Most College Football Playoff predictions for the 2019 season feature a combination of the top five teams in the AP Top 25.
It's not a bad play considering Clemson, Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma and Ohio State have combined for 75 percent of the College Football Playoff appearances. When asked which team could break through that group, "College GameDay" analyst Kirk Herbstreit sorts through the rest of the top 10, which features LSU, Michigan, Florida, Notre Dame and Texas.
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"I think Texas it's because of Tom Herman and the recruiting he's put together the last few years," Herbstreit told SN. "He's got an X-factor at quarterback. Almost everybody (who makes the playoff) always has a quarterback that can almost will his team to a championship-caliber season, and Sam Ehlinger is that kind of guy."
So, does that mean Texas is back under third-year coach Tom Herman? Herbstreit's playoff picks – Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State and Texas – match Sporting News' bowl projections for the 2019 season. Ehlinger – who had 3,292 passing yards and 25 TDs along with 482 rushing yards and 16 TDs in 2018 – is the leader of a 10-win team that made the Big 12 championship game last season.
The Longhorns lost 39-27 to the Sooners in the Big 12 championship game, but a 28-21 victory against Georgia in the Allstate Sugar Bowl created big expectations for 2019.
"When you mix in the combination of youth, experience and skill and a quarterback like Sam who has been in tough games, I think Texas is the team that when you get outside of the top 10 they could the team to make a run," Herbstreit said.
Critics will point toward the season-opening losses to Maryland the last two seasons or a 6-6 record against ranked opponents under Herman to squash some of that hype, but Herbstreit believes those experiences will help the Longhorns in 2019.
"It takes a couple tough losses, to be able to say, 'Hey guys, I tried to tell you. You can't just look at the big games and get excited,'" he said. "I think they've gone through some of that in their first couple years."
Texas opens with Louisiana Tech before a top-10 showdown with LSU that will go a long way in determining whether those playoff predictions hold any weight.
"The good thing is they have LSU early and that will take some of the attention off Oklahoma," Herbstreit said. "That's as big a non-conference game as we have in the sport this year."
Herbstreit is continuing his work with Allstate this season. Each Tuesday, Herbstreit will tweet his prediction for the Allstate Mayhem Moment of the week. "We're going to come up with a prediction about a game, about a big upset or maybe a young player that might step up and make one of those crazy plays to win a game," Herbstreit said. "I'm going to take a lot of ribbing for those predictions, but that's what makes college football so much fun."
