Steve Sarkisian’s Texas Faces Brutal Reality Check as AP Poll Security Wanes Ahead of Biggest Test Yet

Are the Texas Longhorns worthy of their No. 3 spot on the latest AP Poll ranking? As Week 12 rolled by, Steve Sarkisian and the team added yet another W after their 20-10 win over Arkansas. With a 9-1 record, they’re not only one of the top-performing teams now but also strong contenders for the SEC Championship. But as analysts point out, Texas is yet to face the ultimate challenge when it meets its rival on November 30. 

As of now, the Texas Longhorns and Texas A&M are the top SEC teams with a 5-1 record each, which will soon change when they meet. The Athletic staff David Ubben and Chris Vannini made an appearance on a new YouTube episode on Until Saturday to talk about the Longhorns’ current situation. While both the hosts have varying opinions on their future, they agreed on a common ground that Sarkisian’s team doesn’t have a good resume. Ubben believes that a loss to the Aggies might still put them high on the AP Poll, as he said, “The resume is not good. They have no top 25 wins. They have the weakest resume but they have one loss and because of that, they’re ahead of every other team in the SEC.” But Vannini thinks otherwise. 

The Texas Longhorns have a fairly easy schedule for 2024, with the most prominent opponents being Michigan and Georgia, where they fell to the latter. So Vannini argued, “If you compare a two-loss Texas to a two-loss Ole Miss, a two-loss Alabama, a two-loss Georgia, all three of those teams have better wins and a better resume. That’s why I think there is a real chance Texas could plummet if they don’t beat Texas.” 

With the outcome of Week 12, the SEC now has four teams tied in the second spot with two losses—Georgia, Tennessee, Ole Miss, and Alabama. The Bulldogs rounded up their SEC play with a win against Tennessee, who will face one more conference battle against Vanderbilt. The Rebels and Crimson Tide will need to win their last two remaining games to stay on the SEC leaderboard. But let’s also see how Week 12 affected these six SEC teams as far as their rankings go.

SEC programs in AP Poll ranking

In Week 13, Big Ten programs are dominating the AP Poll rankings, with four of them in the top 5 aside from the Texas Longhorns. The top four teams—Oregon, Ohio State, Texas, and Penn State—remained consistent in their rankings. The two-loss SEC programs took the spots from No. 7 to No. 10, with Tennessee suffering the worst blow in the updated ranking. 

No. 8 Georgia’s win over the Volunteers boosted their ranks three spots higher, while Tennessee plummets to the 10th spot after losing four ranks. No. 7 Alabama and No. 9 Ole Miss rose two and one spots, respectively. But right now, the only thing that’s going to determine the Longhorns’ future is the season-ending game against the No. 15 Aggies. 

The Texas-Texas A&M rivalry just got hotter with the Longhorns now in the SEC, turning old foes into conference rivals. With the Texas Longhorns leading the series 76-37-5, this showdown is set to be legendary. Are you ready for the ultimate SEC clash?