After losing 30-15 to the Georgia Bulldogs Saturday, the Longhorns have been in a rankings free fall. No. 1 just days ago, the Horns are now No. 6 in the US LBM Coaches Poll and No. 5 in the AP Top 25 ranking.
Now the weekly USA TODAY Sports College Football Playoff predictions are out and Texas’ position has definitely changed. Well, for now UT can kiss that first round bye goodbye. Here’s what writer Austin Curtright has to say.
“Texas’ loss to Georgia moved Oregon into the No. 1 spot in the Week 9 rankings, with Georgia also overtaking Texas in the polls, making the Bulldogs the highest-ranked SEC team after Week 8.” — Austin Curtright
The top four teams get a first round bye. The other eight that make it into the bracket must play in Week 1 of the playoff. The top seed will get to host.
USA TODAY Sports’ bracket
These teams would get a bye:
1. Oregon
2. Georgia
3. Miami
4. Iowa State
Here’s a look at the bracket if the regular season ended today:
No. 5 Penn State vs. No. 12 Boise State
No. 6 Ohio State vs. No. 11 Notre Dame
No. 7 Texas vs. No. 10 Clemson
No. 8 LSU vs. No. 9 Tennessee
The Longhorns would host theoretical ACC runner-up Clemson at DKR in the first round. The winner would face Georgia, ironically.
College Football Playoff dates, schedule
Here is the full list of dates for the 2025 College Football Playoff:
- First round: Friday, Dec. 20-Saturday, Dec. 21
- Quarterfinals: Tuesday, Dec. 31-Wednesday, Jan. 1
- Semifinals: Thursday, Jan. 9-Friday, Jan. 10
- National championship: Monday, Jan. 20