FBS Power Poll: Seven Teams in Texas Bowl Eligible after Week 10

The college football regular season is now 75 percent done after Week 10 and there are still seven teams in the state of Texas with legitimate chances at playing for a conference championship.

Texas traveled to Missouri and left with its fourth ranked win of the season, providing the Horns with some cushion heading into the LSU trip. Texas Tech survived a late-night scare at home against a feisty West Virginia team. North Texas has surged into the top spot in the American Conference ahead of its trip to UTSA.

Things don’t look as good for TCU and UTEP after losses because both coaches are on the hot seat as fan frustrations mount. Sam Houston and Rice both fell to 1-8 on the season. And Texas A&M’s disappointing season continued with a loss at South Carolina.

1. Texas (7-2)

This week: beat Missouri, 34-20
Next week: at LSU
Last week: #1

The Horns earned their fourth win over a top 20 team this season and two of those were on the road, including the 14-point victory over Missouri this weekend. Arch Manning threw for 297 yards and three touchdowns. Is Texas in the CFP at 9-3? If so, the trip to LSU isn’t a must win.   

2. Texas Tech (7-2)

This week: beat West Virginia, 53-48
Next week: at Oklahoma State
Last week: #2

Tommy Castellanos threw for a career-high five touchdowns as the Red Raiders outlasted West Virginia in a high-scoring affair. Texas Tech is alone in second place in the Big 12 and controls its own destiny for the Big 12 title game. Up next is a pivotal trip to Oklahoma State. 

3. Houston (7-2)

This week: beat Cincinnati, 31-24
Next week: at Colorado
Last week: #3

Conner Weigman accounted for three touchdown and Re’Shaun Sanford ran for 126 yards and a touchdown in a scrappy win over Cincinnati. The Cougars averaged 6.9 yards a carry as a team. They remain in the Big 12 hunt despite road losses to Texas Tech and Utah.

4. SMU (7-2)

This week: beat Virginia Tech, 51-28
Next week: vs. Wake Forest
Last week: #4

The Mustangs haven’t lost a conference home game since October of 2022. The latest was a 23-point win over Virginia Tech on Friday night. The Mustangs haven’t lost at home to an ACC team since joining the conference in 2024. That streak, which is now at 12, will be put to the test on Saturday against Wake Forest.

5. Baylor (6-3)

This week: beat Iowa State, 42-31
Next week: vs. BYU
Last week: #7

Defensive coordinator Joe Klanderman is 2-0 as the interim head coach after his Bears outraced Iowa State in Waco. QB D.J. Lagway threw for over 200 yards and ran for over 100 while accounting for three total touchdowns in the win. Becoming bowl eligible despite firing Dave Aranda mid-season serves as momentum for a program that needed some heading into the offseason.  

6. North Texas (7-2)

This week: beat Rice, 52-23
Next week: at UTSA
Last week: #6

The Mean Green extended their winning streak to six and sit alone atop the American Conference heading into a road game against rival UTSA. North Texas has scored at least 45 points in each of the wins during the streak, including 52 against Rice in Week 10.

7. UTSA (7-2)

This week: lost to FAU, 60-29
Next week: vs. North Texas
Last week: #5

The road loss to FAU snapped a five-game winning streak for the Roadrunners in devastating fashion. They were dominated in the trenches on both sides of the ball by the Owls, which was extra disappointing considering UTSA was coming off an open date. UTSA still controls its own destiny to the American Conference Championship game, however.   

8. TCU (4-5)

This week: lost to Arizona, 29-28
Next week: vs. Kansas State
Last week: #8

TCU has lost all five games this season by one possession. The latest was a soul-crushing loss at Arizona where the Frogs led by eight with under two minutes left in the game. The heat continues to rise on Sonny Dykes’ chair in Fort Worth. His program is under .500 against Big 12 opponents since 2023.

9. Texas State (5-4)

This week: beat Oregon State, 42-21
Next week: vs. Fresno State
Last week: #10

The Bobcats ran for 386 yards and five touchdowns in a 21-point win over Oregon State on the road in the first Pac-12 win away from San Marcos. Both Torrance Burges Jr. and Davian Jackson topped 100 yards on the ground. Defensively, they held a vaunted Oregon State passing attack to under 200 yards through the air. 

10. Texas A&M (4-5)

This week: lost to South Carolina, 17-9
Next week: vs. Tennessee
Last week: #9

Texas A&M has lost five of its last six against FBS competition. That lone win came against Arkansas. The offense failed to score a touchdown in its third SEC game this season as Marcel Reed only completed 58 percent of his passes. The Aggies will likely be underdogs in each of their last three games.

11. Rice (1-8)

This week: lost to North Texas, 52-23
Next week: vs. Tulane
Last week: #11

The Owls ran into a buzzsaw in a surging North Texas squad. Year 2 hasn’t produced the results that second year head coach Scott Abell hoped for, but the injury bug has hit Rice hard against a tough schedule.

12. UTEP (1-8)

This week: lost to Hawaii, 17-14
Next week: vs. Wyoming
Last week: #13

The Miners failed to score more than seven points for the fourth time in the last six games. They’re 0-8 this year against FBS competition and rank dead last in college football in scoring offense. Pressure is mounting on AD Jim Senter and the UTEP brass to make a change at head coach.

13. Sam Houston (1-8)

This week: lost to Jax State, 47-14
Next week: vs. Kennesaw State
Last week: #12

Sam Houston didn’t experience any type of dead Kat bounce following the firing of head coach Phil Longo. Jax State shut out the Bearkats in the first half and cruised to an easy victory. Sam Houston is 0-8 against FBS opponents this season.