Oklahoma’s win over Texas significantly impacted the more prominent college football picture. Entering the contest, the winner of the game had over a 70 percent chance of making the College Football Playoff. The Sooners won and virtually control their destiny to the CFP. If they win out, including winning a Big 12 championship for the last time, they’ll be in the CFP.
Their win against Texas moved them up in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll, confirming that it will be impossible to keep them out of the postseason as long as they keep stacking wins. The Sooners’ win against the then-ranked No. 3 Longhorns was good for a seven-spot leap, now slotting them as the No. 5 team in the nation.
The rest of the top five looks like this: Georgia remains at one, Michigan at two, the Ohio State Buckeyes at No. 3 after defeating Maryland, and the Florida State Seminoles in the fourth spot as they rolled right past Virginia Tech.
Behind the Sooners, things get more congested as Penn State, Washington, and Oregon slot in six through eight. At No. 9, you’ll find the Texas Longhorns, who fell six spots after losing Saturday. Their season is still far from over, and the position they are in allows them to have a chance to fight their way back into serious consideration for the CFP. To round out the top 10 are Lincoln Riley’s USC Trojans after they needed triple overtime to beat the Arizona Wildcats.
The only remaining Big 12 team in the AP Top 25? Lance Liepold’s Kansas Jayhawks took new Big 12 members, UCF, to task by scoring 51 points at home Saturday.
Oklahoma’s entry back into the top 10 marks the first time they’ve been there since mid-September last year. The Sooners will get a bye this week, allowing the ability to rest up and recharge physically and mentally after their emotional Red River win.
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