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UT's chances at Mizzou and A&M's at South Carolina, plus CFP snubs | A Texas taks

By The Best News Network November 6, 2026

Texas quarterback Arch Manning (16) runs the ball during the game against Mississippi State at Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 31, 2026 in Austin. (Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-Statesman)

Fresh off its No. 7 ranking in the first College Football Playoff poll, Texas is at No. 18 Missouri ahead of a trip to No. 14 LSU.

How will the Longhorns respond? Columnists Kirk Bohls and Cedric Golden give their take on the Longhorns, Aggies, the first CFP rankings and other key topics ahead of this week's schedule:

Do you think the Longhorns will overlook Missouri and be thinking about LSU?

BOHLS: I really don't, but the Tigers don't necessarily need a complacent Texas team to pull off the win. This is certainly a winnable game for Texas, but not with an inefficient offense. It's hard for me to imagine Will Muschamp's defense completely taking away both the run and the pass by the home team. Call it Mizzou, 27-20.

GOLDEN: Despite that sweet No. 7 ranking in the first CFP reveal, the Horns aren't good enough to overlook any opponent – if they learned their lessons from the two-week Oklahoma-Florida disaster. Missouri will greet the Horns with a bruising rush attack featuring the SEC's top rusher, Jamal Roberts. But Texas will be up to the task in only its second true road game of 2026. I'm taking the Horns, 24-21.

How many rushing yards can Texas get and still expect to win?

BOHLS: I'd say Texas needs a minimum of 100 yards on the ground to have any chance. Anything fewer will put undue pressure on that suspect offensive line and lead to six or more sacks of an under-siege Arch Manning. Texas won last week, and Manning needed to throw only 20 passes, but the Longhorns were bailed out by a defensive score.

GOLDEN: That 102nd-ranked rushing offense doesn't scare anybody, but something in the neighborhood of 95 yards would help. I know it's a low bar, but the Longhorns will have to show a semblance of a rushing attack to keep Missouri pass rushers such as sophomore star Daeden Hopkins, who has seven sacks, off Arch Manning's back. The game will be won if Manning can make some plays with his legs to slow down the Missouri front and set up some play-action deep shots later.

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Will Texas A&M catch surging South Carolina being overconfident?

BOHLS: Yes, it will. I can see the Gamecocks relaxing a bit after their big winning streak, but they'll likely remember blowing their 30-3 lead in College Station last year. I do think the Aggies will give a great competitive effort as they try to salvage the season and at least get closer to bowl eligibility. I see a 32-28 South Carolina win.

GOLDEN: I have no real faith in the Aggies, who have gone downhill fast and are in danger of missing bowl season for the first time since finishing 5-7 in 2022. South Carolina is playing with great spirit. The Gamecocks have their first three-game winning streak under coach Shane Beamer and their best stretch since winning six straight in 2024. The Aggies have no juice right now. Give me the Gamecocks, 31-20.

Will the loser of Alabama-LSU be eliminated from the CFP?

BOHLS: Apparently not, because the CFP selection committee is in love with the Crimson Tide after installing them at No. 5 as the highest-ranked two-loss team. LSU can stand to lose another game and fall to 6-3, but will then have to beat Texas and Tennessee in the next two weeks to have any shot. I've got LSU, 35-28.

GOLDEN: No, because the SEC is so deep that at least one three-loss team will make the playoff. If LSU loses and Texas wins this week, a Tigers win next week would put LSU back in the mix. An Alabama loss would be crippling but not fatal if the Crimson Tide could find a way to remain in the top 12 and run the table against an easy remaining schedule of Vanderbilt, Chattanooga and Auburn.

What was the biggest snub by the CFP selection committee in its first rankings?

BOHLS: Without question, it was Notre Dame's surprisingly low ranking, but No. 11 was probably deserved. I'll give the committee members credit because the Irish have only the 55th-toughest schedule and have beaten just one team with a winning record: Wisconsin (5-3), which is tied for 10th in the Big Ten. Notre Dame's other six victims have a collective 16-33 record.

GOLDEN: UCLA at No. 8 felt disrespectful. The Bruins have an elite defense and have won seven of their eight games by double digits. I had them at No. 6, with a chance to get that first-round bye in a winnable Big Ten.

Which team did the committee overrate?

BOHLS: That'd be Indiana, which hasn't come close to passing the eye test and last week benched its ineffective, banged-up quarterback, Josh Hoover. The Hoosiers have to be the luckiest CFP contender after surviving one scare after another and playing a weak nonconference schedule. No way they belong as high as No. 4.

GOLDEN: I'm still aghast that Alabama debuted at No. 5, but I also respect the thankless task this selection committee faces each week with everybody watching. The 45-17 win over Kentucky in Week 2 is looking great, but the offense has sputtered over the last three games, averaging only 19.3 points.

What's your lock of the week against the spread?

BOHLS: I'm going with the home team and Utah minus 3 points in the Holy War, with the Utes winning 24-21.

GOLDEN: There is no lock when it comes to any Golden pick. I'll lay the 7½ points and take Arizona at home over TCU, which is averaging 9.6 points per game outside of Fort Worth.

Is Florida State still a great job?

BOHLS: Great? I'll say it's a very good job because it's in the relatively inferior ACC, remains a terrific national brand, is geographically located in a fertile recruiting area and will continue to be a strong expansion candidate for the SEC and Big Ten. FSU may not have the deep pockets other Power 4 blue bloods do, and it seems a bit rudderless at this point.

GOLDEN: Not at all. It's still a brand name, but there are reports that the school isn't fully invested in spending on the once-proud program. Three straight losing seasons and a 4-17 record in the ACC over the last three seasons have slowed recruiting in one of the most fertile areas for athletics in America. It's no longer a destination gig.

Should the loss of Julian Sayin cripple Jeremiah Smith's Heisman chances?

BOHLS: It almost certainly will, which is a shame because he's the best player in college football, just a hair above Malachi Toney. Now that Toney has undergone surgery and may miss a month, his situation and Smith's crack open the door for players such as LaNorris Sellers, Trinidad Chambliss and dark-horse Sam Leavitt.

GOLDEN: Should or will? Sayin not being there will hurt Smith's numbers, but Smith could still end up in New York with those massive numbers: 62 catches for 1,067 yards and 13 TDs. That said, it's been a quarterback's award for a while now. Smith's Q rating may take a dip over these next four weeks, but he's a top-three player in the country, Heisman or not.

Who's the one former coach or player you would like to snag for an interview for the "On Second Thought" podcast?

BOHLS: That's easy. I'd love to chat up Jim Brown, arguably the best football player ever and a member of the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame. Plus, I'd like to talk about his movie career, especially his role in a personal favorite, "The Dirty Dozen." I'd also want to interview Grantland Rice.

GOLDEN: I would love to get Brian Bosworth on the show next season, not only to discuss his storied college career at Oklahoma but also his role as the Fansville sheriff in the wildly popular Dr Pepper commercials.

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This article originally published at UT's chances at Mizzou and A&M's at South Carolina, plus CFP snubs | A Texas taks.

https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/uts-chances-mizzou-ms-south-130000114.html