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Texas football has the most depth, balance in our CFP rankings by position

thomas jones, austin american-statesman
·7 min read
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NEW ORLEANS — With the final four-team College Football Playoff here, let’s break down each squad by ranking the positions, with a top ranking accruing four points compared to one point for a fourth-place spot.

Top-ranked Michigan (13-0) will face No. 4 Alabama (12-1) in the first semifinal in California’s Rose Bowl on Monday, followed by No. 2 Washington (13-0) against No. 3 Texas (12-1) in the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans.

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Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers, right, talks to wide receiver Adonai Mitchell during practice at the Superdome in New Orleans on Saturday. Ewers and the Longhorns will take on the Washington Huskies in a College Football Playoff semifinal Monday at 7:45 p.m.
Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers, right, talks to wide receiver Adonai Mitchell during practice at the Superdome in New Orleans on Saturday. Ewers and the Longhorns will take on the Washington Huskies in a College Football Playoff semifinal Monday at 7:45 p.m.

Quarterbacks: Michael Penix, Huskies rise to top

1. Washington (4 points): Michael Penix Jr., a sixth-year senior, leads the nation with 4,218 yards passing along with 33 TDs.

2. Texas (3): Quinn Ewers, a two-year starter, completes 70.7% of his passes and is coming off a personal-best 452 yards passing against Oklahoma State in the Big 12 title game.

3. Michigan (2): Two-year All-Big 10 selection J.J. McCarthy ranks second in the country with a 74.2 completion percentage and has a 25-1 record as a starter.

4. Alabama (1): A first-year starter, Jalen Milroe is the only dual threat in the CFP with 468 yards and 12 TDs on the ground to complement his 2,718 yards and 23 TDs through the air.

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Receivers: Rome Odunze charges for Washington

1. Washington (4): Rome Odunze is a projected top-10 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft who has reached at least 100 yards receiving in nine games, and Ja’Lynn Polk and slot receiver Jalen McMillan give the Huskies two more elite wideouts.

2. Texas (3): Speedy Xavier Worthy (73 catches, 969 yards, 5 TDs) and red-zone maestro Adonai Mitchell (51-813-10) complement each other on the outside while TE Ja’Tavion Sanders (39-607) is an NFL-caliber threat downfield.

3. Michigan (2): Roman Wilson (41-662-11) is the best of a deep and versatile bunch that seems to spend as much time blocking in the running game as running routes downfield.

4. Alabama (1): The Tide lack the elite playmakers at wideout that have helped define the program for the past decade, but senior Jermaine Burton has come on with two 100-yard games to close out the regular season.

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Washington head coach Kalen DeBoer, left, meets Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian at the coaches' press conference in downtown New Orleans Sunday morning. Washington and Texas meet in a College Football Playoff semifinal Monday at 7:45 p.m. in New Orleans' Superdome.
Washington head coach Kalen DeBoer, left, meets Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian at the coaches' press conference in downtown New Orleans Sunday morning. Washington and Texas meet in a College Football Playoff semifinal Monday at 7:45 p.m. in New Orleans' Superdome.

Running backs: Success for Michigan with Blake Corum

1. Michigan (4): All-American RB Blake Corum (218 carries, 1,028 yards, 24 TDs) typifies a smash-mouth ground game that ranked 10th in the nation in time of possession, tops among all four CFP teams.

2. Texas (3): The Longhorns lost a Doak Walker Award candidate in Jonathon Brooks to  a knee injury midway through November but haven’t missed a beat with freshman CJ Baxter and Jaydon Blue.

3. Washington (2): Dillon Johnson ( 20-1,113-14) transferred in during the offseason from Mississippi State and provides the physical complement to Washington’s wide-open attack.

4. Alabama (1): Jace McClellan (166-803-6) is the home-run hitter but only has a long run of 29 yards, and the Tide leans on Milroe in short-yardage and goal-line situations.

Michigan running back Blake Corum leaps for more yards during a 26-0 win over Iowa in the Big Ten championship game. He's one of the top-seeded Wolverines' biggest weapons.
Michigan running back Blake Corum leaps for more yards during a 26-0 win over Iowa in the Big Ten championship game. He's one of the top-seeded Wolverines' biggest weapons.

Offensive lines: Troy Fantanu and O-linemen put Huskies at No. 1

  1. Washington (4): Led by elite left tackle Troy Fautanu, the Huskies earned the coveted Joe Moore Award given to the nation’s top  offensive line after helping the offense rank 10th in the nation with 469.1 yards a game.

  2. Texas (3): The Longhorns ranked one spot ahead of Washington in the national rankings and boast one of the best tackle bookends in the country in Christian Jones and Kelvin Banks Jr.

  3. Michigan (2): Arguably the most physical line in the nation, the Wolverines may have won a third straight Joe Moore Award if All-American Zak Zinter hadn’t suffered a season-ending injury late in the year, but center Drake Nugent still anchors an impressive unit.

  4. Alabama (1): One of the largest lines in the nation didn’t always measure up, but tackle JC Latham and guard Tyer Booker can maul anyone, especially in the running game.

Defensive lines: T'Vondre Sweat and Byron Murphy II. Do we need to say more about Texas' defense?

  1. Texas (4): T’Vondre Sweat and Byron Murphy II, the two highest-rated DTs in the nation by Pro Football Focus, anchor the nation’s second-best run defense, but the unit lacks an elite pass rusher.

  2. Alabama (3): Powered by edges Chris Braswell and Dallas Turner, the Tide rolled up a CFP-high 38 sacks for the best pass-rushing unit in the playoff.

  3. Michigan (2): What the Wolverines lack in star power, they make up for with scheme and effort for a defense that ranks fifth nationally with 87.1 yards allowed a game on the ground.

  4. Washington (1): Edges Bralen Trice and Zion Tupuola-Fetui set the tone for the Husky defensive front with their high-motor and intensity.

Linebackers: Texas' Jaylan Ford and Anthony Hill Jr. anchor Longhorns

  1. Texas (4): Two-time All-Big 12 LB Jaylan Ford (91 tackles) paced the team in stops while true freshman Anthony Hill Jr. looks like an emerging star.

  2. Michigan (3): Much like its line, the maize-and-blue backers lean more on schematic understanding than pure skill, but leading tackler Junior Colson (78 tackles) is a proven ballhawk.

  3. Washington (2): Former walk-on Edefuan Ulofoshio earned first-team All-Pac-12 honors for a run defense that is better than many think with a national ranking of 37th.

  4. Alabama (1): While the Tide remain elite on the edges, their LBs don’t stand out aside from speedy middle LB Deontae Lawson, a redshirt sophomore in his first season as  starter.

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Defensive backs: Kool-Aid McKinstry, Terrion Arnold make up a loaded secondary for Alabama football

  1. Alabama (4): A loaded secondary led by future early-round NFL picks such as cornerbacks Terrion Arnold and Kool-Aid McKinstry as well as freshman safety phenom Caleb Downs gave up just 188.8 yards passing a game despite a schedule that included high-flying attacks LSU and Texas.

  2. Michigan (3): Deep and talented with players such as coverman Mike Sainristil, the Wolverines ranked second in the nation in pass defense with 152.6 yards passing allowed per game and tied for the lead with four pick-sixes.

  3. Washington (2): The Huskies allow 263.2 yards a game passing yet led the Pac-12 in interceptions with 16, and junior Jabbar Muhammad gives the team an elite coverman.

  4. Texas (1): Perhaps the Longhorns’ biggest area of concern, injuries and transfers have hurt a unit keyed by slot corner Jahdae Barron that gives up 240.8 yards a game, which ranks 94th in the nation.

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Coaching/intangibles: Nick Saban is still the GOAT

  1. Alabama (4): Is there a better coach than Nick Saban in college football? Ever? The mentor of a legion of fellow head coaches has won seven national titles and just captured his 11th SEC title with 12-1 Alabama while knocking nemesis Georgia out of the CFP.

  2. Michigan (3): Mercurial Jim Harbaugh has won coach of the year honors in both college football and the NFL, and he’s somehow turned a spying scandal into a motivational tool for his 13-0 Wolverines.

  3. Texas (2): Lauded as one of the elite play-callers of his coaching generation, Steve Sarkisian has quickly returned the 12-1 Longhorns to national prominence in three seasons in Austin.

  4. Washington (1): The low-key Kalen DeBoer has brought a Midwestern ethos of hard work and hardly any drama while rejuvenating a proud program and earning the Associated Press’ coach of the year award after a 13-0 season.

Final CFP rankings: Texas tops, but it's close

  1. Texas, 23: The most balanced team in CFP can beat you in myriad ways on offense and can take away any team’s running game.

  2. Michigan, 21: Arguably the best defense in the nation, the Wolverines will pound you with physical efficiency on both sides of the ball.

  3. Washington, 20: The most explosive passing game in college football has the weapons to make up for some defensive deficiencies.

  4. Alabama, 16: Proven winners with unparalleled coaching, the Tide can beat anyone with a month of preparation despite a slight drop-off in talent.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: CFP rankings: Texas football has most depth position by position