Texas Longhorns College Football Playoff Week 12 Rooting Guide: SEC and Big 12 chaos incoming
Texas fans should be pulling for Kansas or whoever faces BYU. Taysom Hill still hurdling tacklers in Longhorns’ nightmares.
Like it or not, Texas fans, the national narrative about the Longhorns’ strength of schedule is going to harden. And it’s not ideal.
Expect to hear more about how Texas doesn’t deserve to be ranked No. 3 in the College Football Playoff rankings when the Horns haven’t beaten a single top-25 opponent.
“The problem is the resume doesn't support a top-three ranking,” ESPN analyst Greg McElroy said about Texas on Tuesday’s CFP show. “They are up there on eye test and ceiling. And until we see it all put together, it's tough for me to get totally on board with them being up there.”
All Texas (8-1, 4-1 SEC) can do at this point is keep winning. Big, preferably.
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Oddsmakers think the Horns will do just that. Texas is a 13.5-point favorite this week against Arkansas, a rivalry game that conjures up memories of the “Big Shootout” and coach Houston Nutt doing the Horns Down after a huge Cotton Bowl victory.
The CFP committee is projecting Texas to win the SEC and be the No. 2 overall seed. It’s difficult to improve that much, as only No. 1 seeded Oregon (projected Big Ten champ) stands in UT’s way.
But let’s look at some other ways Texas can bolster its resume in this week’s Rooting Guide.
No. 7 Tennessee at No. 12 Georgia
Dawgs need to keep winning to get back in top 12
This sounds ludicrous on the surface, but Georgia is somehow the first team out, if the season ended today. That’s because the committee is solely focused on Georgia’s two losses. But what about the eye test? If you’re boosting Texas because of the eye test, you aren’t going to give Georgia any credit for that, too? The Dawgs need to send a message this weekend that they belong in the CFP.
No. 22 LSU vs. Florida
Gators can shore up their reputation with a win
OK, this is going to be a tall task for the Gators, no doubt about it, especially coming off a blowout loss to Texas. But the Tigers aren’t exactly Supermen at the moment. Heck, even the Louisiana governor ripped the state’s flagship football team for last week’s loss to Alabama. Billy Napier got the vote of confidence from Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin, and the Gators picked up some recruiting momentum. LSU should win comfortably here, but Texas fans should celebrate a possible Florida win.
Kansas at No. 6 BYU
Texas fans should want BYU flipped with Miami
If you’re a longtime Texas fan, you’re still having Taysom Hill flashbacks. Cougars fans practically built a monument inside Royal-Memorial Stadium where Hill hurdled a tackler and ran all over the Horns. Sigh. With that in mind, Texas fans should start cheering for anyone who is playing BYU. Odds are, BYU is still going to win the Big 12, and that’s fine. But it’d be more preferable to flip No. 3 seed BYU and No. 4 seed Miami in the bracket.
Playing the Hurricanes in a potential CFP semifinal wouldn’t be near as problematic as facing the Cougars would be. It’d led to fewer sleepless nights. Let Hill cause nightmares for someone else.
