In college football, more than any other sport, when you least expect it, the sport gets turned on its head. On paper, this was a fairly benign weekend, starting at the very top of last week’s AP poll, where top ranked Alabama was going to Nashville as a four touchdown favorite to face Vanderbilt. Fast forward to Saturday night, and Commodore fans are dumping the goal posts, in celebratory fashion into the river after marching down Broadway.
A 40-35 Vanderbilt upset of the Crimson Tide was the biggest nuclear bomb in a weekend of nuclear bombs cratering the top of the AP poll. Tennessee was upset by Arkansas, the Aggies plundered Missouri, Michigan got worked by Washington, and on and on we go.
At the end of the day, the biggest beneficiary was the University of Texas, who sat by idle and watched the rankings smolder in flames, and when the ashes cleared and the dust settled, the Longhorns found themselves on top again. For now. Here are the rankings through six weeks of college football:
1. Texas (52)
2. Ohio State (9)
3. Oregon
4. Penn State
5. Georgia
6. Miami
7. Alabama
8. Tennessee
9. Ole Miss
10. Clemson
11. Iowa State
12. Notre Dame
13. LSU
14. BYU
15. Texas A&M
16. Utah
17. Boise State
18. Kansas State
18. Indiana
18. Oklahoma
21. Missouri
22. Pitt
23. Illinois
24. Michigan
25. SMUAlso receiving votes: Southern Cal 98, Nebraska 51, Navy 43, Army 33, Vanderbilt 26, Arkansas 17, Washington St. 8, Iowa 8, Texas Tech 7, Syracuse 6, Washington 4, Louisville 4, Colorado 3, Kentucky 1.
Here are a few thoughts on the season, and the excitement that is coming down the road for the big time teams here in the state of Texas:
What’s causing all the chaos?
As I outlined at the beginning of this article, upsets in college football are nothing new, but it does seem like the playing field between the power conferences and the lower conferences, and even within the tiers of the power conferences themselves, has evened more than ever. The main variable injected into all of this is the two pronged pitchfork of chaos — the transfer portal along with NIL (name, image, likeness) money available to players. It’s free agency all the time now in college football, and while the natural reaction is “Well, the big dogs are just going to cherry pick the lesser teams’ rosters,” it DOES work both ways. There will be kids at places like Alabama seeking playing time, and it may be available at mid tier schools. Also, every school has some faction of local businesses and rich alums looking to pay players. I would submit the portal and NIL have evened the playing field more than they have tilted it.
How do the Longhorns’ chances look right now?
Pretty damn good, thanks for asking! Sitting at home, getting ready for the Red River Rivalry on Saturday against Oklahoma, the first time these two schools will face off as SEC members, Texas was elevated back to No. 1 by the chaos. Oklahoma will now be looking to spoil that ascension this weekend. The big games remaining for Texas are Georgia in Austin, and the season finale at A&M in College Station, although their trip to Vanderbilt on October 26 just got more interesting. The reality is, Texas can easily afford to lose one of these games, maybe two, and still make the playoff.
Will it be a major disappointment if the Aggies miss the playoffs?
With their resounding 41-7 win over Missouri this weekend, the Aggies are all of a sudden way more than just a dark horse to make the playoffs. They have a tough test with LSU coming to town on October 26, but the only other ranked opponent is Texas, and they, too, come to College Station. If the Aggies split those two games, they could be looking at a spot in the SEC Title Game, and even if they don’t make it, as long as their losses aren’t blowouts, they should have a good shot at the postseason. Their season opening loss to Notre Dame looms large, and the only team damaged more by the Irish loss to Northern Illinois in Week 2 than the Irish themselves are probably the Aggies, who need Notre Dame to look strong to justify losing at home to the Irish in Week 1.
Learn the name — Ashton Jeanty
The only non-Power Four school in the AP Top 25 (for now) is Boise State, an on and off Cinderella darling for the better part of two decades. The best conference winner outside the Power Four is guaranteed a playoff spot, and Boise has the inside track there. They still have games against UNLV, San Jose State, and Oregon State the rest of the way, but watch the Broncos, mostly because of their star RB Ashton Jeanty, out of Frisco, Texas. The odds-on Heisman favorite right now is well on his way to an historic season, with 1,031 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns in just five games. Recently, I saw an NFL mock draft that had Jeanty going to the Houston Texans, which would be beyond exciting.
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This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2024.
