Week 1 of the college football season had some surprising results, with Arch Manning's play in Texas' 14-7 loss to Ohio State as one big one. Another was Alabama losing to unranked Florida State, 34-17, as questions swirl about the Crimson Tide program.
Both teams were ranked in the top 10 in the AP preseason poll and Texas was at No. 1 in many preseason rankings.
So, a loss in Week 1 was a bit unexpected, especially for Alabama. In turn, ESPN analyst Heather Dinich says there is a big “problem” for those two teams as far as the College Football Playoff future looks.
“The College Football Playoff selection committee is going to continue to use schedule strength to evaluate teams, but that will be balanced with what happens on the field — and that could be a problem for Alabama, Texas and Clemson if they don't get better in specific areas,” Dinich wrote.
Dinich also mentioned Clemson in this category after the 17-10 loss to LSU as Cade Klubnik didn't play well.
“Alabama and Texas lost nonconference games to quality opponents on the road — Alabama at Florida State and Texas at Ohio State — and the committee isn't going to penalize them for scheduling those blockbuster matchups. The bigger concern is how those teams struggled in the losses. The Tide was beaten physically up front, while Texas sputtered and stuttered in the red zone and was unable to get its downfield passing game going under Arch Manning. LSU's defense had its way with Clemson, which was expecting more from a veteran passing game led by Cade Klubnik. These head-to-head results will last and could mean the difference in a first-round home game, a first-round bye or an at-large bid.”
Texas made the College Football Playoff semifinal a year ago, and with Manning as the QB1, there were once again high hopes for the program. Unfortunately, Week 1 did not give fans or analysts a promising feel.
As Dinich says, those results could “mean the difference” in seeding and potentially an at-large bid, meaning both programs have their work cut out for them early on.
Texas' next three games are easy ones with San Jose State, UTEP and Sam Houston State, all at home. Alabama faces Louisiana-Monroe and Wisconsin before beginning SEC play on September 27 on the road against Georgia.
