Texas’ Arch Manning, coach make case for Longhorns to get into College Football Playoff after upset victory

Texas Longhorns football coach Steve Sarkisian made the case for his team to get into the College Football Playoff after Arch Manning led an upset victory over Texas A&M.

Manning was 14-of-29 with 179 passing yards and a touchdown pass. He found Ryan Wingo for a 29-yard score to put the Longhorns up three points in the third quarter. Then, up three points in the fourth quarter, Manning scampered for a 35-yard touchdown run to give Texas a 10-point lead.

No. 16 Texas won the game, 27-17, and ruined No. 3 Texas A&M’s hopes of making the SEC Championship.

“We’re absolutely a playoff team, and worthy of an opportunity to play for a national championship.”

If the Longhorns made the Playoff, they would be the first three-loss team to do so. They have a bad loss to Florida on their resume, which would likely hold them back from getting into the final 12. Their other losses were against No. 1 Ohio State and No. 4 Georgia.

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Sarkisian said the Longhorns should be rewarded, not punished, for scheduling an out-of-conference matchup with the defending national champions to start the season.

“If we’re a 10-2 team right now, this isn’t a discussion,” Sarkisian said.

Manning echoed Sarkisian’s sentiments.

“If you let us in, we can beat anyone,” Manning said. “If you don’t think we’re one of the best 12 teams in the country, I don’t know what to tell you.”

More chaos around college football would probably have to happen for Texas to get into the field. They were ranked four spots behind the Miami Hurricanes in the latest College Football Playoff rankings earlier this week.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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