We say goodbye to CFP hopes and welcome the high school playoffs in this week's 411

[caption id="attachment_27079" align="alignright" width="350"]Photo by John Hamilton Photo by John Hamilton[/caption] Texas A&M’s hopes were erased, Charlie Strong picked up an important victory and Texas high school state championship prediction season is here. Four Observations No College Football Playoff for Texas teams The state’s hope to reach the College Football Playoff for the first time since its inception was dashed over the weekend when Texas A&M lost to Mississippi State. It was a sloppy performance from the Aggies. The offense never got in rhythm. Quarterback Trevor Knight finished the game in a sling and the defense gave up more points in the first half than it did all year. A&M fought for a comeback, but wide receiver Christian Kirk was the only playmaker on the field. He returned a punt for a touchdown late in the first half to give A&M life and caught a second half touchdown to close the gap. Every FBS team in the state has at least two losses. Not good. Strong may yet survive Charlie Strong moved one step closer to saving his job with a road win over Texas Tech. Youth was on display for the Longhorns on both sides of the ball, holding on to a late win in large part due to running back D’Onta Foreman. He has the nation’s longest 100-yard game streak and leads the country in rushing yardage despite missing a game. In another season short of highlights, Foreman has been Texas’ best player and should start receiving Heisman mention if Texas keeps winning and he keeps reaching the 100-yard marker. Texas hosts West Virginia this week. A win over the ranked Mountaineers would be another talking point for those around the program who want to see Strong get one more season with this roster. Kingsbury, on the other hand... The seat is warming for Texas Tech’s Kliff Kingsbury. The Red Raiders beat Texas in Austin last season but left this year’s game without many answers. We all know Kingsbury knows offense, specifically quarterbacks. Patrick Mahomes is exceptional and a future NFL player. Is that enough to keep a job in Lubbock? Mike Leach, love him or love him, always reached bowl games. Texas Tech is 4-5 with Oklahoma State, Iowa State and Baylor remaining on the schedule. Two wins from those three games is hard to predict. Kingsbury won’t be outed this year, and his monstrous buy-out puts Tech in a tough position. Next season becomes a make-or-break year for Kingsbury. Horned Frogs pummel Bears TCU made a statement against Baylor. The Bears were ranked in the top 10 two weeks ago. A close loss to Texas was followed with an embarrassing home loss against TCU. Kyle Hicks scored five touchdowns and nearly rushed for 200 yards. Kenny Hill, a week after being benched, didn’t turn the ball over. The defense finally looked like a group coached by Gary Patterson. The Horned Frogs started the season as a preseason favorite to compete for a conference championship. Instead, the group is now 5-4. It will be a largely forgettable season for Patterson and company, but a win against their rivals revealed even more issues in Waco. One Question Did you realize UTSA is one win away from becoming bowl eligible for the first time in program history? First-year head coach Frank Wilson led the Roadrunners to a 20-point victory on the road against Middle Tennessee State, a team that was a 20-point favorite entering the contest. A road win against Louisiana Tech qualifies UTSA for bowl eligibility and gives Wilson’s program the inside track at a divisional title after combining for seven wins over the past two seasons. One Prediction Austin and San Antonio will combine for three of the four big-school championships with Lake Travis winning Class 6A Division I, Cibolo Steele claiming 6A Division II and Cedar Park taking the Class 5A Division I championship. DFW’s championship will come from Aledo in Class 5A Division II. Sorry, Houston.

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