The first edition of the College Football Playoff Rankings were released on Tuesday night, and fans and pundits immediately got their reactions off about which teams were too high and which ones were being disrespected by the selection committee.
Indiana and BYU stuck out as two teams who have a strong case to be ranked higher than they are (No. 8 and No. 9, respectively). Both are undefeated on the season and BYU possess two very impressive wins over SMU and Kansas State, leading fans to be outraged about their rankings.
One of the teams that many people thought was ranked higher than it should be is Texas, who came in at No. 5 in the first poll before Week 11. Texas was one of the squads that was “overvalued” by the selection committee according to Matt Hayes of USA Today.
“The schedule strength looks solid until you dive deeper. Texas was blown out at home by Georgia and held off Vanderbilt for its most impressive win,” Hayes wrote. “Too much weight has been placed on a September win at average Michigan, and the day we start giving credit for Group of Five wins is the day the CFP poll is meaningless.”
Texas needs to continue to build resume down the stretch
Despite being ranked at No. 5 in the first CFP rankings, many people believe that Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns are ranked a little bit too high.
After diving a little bit deeper, Texas' resume doesn't quite stack up with the teams around them. They have a great reputation as a team at the top of the SEC who reached the four-team playoff last season and spent some time at No. 1 in the AP poll this season, but they are lacking an impressive win.
Texas hung on to beat Vanderbilt on the road by a field goal before its bye week, which didn't exactly pass the eye test but it did give them a leg up on some teams who haven't been as fortunate when taking a trip to the Commodores' construction site (hello, Alabama). A 52-0 win in the season opener against Colorado State has aged well as the Rams roll through the Mountain West, but it's still not a needle-moving win.
The Longhorns' resume is currently being hurt by their win over Michigan on the road, which looked like a dominant victory over a top team at the time. However, Michigan has really struggled this season and is in danger of not making a bowl game, in large part because they haven't settled on a quarterback.
Texas' schedule to finish the season isn't super daunting, but they will get a chance to pick up a marquee win during the final weekend of the regular season when the Texas-Texas A&M rivalry is renewed. The Aggies are currently ranked No. 14, and that game has a chance to have major SEC title implications.
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