Texas Football: 4 overreactions from Horns tenacious win vs. Iowa State

Texas makes the College Football Playoff

The win over Iowa State keeps Texas firmly in the mix in the College Football Playoff conversation late this season. Texas remains at No. 7 in the AP Poll and could be in that same spot again in the College Football Playoff Rankings when they’re revealed on Nov. 21.

While the Longhorns do have a decent shot at making the College Football Playoff as we enter late November, the focus is still clear for Sark’s squad down the stretch. They must keep winning.

This College Football Playoff conversation for the Longhorns doesn’t matter if Sark’s squad doesn’t win the Big 12 Championship and/or beat Texas Tech in the regular season finale next week.

But the very fact that Texas is even in the College Football Playoff conversation and has reached double-digit wins already in late November is worth celebrating for the Longhorns faithful. Texas is having its most successful football season in over a decade and is the favorite to win the Big 12 Championship before leaving for the SEC next year.

ESPN gives Texas a 35.2 percent chance of making the College Football Playoff and a 75.8 percent of winning the Big 12 title. For Texas to have a chance of making the Playoff, though, it will need at least one of two things to happen.

The first is for the Florida State Seminoles to lose its regular season finale against the Florida Gators next week. Or Florida State would have to lose in the ACC Championship Game against the Louisville Cardinals. But then Texas still runs the risk of the committee picking Louisville over the Longhorns for the Playoff.

Another viable scenario for Texas to make the Playoff, assuming the Longhorns win out, is for either the Oregon Ducks or Washington Huskies to lose next week in their respective rivalry games. Washington faces Washington State in the Apple Cup, and Oregon faces Oregon State in Week 13.

If Washington and Oregon both win out, it sets up a rematch between the two schools (which the Huskies won the first time) in the PAC-12 Championship Game. In that case, Texas still runs the risk of the committee picking the PAC-12 winner over them.