‘I don’t see Texas competing in the CFP’: Analyst sounds the alarm on Arch Manning and Longhorns

The Texas Longhorns are 4-1 after being upset by teh Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday after two late-game interceptions from quarterback Arch Manning. Manning and the Longhorns are firmly in the driver’s seat as they approach the midway point of their season, but one Yahoo Sports college football analyst doesn’t see them crossing the finish line at this point.

“I have a really, really hard time looking at Texas now by the standard that they have set for themselves, which is national title or bust,” Steven Godfrey said in a video posted to X. “Mostly, I think the floor for this season, reasonably for Texas, was to make the Final Four, and I don’t see Texas competing in the college football playoff.”

Godfrey also made it clear in the video that he feels Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian is responsible for the Longhorns’ shortcomings.

“You had national title expectations, and I think the buck stops with Steve Sarkisian,” Godfrey said.

“I think the floor for this season … was to make the final four, and I don’t see Texas competing in the College Football Playoff.”

@38Godfrey explains why Longhorns fans have a reason to worry.

(via Yahoo Sports Daily) https://t.co/GyRL4UjXrO

— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) October 13, 2026

“There’s a theme with these teams: offensive line play,” he added.

“They are still not running the ball efficiently enough to set Arch Manning up for success. The most success the Texas offense has seen is in those freelancing moments when things break down, and Arch makes a play. That was the kind of the backbone of the comeback against Ohio State. And we thought, oh man, he’s exploding. This is it. He’s, he’s going to have a Heisman-caliber season.”

Godfrey then pointed toward the boom-or-bust nature of Texas’ offense being dependent on Manning’s freelancing ability, and how it can spell doom for the program as they grind through the back half of their schedule.

“That’s going to cost you eventually in this league,” he asserted. “Oklahoma is not a good team. I don’t think this is some sort of turnaround moment for Oklahoma. I think this is just a pure college football upset. But in the next 4 weeks, you’re going to see Texas against high-ceiling, low-floor teams.

“Okay, Missouri might be the most complete team they see. They’ve got to play Ole Miss. There are ways to win these games and, and, and regain some confidence. But I have a really, really hard time looking at Texas now by the standard that they have set for themselves.”

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