Everyone already knows that Steve Sarkisian has been lobbying incredibly hard for Texas to get into the College Football Playoffs, doing everything he can to help his case. One of his most recent statements about how Texas should be in front of Miami in the rankings has apparently gotten under the skin of Hurricanes HC Mario Cristobal.
Sarkisian on Miami stat-padding to have a better look for the CFP Committee:
"Throw fade route touchdowns with 38 seconds to go when you're ahead 31-7 so that the score looks better."
Cristobal definitely took offense to this, and it's pretty understandable. Blood is in the water right now and everyone is fighting to make it into the playoffs.
"They also gotta take a look at the fact of a common opponent, seeing that we had the opportunity to really dominate that opponent while that opponent dominated them."
NEW: Mario Cristobal to @Brett_McMurphy on Steve Sarkisian's criticism of Miami's late touchdown vs. Pitt:
— On3 (@On3sports) December 2, 2025
“That’s funny. We had one common opponent: Florida dominated Texas 29-21, a team we beat convincingly 26-7. That settles that debate.”https://t.co/UpyHhd7p9f pic.twitter.com/3tWNvp1CbG
Realistically, trying to stay unbiased, Miami still has no right whatsoever to be ahead of Texas in the updated CFP rankings. Though the Longhorns did get ranked higher (No.13) than most of the college football world expected last night, it's still not high enough.
They should truly be in the top 12 right now, with some contingencies built in. For example, if Alabama loses to Georgia, or if BYU loses to Texas Tech this weekend, then Texas should be locked in. That might actually be the case, but it would be nice to see if reflected in the rankings or on paper somewhere.
It's going to be incredibly interesting to see where the Longhorns are ranked after the conference championship games on Friday and Saturday.