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Texas is No. 1: Longhorns sit atop AP Top 25 after comeback win over Ohio State

By Jeff Howe

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After Saturday’s 24-23 comeback win over Ohio State, Texas has replaced the Buckeyes atop the Associated Press Top 25 as the new No. 1-ranked team in the country.

It’s the third consecutive season the Longhorns have been No. 1 in the AP Top 25. Previously ranked No. 4, Texas (2-0) received 56 first-place votes, topping No. 2 Georgia, No. 3 Notre Dame, No. 4 Indiana and No. 5 Miami in Sunday's poll (the Buckeyes fell to No. 6 after losing to the Longhorns).

After spending four weeks in the AP’s top spot in 2024, Texas entered the 2025 season as college football’s No. 1-ranked club. Before Steve Sarkisian’s squad rose to No. 1 following a 31-12 dismantling of reigning national champion Michigan at the Big House on Sept. 7, 2024, the 2008 season was the last time the Longhorns earned an in-season No. 1 ranking.

Mack Brown’s team, which vaulted to the top of the AP Top 25 after a 45-35 win over then-No. 1 Oklahoma on Oct. 11, 2008, was the first Texas squad to be tabbed No. 1 by AP Poll voters since 1984 (excluding the 2005 season, when the Longhorns won the program’s most recent national championship and were ranked No. 1 in the final poll). The current No. 1 ranking marks the 51st time the Longhorns (also No. 1 in the AFCA Coaches Poll) have been the nation’s top team in the AP Poll, which ranks 10th all-time.

ASSOCIATED PRESS TOP 25: SEPT. 13 (FIRST-PLACE VOTES)

1. TEXAS (56)

2. Georgia (3)

3. Notre Dame (1)

4. Indiana (3)

5. Miami (4)

6. Ohio State

7. LSU (1)

8. Ole Miss

9. Texas A&M

10. Alabama

11. BYU

12. USC

13. Texas Tech

14. Penn State

15. Tennessee

16. SMU

17. Utah

18. Iowa

19. Michigan

20. Missouri

21. Oregon

22. Houston

23. Louisville

24. Oklahoma

25. Virginia

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    First Round Pick

    CHorn427

    Members
    5 minutes ago, Waxahorn said:

    This is not what we needed in September.

    This was the literal automatic outcome of beating Ohio State. It would have been insane for us to win and not be ranked #1

    And I’d argue this is a good thing. It gives us time to play as the number 1 vs the easier half of our schedule

    This is nice too since this was more earned rather than just moving up via diffusion when those in front of us lost

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    • Lifetime Longhorn

    Jeff Howe

    Moderators
    • Moderators
    7 minutes ago, Waxahorn said:

    This is not what we needed in September.

    Texas needed a win over Ohio State. Nothing else matters. If this team can't handle writers voting them No. 1 in September, then they don't deserve to play for the title in December and January.

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    • Lifetime Longhorn

    4thandFive

    Supporters

    I didn’t want it….but the alternative was being #9 after losing to Ohio State- NO THANKS

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    • Lifetime Longhorn

    Jeff Howe

    Moderators
    • Moderators
    Just now, 4thandFive said:

    I didn’t want it….but the alternative was being #9 after losing to Ohio State- NO THANKS

    Embrace it. That's what I'm doing. I've spent too many Sundays covering this team when the AP Poll release was irrelevant. Texas wasn't in the mix.

    It's good to be in the fight as a contender. It beats the alternative.

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    • First Round Pick

    Waxahorn

    Supporters
    4 minutes ago, Jeff Howe said:

    Texas needed a win over Ohio State. Nothing else matters. If this team can't handle writers voting them No. 1 in September, then they don't deserve to play for the title in December and January.

    In my opinion it would be better to be ranked 2 or 3 at this point in the season and play with a chip on your shoulder.

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    • Lifetime Longhorn

    Jeff Howe

    Moderators
    • Moderators
    2 minutes ago, Waxahorn said:

    In my opinion it would be better to be ranked 2 or 3 at this point in the season and play with a chip on your shoulder.

    They should play with a chip regardless. Otherwise, everything Sark says about "prove us right" and "be enamored with us" is meaningless.

    The team needs to stay focused. Fans don't have to, though. Enjoy it.

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    • First Round Pick

    Waxahorn

    Supporters
    1 minute ago, Jeff Howe said:

    They should play with a chip regardless. Otherwise, everything Sark says about "prove us right" and "be enamored with us" is meaningless.

    Hopefully they will continue to play a chip on their shoulder anyway. I've been following the Horns for 60 years and I've seen that ranking come and go many times.

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    • Lifetime Longhorn

    UTexas

    Supporters
    21 minutes ago, Alex Butler said:

    I still think UGA should be no. 1 they’re the top dawg until we knock them off. 

    Thought the same thing. The cupcake opponents cost them and IU.

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    • First Round Pick

    CHorn427

    Members
    15 minutes ago, CHorn427 said:

    UGA hasn’t been the top dog since 2022

    By this I mean UGA hasn’t been the top dog overall since 2022. Top dog in SEC, but they’ve got no more claim to best in the country right now than Texas, nor have they since 2022. 1st in the country is 1st in the country, and that hasn’t been the case for UGA since 2022

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