Texas A&M Football: Aggies Debut at No. 4 in College Football Playoff Rankings
Texas A&M football fans were pleasantly surprised when the first 2016 College Football Playoff rankings were announced this week.
After nine weeks of college football there are just four remaining undefeated teams: Alabama, Michigan, Clemson, and Washington. There wasn’t supposed to be much of a surprise when the top four sports of the college football playoff ranking were announced on Tuesday evening. And then the announcement came.
Texas A&M became the topic of conversation on the national stage as the committee put them into the field of four above an undefeated Washington Huskies team. The order of the three one-loss teams drew much of the debate from sport analysts around the country this week before the rankings were released.
Louisville, Ohio State, and Texas A&M were ranked 5th, 6th, and 7th in both the Associate Press Poll and the Amway Coaches Poll. Louisville lost to Clemson 42-36, Ohio State lost to Penn State 24-21, and Texas A&M fell to Alabama 33-14.
Can you say Playoffs?! #CollegeFootballPlayoff #gigem #aggies pic.twitter.com/PZ6iPGoXJQ
— Gig Em Gazette (@GigEmGazette) November 1, 2016
As things stand today, the narrative remains the four undefeated teams likely control their own destiny. If they all win out, it wouldn’t be hard to imagine that those four schools would make it to the playoff.
The odds of all remaining perfect? Unlikely. If just one of those teams falters the door would remain open for the Aggies. Texas A&M’s only loss came to the number one team in the nation on the road. That puts the maroon and white in playoff contention, regardless of how the final resumes might play out.
The Big 12’s highest ranked team, Oklahoma, checks in at No. 14. Barring the utter collapse of a dozen of the nation’s top programs, it would appear that the Big 12 is out of playoff contention following Halloween weekend. Oklahoma looks primed to win the conference, but their two non-conference losses (Houston and Ohio State) will probably keep them from a playoff berth.
All told, five SEC schools made the cut. Alabama checked in at number one, followed by the Aggies at four, then No. 9 Auburn, No. 11 Florida, and No. 13 LSU. The SEC, ACC, and Big 10 Ten all had five representatives this week.
| Rank | School | Conference | Week 9 result | Next opponent |
| 1 | Alabama, 8-0 | SEC | Bye | at LSU |
| 2 | Clemson, 8-0 | ACC | 37-34 W at FSU | vs. Syracuse |
| 3 | Michigan, 8-0 | Big Ten | 32-23 W at Michigan State | vs. Maryland |
| 4 | Texas A&M, 7-1 | SEC | 52-10 vs. NMSU | at Mississippi State |
| 5 | Washington, 8-0 | Pac-12 | 31-24 W at Utah | at Cal |
| 6 | Ohio State, 7-1 | Big Ten | 24-20 W vs. Northwestern | vs. Nebraska |
| 7 | Louisville, 7-1 | ACC | 32-25 W at Virginia | at Boston College |
| 8 | Wisconsin, 6-2 | Big Ten | 23-17 W vs. Nebraska | at Northwestern |
| 9 | Auburn, 6-2 | SEC | 40-29 W at Ole Miss | vs. Vanderbilt |
| 10 | Nebraska, 7-1 | Big Ten | 23-17 L at Wisconsin | at Ohio State |
| 11 | Florida, 6-1 | SEC | 24-10 W vs. Georgia | at Arkansas |
| 12 | Penn State, 6-2 | Big Ten | 62-24 W at Purdue | vs. Iowa |
| 13 | LSU, 5-2 | SEC | Bye | vs. Alabama |
| 14 | Oklahoma, 6-2 | Big 12 | 56-3 W vs. Kansas | at Iowa State |
| 15 | Colorado, 6-2 | Pac-12 | Bye | vs. UCLA |
| 16 | Utah, 7-2 | Pac-12 | 31-24 L vs. Washington | Bye |
| 17 | Baylor, 6-1 | Big 12 | 35-34 L at Texas | vs. TCU |
| 18 | Oklahoma State, 6-2 | Big 12 | 37-20 W vs. WVU | at Kansas State |
| 19 | Virginia Tech, 6-2 | ACC | 39-36 W at Pitt | at Duke |
| 20 | West Virginia, 6-1 | Big 12 | 37-20 L at Oklahoma State | vs. Kansas |
| 21 | North Carolina, 6-2 | ACC | Bye | vs. Georgia Tech |
| 22 | Florida State, 5-3 | ACC | 37-34 L vs. Clemson | at NC State |
| 23 | Western Michigan, 8-0 | MAC | Bye | at Ball State |
| 24 | Boise State, 7-1 | Mountain West | 30-28 L at Wyoming | vs. San Jose State |
| 25 | Washington State, 6-2 | Pac-12 | 35-31 W at Oregon State | vs. Arizona |
The Aggies got everything they could have hoped for this week with a top four ranking. The committee recognized the strength of schedule as a defining statistic separating Texas A&M from Washington, Ohio State, and Louisville.
It won’t be as simple as win and you’re in, but for the Aggie faithful will be scoreboard watching in November. For now, the team will carry on with the mantra they’ve been reciting since day one, “It’s About Us”.
All they can do right now is take care of business against Mississippi State, Ole Miss, and UTSA. Win those, and the stage is set for what could amount to a play-in game for the Aggies on Thanksgiving night against LSU. No matter what happens, the Aggies have the attention of the college football nation.