RANKING THE TEXAS DIVISION 1 SCHOOLS
SMU rises as Texas A&M falls this week
Sep 26, 2019, 8:50 am
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Born with a comic book in one hand and a remote control in the other, Cory DLG is the talent of Conroe's very own Nerd Thug Radio and Sports. Check out the podcast replay of the FM radio show at www.nerdthugradio.com!
12. RICE
This week was the first signs of life Rice has shown all season. They played Baylor close and they gave them a hard time. It's the first time all season we've felt like Rice had any intention of playing good football and that was a nice thing to see. Now if only they could win a game.
11. UTSA
So last week I said the game against North Texas would go a long way for UTSA determining what kind of season they wanted to have and they lost big time. This is a team looking for a way to throw in the towel and get off the field. They don't want to be here which is good because they're off this week.
10. TEXAS STATE
Texas State got a win and they play another winnable game this week against Nicholls. The true test of teams that want to be good is how they handle the games they are supposed to win. How do they prepare? How do they play and will they execute when they are expected to win. This is Texas State's opportunity to find out what kind of team they are.
9. UTEP
A rough home loss to Nevada and now having to travel to Southern Mississippi doesn't bode well for UTEP. This is a program in trouble and there's no real chance of saving it this week I think, this is going to hurt but there's nothing else they can do.
8. NORTH TEXAS
North Texas is a team going the wrong way. SMU has left the bottom half of the rankings behind and that all started with a good win against North Texas. Now Houston has come to town and if there was ever a time to turn the table, this is it. North Texas has a season to save and a game to win.
7. TEXAS TECH
Coming off the bye and facing Oklahoma is a tough task; Oklahoma has been having a great season and this isn't a game that Tech will come out of feeling good. It's basically a given they're going to lose, it's how they approach this game and how they execute that will set the tone for this season.
6. HOUSTON
Can this season get any weirder for Houston? Now their quarterback has opted to redshirt himself rather than finish the season? What is going on in U of H? Well they have to go on the road to North Texas and while they should win, it's hard to think they will considering how much turmoil is surrounding the program currently.
5. TCU
They've lost to SMU and that can be a crushing loss. They're expected to bounce back against Kansas and are projected to win by a lot but it's hard to think that they will. I think it's going to be a close game and that if TCU wins it won't be by a lot.
4. SMU
So I honestly didn't think SMU would beat TCU, I thought they would play a close game but I didn't think they would win. They did, and they deserve this rise they're on. They're having a great season and if they keep it up they may finish the season ranked. Probably not high but ranked nonetheless.
3. TEXAS A&M
Did Texas A&M lose two games to two good opponents? Yes. Should they be higher up this list? If they had won one of them or at least looked good in the Clemson game, then maybe. Losing hurts no matter who you lose to and so A&M slides down the list.
2. BAYLOR
So much losing last week that even a mediocre win against Rice is great news. The lone bright spot on last weeks top end of the list, other than Texas, was Baylor's win against Rice. This is more about everyone else playing so bad and less about these guys playing great but hey number 2 is number 2 no matter how you get there.
1. TEXAS
Texas beat Oklahoma State, but close. It wasn't a great, clean win and while there's no doubt after this week that they are the best team in the state, they may not be as nationally dominant as they looked two weeks ago. Texas is off this week, so they can lick their wounds and watch everyone else play, confident in their spot at number 1.
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It’s May 1, and the Astros are turning heads—but not for the reasons anyone expected. Their resurgence, driven not by stars like Yordan Alvarez or Christian Walker, but by a cast of less-heralded names, is writing a strange and telling early-season story.
Christian Walker, brought in to add middle-of-the-order thump, has yet to resemble the feared hitter he was in Arizona. Forget the narrative of a slow starter—he’s never looked like this in April. Through March and April of 2025, he’s slashing a worrying .196/.277/.355 with a .632 OPS. Compare that to the same stretch in 2024, when he posted a .283 average, .496 slug, and a robust .890 OPS, and it becomes clear: this is something more than rust. Even in 2023, his April numbers (.248/.714 OPS) looked steadier.
What’s more troubling than the overall dip is when it’s happening. Walker is faltering in the biggest moments. With runners in scoring position, he’s hitting just .143 over 33 plate appearances, including 15 strikeouts. The struggles get even more glaring with two outs—.125 average, .188 slugging, and a .451 OPS in 19 such plate appearances. In “late and close” situations, when the pressure’s highest, he’s practically disappeared: 1-for-18 with a .056 average and a .167 OPS.
His patience has waned (only 9 walks so far, compared to 20 by this time last year), and for now, his presence in the lineup feels more like a placeholder than a pillar.
The contrast couldn’t be clearer when you look at José Altuve—long the engine of this franchise—who, in 2024, delivered in the moments Walker is now missing. With two outs and runners in scoring position, Altuve hit .275 with an .888 OPS. In late and close situations, he thrived with a .314 average and .854 OPS. That kind of situational excellence is missing from this 2025 squad—but someone else may yet step into that role.
And yet—the Astros are winning. Not because of Walker, but in spite of him.
Houston’s offense, in general, hasn’t lit up the leaderboard. Their team OPS ranks 23rd (.667), their slugging 25th (.357), and they sit just 22nd in runs scored (117). They’re 26th in doubles, a rare place for a team built on gap-to-gap damage.
But where there’s been light, it hasn’t come from the usual spots. Jeremy Peña, often overshadowed in a lineup full of stars, now boasts the team’s highest OPS at .791 (Isaac Paredes is second in OPS) and is flourishing in his new role as the leadoff hitter. Peña’s balance of speed, contact, aggression, and timely power has given Houston a surprising tone-setter at the top.
Even more surprising: four Astros currently have more home runs than Yordan Alvarez.
And then there’s the pitching—Houston’s anchor. The rotation and bullpen have been elite, ranking 5th in ERA (3.23), 1st in WHIP (1.08), and 4th in batting average against (.212). In a season where offense is lagging and clutch hits are rare, the arms have made all the difference.
For now, it’s the unexpected contributors keeping Houston afloat. Peña’s emergence. A rock-solid pitching staff. Role players stepping up in quiet but crucial ways. They’re not dominating, but they’re grinding—and in a sluggish AL West, that may be enough.
Walker still has time to find his swing. He showed some signs of life against Toronto and Detroit. If he does, the Astros could become dangerous. If he doesn’t, the turnaround we’re witnessing will be credited to a new cast of unlikely faces. And maybe, that’s the story that needed to be written.
We have so much more to discuss. Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!
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