The State of Texas is in for an historic college football season in 2025 if the Preseason Coaches’ Poll and AP Poll are any indication.

Four teams from the Lone Star State made the cut – Texas (1), SMU (16), Texas A&M (21), Texas Tech (24). The first AP Poll also ranked Texas at No. 1 with SMU (16th), Texas A&M (19th), and Texas Tech (23rd) in the initial Top 25. 

No more than three teams from Texas have ended the season ranked in the Top 25 this century. Only six times in the last 25 seasons, and just once in the last nine seasons, have three of the 13 FBS programs residing inside the borders finished the year ranked. Four would be a record. 

And the good news for the state is that the four teams ranked in the preseason poll aren’t the only contenders. Baylor returns most of its offense from a team that closed the 2024 season with seven straight regular season wins. TCU ended last season with six wins out of seven. The only loss was by three points on the road to Baylor. Houston has a favorable schedule that could lead to a 6-1 start. The G6 ranks could produce a conference champion with UTSA, North Texas, and Texas State entering the year with high hopes. 

So, is this the new norm? College football is changing and that’s to the benefit of programs in Texas. The Longhorns and the Aggies always occupied national relevance due to their alumni bases, size, and tradition of playing major college football. College football at its core is about talent acquisition and both programs are elite in that category. The Aggies currently hold the third-beset recruiting class in the 2026 cycle. The Longhorns rank sixth. 

Teams like TCU and Baylor punched above their weight with elite coaches. The Horned Frogs ended the season ranked inside the Coaches Poll Top 25 in 13 of the previous 25 seasons, most of any program in the state other than Texas. Baylor was tied for third alongside Texas A&M with six Top 25 finishes this decade. Baylor won the Big 12 in 2021. TCU played for a national championship in 2022. 

But it is the new kids on the block that give the Great State hope for a great future. Money always mattered in college football but the rules were set up to keep programs such as Texas Tech and SMU from punching their way into the next stratosphere. 

The Death Penalty and dissolvement of the Southwest Conference sentenced the Mustangs to college football purgatory. The last time they were allowed to play the same game as their peers, the Ponies were claiming national championships. In the first year they were allowed back into the country club, they played for the ACC championship and reached the College Football Playoff. 

Location and a crowded state kept the Red Raiders from reaching their ceiling. The deep pockets of alumni such as Cody Campbell and John Sellers have provided a new reality in West Texas. Texas Tech is one of the Big 12 favorites in 2025 after splashing big to sign the best transfer portal class in America over the offseason. Joey McGuire’s program holds commitments from a five-star offensive tackle in the 2026 cycle and the top-ranked player in the entire 2027 class. 

And then there is Houston. The Cougars are a Power Four program that will start receiving the full share of the Big 12 media rights deal soon. They hold a commitment from five-star quarterback Keisean Henderson, who could be a program-changing type of commitment if the Coogs can sign him in December. Houston’s 2026 class ranks 39th nationally and is comprised of players from the Houston area and Louisiana, where head coach Willie Fritz has immense ties from his time leading Tulane. 

If recruiting rankings are the best indicator of future success, the State of Texas is in for an unprecedented run at the college football level. All seven of our Power Four programs currently hold a recruiting class that ranks in the Top 40 nationally and the four Big 12 teams plus SMU have classes that outpace their 10-year average. 

The excitement in 2025 can be attributed to quarterback play and overall talent. Think of the quarterbacks in this state right now at the P4 level – Arch Manning, Sawyer Robertson, Josh Hoover, Conner Weigman, Kevin Jennings, Marcel Reed. Those are all potential all-conference performers. Manning has the least experience but the most hype. 

For as much as Texans love football, our college teams haven’t produced the best results. Teams from across the nation pour into the Lone Star State to hijack the best players. That’s not new. What is new is that the state possesses more programs that can fight back. Revenue sharing and NIL have leveled the playing field enough for the Texas Techs and SMUs of the world to sign elite recruits that normally wind up in the SEC or the Big Ten. 

The last team in Texas to win a national championship was the Longhorns in 2005. It was the state’s only national championship since Texas won it in 1969. The last team from Texas that isn’t the Longhorns to win a national title was Texas A&M In 1939 and TCU in 1938.

Texas is home to the best Friday Night Lights in America. We love football as much as family and faith. But to prove that we’re the Kings of the Gridiron to the rest of the world, we need more programs who are nationally relevant. The new landscape of college football sets up perfectly for the Lone Star State. The time is now. Maybe we’ll get as many as five teams ranked in the Top 25 at the end of the year and the Longhorns hoist the national championship trophy in January. 

Or maybe not. Either way, if the teams at the top of the state’s hierarchy continue to sign elite recruits and portal players, the Lone Star State is in for unprecedented success over the next 5-10 years.