After a dominating defensive performance against Auburn, Texas A&M (7-2) moves up to No. 11 in this week’s College Football Playoff rankings released on ESPN Tuesday evening. The Aggies are one of six SEC teams in the top 25, including Georgia (9-0) and Alabama (8-1) at No. 1 and No. 2.
The Aggies are now riding a four-game win streak, with two of those wins coming against opponents ranked in the top 20. Once again, Texas A&M is the only team to beat a current top-two team. The Aggies have outscored their last three SEC opponents by a combined score of 99-31.
While still in the hunt for the SEC West, Jimbo Fisher’s team needs the Crimson Tide to lose one more conference game if they hope to travel to Atlanta to face off against Georgia on December 4. The Aggies, of course, will also need to win their remaining two SEC games for that to be possible.
Mike Elko’s squad has developed a consistent rhythm at this point in the season, as the Aggie defense ranks 16th in the nation in total defense. The Ags also rank 13th in team sacks, 19th in third-down defense, 5th in fourth-down defense, 28th in rushing defense and 25th in passing yards allowed.
Rounding out the rest of the ranked SEC teams are Ole Miss at 15, Auburn at 17 and Arkansas at 25. The Aggies travel to Oxford this Saturday for another top-15 SEC showdown against the Rebels.
While last weekend did not feature as much chaos as some previous Saturdays this season, two undefeated top-10 teams did falter, and Michigan State and Wake Forest fell to No. 7 and No. 12, respectively.
Four teams left unbeaten: No. 1 Georgia, No. 5 Cincinnati, No. 8 Oklahoma and No. 23 UTSA.
1. Georgia (9-0)
2. Alabama (8-1)
3. Oregon (8-1)
4. Ohio State (8-1)
5. Cincinnati (9-0)
6. Michigan (8-1)
7. Michigan State (8-1)
8. Oklahoma (9-0)
9. Notre Dame (8-1)
10. Oklahoma State (8-1)
11. Texas A&M (7-2)
12. Wake Forest (8-1)
13. Baylor (7-2)
14. BYU (8-2)
15. Ole Miss (7-2)
16. NC State (7-2)
17. Auburn (6-3)
18. Wisconsin (6-3)
19. Purdue (6-3)
20. Iowa (7-2)
21. Pittsburgh (7-2)
22. San Diego State (8-1)
23. UTSA (9-0)
24. Utah (6-3)
25. Arkansas (6-3)
