Why did Texas miss CFP? What kept Longhorns from Playoff bracket
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The team that started the season the top-ranked team in the country won’t have a chance to end the season on top.
Texas opened the 2025 campaign No. 1 in the preseason US LBM Coaches Poll, but after an up-and-down season, the Longhorns fell just short of qualifying for the College Football Playoff for the third straight season.
It’s a disappointing end given the high expectations for Texas as Arch Manning became QB1 in Austin. The season had its high and lows, but coach Steve Sarkisian believed his team should have been in the field. So why didn’t Texas make it?
Why Texas missed College Football Playoff
How Texas got its record has been the center of its playoff case. It suffered the season-opening loss to Ohio State 14-7 in Columbus, which ended up being the closest game the Buckeyes played during their undefeated regular season. The Longhorns also lost at Georgia by 25 points in Week 12.
The biggest stain for Texas was the Week 6 loss at Florida, a team that finished 4-8. Given the losses and uninspiring wins against struggling SEC teams in Mississippi State and Kentucky, and it was hard to justify putting Texas in over other teams.
However, Texas did have notable wins. It beat rival Oklahoma and Vanderbilt, and then ended the regular season by handing rival Texas A&M its only loss of the season in the Lone Star Showdown. The three ranked victories came against two teams that made the playoff, with all teams ranked in the top 15.
Still, the record was likely the biggest reason Texas failed to make the field. The Longhorns finished the season 9-3 and didn’t qualify for the SEC championship game, which could have given them a better shot of being in the playoff. All of the at-large teams that qualified had no more than two losses.
Texas 2025 schedule, record, results
- Saturday, Aug. 30: Ohio State 14, Texas 7
- Saturday, Sept. 6: Texas 38, San Jose State 7
- Saturday, Sept. 13: Texas 27, UTEP 10
- Saturday, Sept. 20: Texas 55, Sam Houston 0
- Saturday, Sept. 27: BYE
- Saturday, Oct. 4: Florida 29, Texas 21
- Saturday, Oct. 11: Texas 23, Oklahoma
- Saturday, Oct. 18: Texas 16, Kentucky 13 (OT)
- Saturday, Oct. 25: Texas 45, Mississippi State 38 (OT)
- Saturday, Nov. 1: Texas 34, Vanderbilt 31
- Saturday, Nov. 8: BYE
- Saturday, Nov. 15: Georgia 35, Texas 10
- Saturday, Nov. 22: Texas 52, Arkansas 37
- Saturday, Nov. 29: Texas 27, Texas A&M 17
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Did Texas make CFP? Why Longhorns missed College Football Playoff bracket
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