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Texas has made an unprecedented return into the top 10 of the AP poll

by: Justin Nash1 hour ago
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Malik Muhammad (Will Gallagher/Inside Texas)

The Texas Longhorns weren’t the first preseason No. 1 team to fall out of the AP top 25, but they were the fastest to see a ranking depart from their name after entering the year in the top spot. However, despite the bumpy start, the Longhorns have become the first preseason No. 1 team to leave the AP top 25 and then return to the top 10.

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While the AP poll has taken a backseat in significance with the College Football Playoff rankings now public, Texas’ current status as the No. 10 team in those rankings reinforces the historic ebb and flow for Steve Sarkisian‘s program and the resilience it took to get to the current position.

Let’s look at this historic return.

For the sake of not overcrowding the following graphic, here is how the last fifteen preseason No. 1 teams have wound up after 12 weeks of rankings. Looking at this graphic feels like Texas is basically Maverick bailing out and then rejoining the dogfight in Top Gun.

While Texas wasn’t the fastest to fall out of the top 10, they were the fastest to fall from the top 25. 2012 USC is the other team that has the distinction of falling from the top 25 after starting the season at No. 1, and it took them until the November, 18, 2012 poll to accomplish that feat. The coach of that team? Lane Kiffin.

When removing the teams that never fell below No. 10 at any point, only four seasons remain. Texas is sitting with the second best of the four ranks, quite remarkable considering the Longhorns started 3-2. They aren’t close to top-ranked status yet, but they are playing more like a team that can accomplish what was originally expected of them.

The Longhorns’ 2025 season has clearly been a turbulent one and the flight isn’t getting any calmer in Athens.

Texas’ upcoming games are sure to impact its ranking in the AP poll and in the CFP top 25. With two top-five opponents left on the schedule, Texas will need to play at a high level. If the Longhorns do so and win, they will likely see their name back in the top five after a wild journey of a 2025 season.

Buckle up.

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