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Warde Manuel reveals Texas' resume, lack of Top 25 wins were 'big topic of conversation' for CFP committee

Grant Grubbs Profile Pictureby: Grant Grubbs12/08/24grant_grubbs_
NCAA Football: Michigan at Washington
Oct 5, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Michigan Wolverines director of athletics Warde Manuel stands on the sidelines during the fourth quarter of a football game against the Washington Huskies at Alaska Airlines Field at Husky Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

There are endless factors the College Football Playoff selection committee has to consider when evaluating teams. On Sunday, a reporter asked committee chairman Warde Manuel how much they took into consideration Texas‘ strength of schedule when seeding the bracket.

“A lot,” Manuel said. “We always talk about what we see as their résumé and what they’ve done during the season. That was a big topic of conversation, as it was with other teams who have either played a lot of games against Top 25 or haven’t played.

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“We always recognize that and that’s part of the discussion. That’s part of the data that we have in front of us every time we’re looking at teams.”

Texas’ schedule this season wasn’t nearly as formidable as some of its fellow SEC programs such as Georgia. The Longhorns didn’t play Alabama, Ole Miss, Tennessee, South Carolina or Missouri; the five programs ranked behind Texas in the AP Top 25.

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Moreover, when Texas played Georgia, it lost both times. Nonetheless, Manuel pointed out that Texas showed it’s more than capable of competing against top talent with its performance against the Bulldogs in the SEC Championship on Saturday.

“It was an amazing game,” Manuel said. “Unbelievable game, goes into overtime. All the drama that creates. Then, to have Gunner [Stockton‘s’ helmet come off and then to have Carson [Beck] come back in the game and hand the ball off — those kind of things just make for great drama as the way it goes.

“We felt as a committee that Texas played very well. Both teams played hard. The outcome of the game was extremely close, so from our perspective, when you look at it, Georgia went ahead of Texas. They’d beaten Texas twice now and Texas went right behind them.”

It was one of the best games of the season, with the Bulldogs ultimately escaping with a 22-19 victory in overtime. The showdown was even more exhilarating than the two teams’ meeting earlier this season. On Oct. 19, Georgia handily defeated the Longhorns 30-15.

With the win on Saturday, Georgia earned the No. 2 seed in the CFP, only trailing undefeated Oregon. As one of the four highest-ranked conference champions, Georgia will enjoy a bye in the first round of the Playoff and automatically advance to the quarterfinals.

Meanwhile, the selection committee ranked Texas as the No. 5 seed in the bracket. The Longhorns will face off against No. 12 seed Clemson on Dec. 21.