Greg Sankey’s conference could prove that “It Just Means More” isn’t just a slogan, but the undisputed reality in college football over the season’s final month. Still. In 2025.
With the College Football Playoff Selection Committee’s first rankings release on Tuesday night, there’s an opening for the SEC to have a total of seven 10-2 teams, and with it, six or seven playoff teams.
The Athletic’s Ralph D. Russo believes it’s a long shot, but it can happen if the Texas Longhorns and Vanderbilt Commodores win out, and the winner of the Missouri Tigers-Oklahoma Sooners has enough things break their way.
“There is a way to get to the end of the regular season with seven — SEVEN! — SEC teams at 10-2 or better. The most difficult part of that scenario is Texas sweeping Georgia and Texas A&M, but getting Vanderbilt and the winner of Missouri-Oklahoma to 10-2 would only require a couple of modest upsets,” Russo wrote.
The aforementioned upsets would have to come for Missouri against the TAMU Aggies and for Oklahoma against the Alabama Crimson Tide.
The seven teams that’d make it would be Alabama, TAMU, the Georgia Bulldogs, the Ole Miss Rebels, Vanderbilt, Texas, and the winner of the Sooners and Mizzou Tigers on November 22.
Texas can make the College Football Playoff with three losses
Russo believes there’s a chance Texas can make the College Football Playoff even with three losses if one of those comes against the Georgia Bulldogs or TAMU. The Longhorns’ close 14-7 loss to the Ohio State Buckeyes in Week 1 at the “Shoe” is one of the biggest reasons.
“The haters will say it’s not real, but at least a couple of SEC teams could finish 9-3 and make a case to be in the CFP, none more so than Texas, which could split with Georgia and Texas A&M and add that victory to wins against Oklahoma and Vanderbilt. Yes, Florida would be a bad loss, but as of no, nobody has played No. 1 Ohio State closer than Texas. This is already making fans angry,” Russo wrote.
As usual, things look like they’ll break the SEC’s way. They could use cooperation from the Big Ten, making sure the Washington Huskies and Michigan Wolverines don’t end up with two losses. Ditto for the Big 12 to make sure only one of the Texas Tech Red Raiders, Utah Utes, and BYU Cougars has a CFP resume.
