Booger McFarland takes shot at Texas, SEC 'gauntlet' in defense of Indiana

Strength of schedule inside the SEC was a big topic heading into this week’s College Football Playoff rankings. Five two-loss teams from the SEC inside the top 15, with Texas also sitting at No. 3. This caused ESPN’s Joey Galloway to call the conference a “gauntlet” compared to other schedules out there, specifically Indiana.

“The SEC is a gauntlet,” Galloway said. “It isn’t who you play, it’s who you have to play after you’ve played a Georgia, a Texas, an Alabama, an Ole Miss.”

The debate around Indiana revolves around their own strength of schedule, which ESPN ranks 106 heading into Saturday’s game against Ohio State. No power conference team is below the Hoosiers in the metric. Even so, they have yet to lose and sport a 10-0 record.

In rebuttal, Booger McFarland took a shot at Texas using the “gauntlet” line against Galloway. The Longhorns do not have any ranked wins on their own resume despite going through the SEC.

“It’s such a gauntlet that Texas hasn’t played anybody,” McFarland said. “It’s such a gauntlet, Texas’ best win is Vanderbilt.”

ESPN ranks Texas as the No. 38 SOS following Week 12. None of their nine wins were ranked inside the top 25 on Tuesday night. Georgia, their lone loss, is at No. 10.

Both Indiana and Texas will have an opportunity to add an impressive win before the regular season is over. The Hoosiers travel to Columbus on Sunday, hoping to get arguably the program’s biggest-ever win vs. Ohio State. A week later, Texas renews its in-state rivalry against Texas A&M at Kyle Field, a team currently ranked No. 15 by the committee.

If both win, there is likely no debate if they should make the CFP. Conference championship spots would be secured with a chance to earn a top-four seed and an automatic bye.

Losses are where the strength of schedule debate will only rage on between Galloway and McFarland, wondering if the overall resumes are good enough to be included in the 12-team field.