DALLAS — We made it. It's finally here.
It's been a long nine months without the beautiful game of college football, but we are now gearing up for the 2024-2025 season, which is sure to be filled with excitement and unpredictability as the landscape of the game continues to change.
With 12 teams now being invited to the College Football Playoff (CFP), we sure hope to see a couple of Texas teams rise to the occasion as many schools in the state continue to grow postseason expectations.
So, to get this season started right, three members of WFAA's digital team, Paul Livengood, Ryan Osborne and Zach Yanes, put their heads together to rank each FBS program in the State of Texas.
These rankings are simply our opinions on each program and where we think they measure up compared to one another, so if you disagree – that's completely fine, you're probably right.
WFAA's Texas Football Rankings for Week 0:
No. 1 Texas
Paul Livengood: Coming off a trip to the College Football Playoff, returning your starting quarterback in college football is a massive piece to success. Should he play up to expectations, Quinn Ewers can lead the Longhorns to another CFP appearance at the very least and potentially an SEC title.
- Paul Livengood - 1
- Ryan Osborne - 1
- Zach Yanes - 1
No. 2 SMU
Ryan Osborne: Does SMU have the talent of Texas and Texas A&M? Nope. But in today's era of college football transfers, team chemistry and consistency at the quarterback position are at a premium, and SMU has that under coach Rhett Lashlee and quarterback Preston Stone. The Mustangs, in their first year in the ACC, also have a schedule that could put them in a position for a playoff spot.
- Paul Livengood - 3
- Ryan Osborne - 2
- Zach Yanes - 2
No. 3 Texas A&M
Zach Yanes: The new head coach for the Aggies, Mike Elko, has brought in a plethora of new pieces to change the way Texas A&M football competes. With 41 new scholarship football players, things are sure to look different in College Station – but will this be enough to get over the hump? It's hard to say. And with an old foe in the Texas Longhorns coming back into town this year, the Aggies could be in for a bumpy season.
- Paul Livengood - 2
- Ryan Osborne - 3
- Zach Yanes - 3
No. 4 Texas Tech
Ryan Osborne: Joey McGuire is a better coach than his 15-11 record indicates, and Texas Tech was probably better than 7-6 last year. But the Red Raiders, like TCU and the rest of the Big 12, seem to fall into that bucket of "This could be something, or nothing." Texas and Oklahoma's departure has opened the door for the rest of the conference. Will Tech finally walk through it?
- Paul Livengood - 5
- Ryan Osborne - 5
- Zach Yanes - 5
No. 5 Texas State
Paul Livengood: This is where I probably deviate from the rest of the group. Is this a homer pick? As a Texas State graduate, absolutely. But to my point about QB play, Texas State has Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year in transfer Jordan McCloud calling the shots. Pair him in the backfield with Ismail Mahdi, the Bobcats offense should put up a ton of points and be an exciting brand of football to watch this season. I fully expect – and hope for my own sake – that Texas State will be a breakout team this year. Watch out. We’re coming.
- Paul Livengood - 4
- Ryan Osborne - 6
- Zach Yanes - 6
No. 6 TCU
Ryan Osborne: Few teams have spoiled the momentum of a national championship appearance like TCU did in 2023. It started at kickoff in the national championship game against Georgia the season before; nothing has seemed to go right for the Horned Frogs since that moment. Still, TCU arguably has the most talented roster in the revamped Big 12, and Josh Hoover might be their answer at quarterback. Coach Sonny Dykes knows the Frogs can't have another dud of a season, and a sharper defense under new coordinator Andy Avalos will go a long way in making sure that doesn't happen.
- Paul Livengood - 6
- Ryan Osborne - 4
- Zach Yanes - 7
No. 7 UTSA
Zach Yanes: The Roadrunners are coming off a historic season after securing the program's first bowl win ever. Head Coach Jeff Traylor led his squad to a 9-4 season in 2023, finishing third in their first year in the American Athletic Conference. Now, with the departure of quarterback Frank Harris, Traylor is still looking to see which one of his young quarterbacks is going to step up and take his spot.
- Paul Livengood - 7
- Ryan Osborne - 7
- Zach Yanes - 4
No. 8 Baylor
Paul Livengood: Baylor is predicted to be a middle-to-bottom-feeder in the Big 12. Coming off a 3-9 season in 2023, they bring in former Texas State head coach Jake Spavital as their new OC to try and give their offense a spark.
- Paul Livengood - 8
- Ryan Osborne - 8
- Zach Yanes - 8
No. 9 Houston
Ryan Osborne: Dana Holgorsen and Houston seemed like a match made in heaven, and it was in 2021 when the Cougars went 12-2. But they were on the downtrend on their way out of the American Athletic Conference and fell to 4-8 in their first year in the Big 12. The blueprint is there for Houston to have success under new coach Willie Fritz; just look at big city programs like TCU and SMU, and, for that matter, Fritz's former team, Tulane. But projecting how Houston will fare in a crowded Big 12 is just too unclear at the moment.
- Paul Livengood - 9
- Ryan Osborne - 9
- Zach Yanes - 10
No. 10 North Texas
Paul Livengood: Former TCU QB Chandler Morris will be able to help the Mean Green compete against AAC opponents. The defense, which ranked 131st out of 133 in 2023, is a huge question mark.
- Paul Livengood - 11
- Ryan Osborne - 10
- Zach Yanes - 9
No. 11 Rice
Zach Yanes: Owls have the benefit of staying home early in the season, playing four of their first five games in Houston -- three at home, and one at their cross-town University of Houston rivals. Temple transfer quarterback EJ Warner, son of NFL Hall of Famer Kurt Warner, is now at the helm for the Owls, hoping to build off last year's 6-7 season.
- Paul Livengood - 10
- Ryan Osborne - 11
- Zach Yanes - 11
No. 12 Sam Houston State
Paul Livengood: The first season in FBS for the Bearkats was tough sledding. Five of their losses came in one-score games, so maybe they’ll have better luck this year.
- Paul Livengood - 13
- Ryan Osborne - 12
- Zach Yanes - 12
No. 13 UTEP
Ryan Osborne: Coach Scotty Walden is making his FBS coaching debut this season, and his work is cut out for him. The Miners have just one winning season (7-6 in 2021) in the last decade.
- Paul Livengood - 12
- Ryan Osborne - 13
- Zach Yanes - 13
