AUSTIN, Texas — Despite sitting at 5-2 with marquee victories over Ohio State, Tennessee, and Ole Miss, the Texas Longhorns remain an unpredictable team facing an uphill, yet viable, battle for a College Football Playoff berth, according to Orangebloods.com publisher Geoff Ketchum.
Speaking on Talk 1370’s "The Thing About Sports" ahead of the Halloween matchup against Mississippi State, Ketchum characterized the Longhorns as an enigma that repeatedly stumbles into the same pitfalls while finding ways to defeat top-tier opponents.
"They're the ultimate box of chocolates team at this point this season," Ketchum said. "Although, to be fair, it's like a box of chocolates where eight of the chocolates in the box are actually the same. Because this team is not playing well in the third quarter. They are letting their foot off the gas. They are doing and repeating a lot of the same mistakes."
Ketchum pegged Texas' chances of reaching the College Football Playoff at "probably 50-50," noting that the team appears headed toward a 9-3 finish. While a three-loss team historically had little chance of reaching the postseason tournament, he argued that this year's Southeastern Conference landscape could force the selection committee's hand.
"If the SEC's not getting any 9-3 teams in, then there's going to be a real lack of, I think, SEC presence in the playoffs this year, because they're just devouring each other at this point," Ketchum said. He added that in a debate among three-loss teams, "Texas's resume is the thing that will stand out."
Texas entered the weekend boasting three victories over top-11 opponents. According to Ketchum, the Longhorns' battle-tested schedule and past postseason experience make them well-suited to navigate the emotional weight of their remaining five-game stretch.
Looking ahead to upcoming road trips against Missouri and LSU, Ketchum emphasized that establishing a consistent ground attack with running back Ryan Wingo or alternative contributors is critical to taking the pressure off quarterback Arch Manning.
"A good running game should translate. You've already got the defense," Ketchum said. "They've got to find a way to not ask Arch Manning to have to do it himself every single week, because I think we all know, man, that dude will vomit on his shirt once a weekend. No matter what you do, there's going to be some mom's spaghetti on the clothes."
Ketchum concluded that stringing together complementary football on the ground remains the most vital "building block this team probably needs the most" if Texas hopes to emerge from November with its playoff ambitions intact.
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