Final Regular Season In-State Rankings
1. Texas (11-1) - The Longhorns go wire-to-wire at #1.
2. SMU (11-1) - The Mustangs rumbled through their inaugural season in the ACC undefeated. They will earn a CFP birth with a win over Clemson in the ACC Championship game. If they fall to the Tigers, can the Ponies still sneak in?
3. Baylor (8-4) - The Bears roll into a possible Rate Bowl bid on a 6-game win streak, the longest of the Dave Aranda era.
4. TCU (8-4) - The Horned Frogs benefitted from a tissue-soft schedule with their 6 conference wins (and 1 loss) coming against the 7 teams in the cellar of the Big XII standings.
5. Texas Tech (8-4) - Seventh place in the Big XII runs through Lubbock.
6. Sam Houston (9-3) - Last season, their first in the FBS, the Bearkats finished just 3-9. This year, they improved by a remarkable 6 games. With their defeat of Liberty, they finish tied for 2nd in CUSA and will just miss the Conference USA championship game on a tie-break.
7. Abilene Christian (9-4) - After dropping an early OT heartbreaker to Texas Tech, ACU rolled through the UAC with a 7-1 conference record. They open the FCS playoffs with a shutout of Northern Arizona.
8. Texas A&M (8-4) - The aggies close the regular season on a three-game losing streak to teams not named New Mexico State and finish in the same position they held in our initial rankings.
9. Texas State (7-5) - If the Bobcats had been able to close out games against Sam Houston or Arizona State, this could have been a special season. They improve over last year's conference record to 5-3 in the Sun Belt.
10. UTSA (6-6) - Under head coach Jeff Traylor, the Roadrunners have gone 12-2, 11-3, 9-5, and now 6-6 over the past 4 seasons.
11. North Texas (6-6) - With their win over Temple, the Mean Green are bowl-eligible for the third time in five years.
12. Houston (4-8) - After defeating Kansas State on November 3, the Cougars end the season on a three-game skid.
13. Rice (4-8) - The Owls’ winning percentage over the past 11 seasons: 33%. Their winning percentage this season: 33%.
14. UTEP (3-9) - The Miners showed little life all year with three wins coming against fellow bottom-20 FBS teams FIU, Kennesaw, and New Mexico State.