Do the Longhorns Still Have a Shot at the College Football Playoff?
After Saturday's disappointing loss to Georgia, the Texas Longhorns are hanging by a thread with hopes of making the college football playoffs, despite their 7-3 record. This has been a whirlwind of a season for Texas, as they started the year ranked first in the AP Poll, and quarterback Arch Manning was put in Heisman talk. With the way this team has looked in some games against tough opponents, one can only question how head coach Steve Sarkisian has prepared them. However, the players are determined to keep fighting and prove that they belong in the SEC.
As we began this glorious college football season, many self-proclaimed experts were hyping up Texas to be this year's Ohio State or Notre Dame. That, unfortunately, could not be farther from the truth, as this drama-filled and injury-riddled Longhorns season has been nothing but lackluster for everybody. Arch has looked average, although he has shown flashes of being a good quarterback. As we know, there is more to a team than its offense. Texas’ defense is not exactly being as dominant as we were told, allowing 25 PPG to SEC opponents, while getting bailed out by the offense in three of those games. For as upsetting as a year it has been for this program, it is still way too early to make a statement on Arch, or whether he has the potential to be a first-round pick, as he is still in his first full year as a starting college quarterback and needs time to develop.
Looking ahead for the remainder of the Longhorns’ schedule, they’ve got matchups against Arkansas and the undefeated Texas A&M Aggies, with both games taking place in Austin. It is possible, but unlikely, that Texas wins out and gets some help from other teams in the SEC to give them a chance to run the table in the SEC Championship game. With everything that's happened since Week One, it is evident that this team will continue to fight until the clock hits zero, and even if they are not selected to make the playoffs, this program has a very bright future.
