Texas FBS Football Rankings
Through 4 weeks the top programs in Texas begin to distinguish themselves from the pack while others fight to stay relevant
Sep 26, 2018, 5:53 am
Tom Herman and the Longhorns are on the move. Tim Warner/Getty Images
Texas has 12 FBS teams. Each week we rank them based on season-long performance, the prior game, and success relative to their competition. These are the updated rankings following Week 4 and looking forward to Week 5.
No. 12: UTEP
In their best performance of the season thus far the Miners lost by 7 points to New Mexico state. UTEP now remains as the only FBS team in Texas without a win.
No. 11: Texas State
Texas State lost by just 4 points to UTSA in week 4 and now sit at 1-3. The Bobcats will have their bye week this coming weekend before they face Louisiana Lafayette, who will be at the mercy of No.1 ranked Alabama in week 5.
No. 10: Rice
The Owls suffered another big loss in Week 4 to Southern Mississippi 40-22. Rice has now lost three straight games since their week 1 victory over Prairie View A&M and has failed to hold any of their opponents to under 40 points in the last three games. The Owls will have a tough matchup against Wake Forest in week 5 but hope to break this trend.
No. 9: UTSA
The Road Runners claimed their first victory of 2018 in Week 4 over Texas State University and jump two spots in this week’s rankings. While they won by just 4 points, a win is a win and the Road Runners will have momentum heading into their week 5 game vs. 0-4 UTEP.
No. 8: SMU
SMU holds the No. 8 spot for a second week after their 1-point victory over Navy. The even bigger news the Mustangs than their first win is the change at quarterback. After three straight losses, 2017 starter Ben Hicks was benched for Freshman William Brown. Through two appearances this season, Brown has thrown four touchdown passes and has brought some life to this struggling SMU team. The Mustangs will have a very good opportunity in Week 5 to get their second win of the season vs. Houston Baptist university.
No. 7: Baylor
The Baylor Bears continue their solid start in 2018 after a 26-7 win over Kansas. Sophomore quarterback Charlie Brewer looks to have cemented his role as the starting quarterback with over 200 yards passing and his second three-touchdown performance. Baylor will have their work cut out for them in Week 5 as they will go up against No. 6 Oklahoma in Norman.
No. 6: Houston
After a disappointing loss in week 4 when the Cougars gave up 63 points to Texas Tech, UH bounced back with a 70-point performance of their own vs. Texas Southern. While Houston continues to regain momentum as they head into conference play, they will have a favorable matchup coming up against a Tulsa team that has not won a game since Week 1. Also, quarterback D’Eriq King continues to prove that he is one of the most talented and efficient quarterbacks in the nation. King currently has the ninth most passing yards in the nation with 15 touchdowns and only 1 interception.
No. 5: TCU
TCU drops three spots after suffering their second straight loss. The Horned Frogs came out of the gate strong this season and looked like an early season favorite to compete for the Big 12 conference title but have quickly dropped off the college football map with consecutive losses to Ohio State and Texas. The bad news for TCU is their upcoming schedule for the next three weeks. They will have to fight through the some of the Big 12’s most disruptive and competitive teams starting with an Iowa State team who handed TCU one of their only two losses last season. It will be interesting to see how young quarterback Shawn Robinson bounces back after turning the ball over three times in Week 4 vs. Texas.
No. 4: Texas Tech
The Red Raiders climb up to the No. 4 position after an impressive Week 4 victory over what was an undefeated Oklahoma State team. Texas Tech dominated in a 41-17 win, while Freshman quarterback Alan Bowman lit up the stat sheet one more time with almost 400 yards passing and two touchdowns. Tech was able to crack the Top 25 with their victory over the Cowboys but are set to face arguably their toughest opponent so far this season in No. 12 West Virginia. Head coach Kliff Kingsbury and his re-energized team will enter into Week 5 with a chance to collect another statement win and quiet the rumors surrounding Kingsbury’s job security.
No. 3: Texas A&M
While Texas A&M was handed their second loss of the season, the Aggies deserve some grace considering the fact that those losses came by the hand of two of the nation’s top teams, Alabama and Clemson. Though the Aggies were not able to compete with Alabama like they were with Clemson, there is still no team in the nation that has faced two tougher opponents this early in the season. In Week 5, Texas A&M will have a chance to get back to their winning ways as they go up against an Arkansas team that has gotten trampled in their last two games, first by the University of North Texas 44-17 and then by Auburn 34-3. A&M would like to be the next team to add to the suffering and should be expected to do so.
No. 2: Texas
For the second weekend in a row, the Longhorns have surprised the nation and dominated a Top 25 ranked opponent. After their big Week 3 win over USC, Texas kept the ball rolling vs. TCU with a 31-16 victory. TCU had beaten the Longhorns 5 out of the last 6 seasons since 2012, but 2018 may mark the turning of the tides. Texas overmatched the Horned Frogs on both sides of the ball and looked like a team who will demand respect for the rest of the season. The Longhorns will have to try not to get too far ahead of themselves in Week 5 vs. a struggling Kansas State team, with their Week 6 rivalry game vs. Oklahoma looming in the near future.
No. 1: UNT
North Texas stays put in the No. 1 spot for a second week in a row and remains the only undefeated FBS team in Texas. While many people question UNT’s validity as a legitimate program in comparison to the other top tier teams in Texas, there is no way to overlook the fact that the Mean Green have yet to be held to less than 40 points in a single game this season. Not only has UNT dominated on the offensive side of the ball on the shoulders of quarterback Mason Fine who has the 6th most passing yards in college football, their defense also ranks in the top 20 in all of college football. This team can do it all and deserves to be taken seriously.
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With the Astros now officially ten games under .500 for the season, manager Joe Espada is taking a lot of heat from the fanbase for the team's struggles.
While we don't agree with the sentiment, we even hear fans clamoring for the return of Dusty Baker and Martin Maldonado, thinking the Astros wouldn't be in this mess if they were still here.
Which is ridiculous. First of all, Maldonado has been awful for the White Sox, hitting .048 (even worse than Jose Abreu's .065). And for those of you that think his work with the pitching staff justifies his pathetic offense. Let me say this: Where was Maldy's game calling genius for Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez last year? All of them regressed significantly.
And as far as Baker is concerned, we have no idea how much a difference he would make, we can only speculate. Baker would also be dealing with a pitching staff ravaged with injuries. And let's not forget, Baker was the guy that refused to move Jose Abreu down in the batting order, even though he would finish the regular season with the ninth-worst OPS in baseball.
The reality of the situation is managers can only do so much in baseball. Which leads us to something else that needs to be considered. Is Espada being handcuffed by the front office? Espada and GM Dana Brown both said recently that Jon Singleton was going to get more at-bats while they give Abreu time off to try to figure things out. Yet, there Abreu was in the lineup again in the opening game of the Cubs series.
It makes us wonder how much power does Espada truly have? The Astros have some other options at first base. Yainer Diaz may only have eight games played at the position, but how much worse could he be than Abreu defensively? Abreu already has four errors, and Diaz is obviously a way better hitter. Victor Caratini isn't considered a plus offensive player, but his .276 batting average makes him look like Babe Ruth compared to Abreu. Let him catch more often and play Diaz at first. Starting Diaz at first more often could also lengthen his career long-term.
Maybe that's too wild of a move. Okay, fine. How about playing Mauricio Dubon at first base? I understand he doesn't have much experience at that position, but what's the downside of trying him there? If he can play shortstop, he can play first base. He's driving in runs at a higher rate (11 RBIs) than everyone on the team outside of Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez. And he's producing like that as part-time player right now.
The other criticism we see of Espada is his use of Jon Singleton to pinch hit late in games. Let's be real, though, who else does Espada have on the roster to go to? Batting Abreu late in games in which you're trailing should be considered malpractice. Espada can only use who he has to work with. This all really stems from the Astros poor farm system.
They don't have anyone else to turn to. The draft picks the club lost from the sign-stealing scandal are really hurting them right now. First and second rounders from 2020 and 2021 should be helping you in 2024 at the big league level.
Maybe they go to Astros prospect Joey Loperfido soon, but after a hot start he has only two hits in his last six games.
Finally, we have to talk about what seems like a committee making baseball decisions. Lost in a committee is accountability. Who gets the blame for making poor decisions?
As time continues to pass it looks like moving on from former GM James Click was a massive mistake. He's the guy that didn't sign Abreu, but did trade Myles Straw (recently DFA'd) for Yainer Diaz and Phil Maton. He also built an elite bullpen without breaking the bank, and helped the club win a World Series in 2022.
The reality of the situation is Dusty Baker and James Click are not walking back through that door. And all good runs come to an end at some point. Is this what we're witnessing?
Don't miss the video above as we hit on all the points discussed and much more!
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