the SEC title, something that will always remain high on the coach’s to-do list every year.

Texas (8-1, 4-1 SEC) must keep the good vibes flowing at 11 a.m. Saturday against rival Arkansas (5-4, 3-3) at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium.

WATCH AND SUBSCRIBE: Follow A to Z Sports’ Texas Longhorns channel on YouTube.

Around the league Saturday, other teams are playing something akin to CFP elimination games. No. 12 Georgia is looking to avoid a third loss when it hosts No. 7 Tennessee. No. 14 SMU needs a big win against Boston College to stay on the fringes, too.

Every game matters here in November, it seems. That’s a far cry from a previous era where two losses meant you were automatically eliminated from BCS or CFP contention.

“I always say we’re the only sport that didn’t have a true playoff,” Sarkisian said. “Every other sport, whether it’s professional or collegiate, they have a playoff. We have March Madness. We have the NCAA baseball tournament and College World Series. NBA or NFL, everybody has it. You know, us and boxing are the only two that don't have a playoff. And so for us to finally get it now, I think is awesome.

“And I’ve been saying this, I think the popularity of college football right now is at an all-time high,” he added. “There are so many meaningful games that are happening every weekend. Before, everybody was worried about who was going to be five, six and seven, and now, all of a sudden, you're looking at 10 through 25 of who can find their way into this playoff.

“What if somebody in the front half of that one through eight, what if they lose, how far they fall? And I just think it's super exciting.”

Now as for the ranking itself, Sarkisian doesn’t want to bother with nitpicking at the moment. There’s a growing national narrative that somehow the Horns haven’t played a tough schedule.

Texas beat the defending national champions in their house in week two. The school joined the supposed toughest conference in America, the SEC, and sit in first place. And the Horns are not playing any FCS schools in non-conference, something other top-ranked teams can’t say.

And yet, ESPN’s Rece Davis asks on national TV, “What’s Texas’ best win? Vandy?”

“I’m not certain. I, honestly, don’t pay attention to that stuff,” Sarkisian said. “All I know is, we play the teams that are in front of us, and they’re good. So I don’t know if people don’t think they’re good or not. That’s not for me to decide. You know, we just try to play our best football that we can.”

The Horns are doing just that, winning four SEC games by an average of 22 points. That’s a three-touchdown edge.

Oh well. Maybe wins over Arkansas, Kentucky and then Texas A&M in the regular season finale will quiet the naysayers. None of this is going to dampen Sarkisian’s excitement for the playoff and the spectacle of it all, to be sure.

“I love it for our sport. I love it for our game. I love it for the popularity,” Sarkisian said. “I think it’s creating a lot more exposure for more teams, which I think is healthy and good for the sport.”