Texas Lands Intriguing Matchup With ACC Power in Latest College Playoff Prediction

The 2025 College Football Playoff is still many months away, while some teams look like clear contenders to make the 12-team field, and others will certainly need to improve throughout the season to make it in. That has not stopped some analysts from laying out their predictions for the College Football Playoff field.

For the Texas Longhorns, they entered the season considered one of the top contenders for the playoffs and potentially a team earning a first-round bye, but now Texas finds itself projected in a first-round matchup of the College Football Playoff, taking on one of the surprises of college football.

As CBS Sports recently updated its bowl game predictions, it has the Longhorns slated as the No. 7 seed, taking on the No. 10 seed Florida State Seminoles. In a game that would be hosted at Darrell K. Royal Stadium, similar to Texas's first-round matchup last season against another ACC giant, Clemson.

How do Texas and Florida State Look Like to start the Season?

Florida State has been one of the top stories of the 2025 college football season so far, one year removed from having an abysmal 2-10 record. The Seminoles now look to be back on track. Head coach Mike Norvell and the Seminoles are rolling in 2025 after a huge upset victory in their season opener in convincing fashion after their 31-17 win over No. 8 Alabama.

The Seminoles have started the season 2-0, after their blowout 77-3 victory against Texas A&M-Commerce. The turnover for Florida State is the new addition under center, quarterback Tommy Castellanos, who has started the season off hot. In two games, he's totaled 389 passing yards and three touchdowns while also rushing 20 times for 85 yards and another score on the ground.

As for the Longhorns, their season started on a down note with a frustrating 14-7 loss to the Ohio State Buckeyes in Columbus. New starting quarterback Arch Manning did not light the world on fire with his performance, with a rough outing throughout all four quarters.

Week 2 was much improved, granted against "easier" competition, as Manning completed 19 of his 30 pass attempts for 295 yards and four touchdown passes while throwing an interception, while also adding a rushing touchdown. En route to the Longhorns' 38-7 victory over the San Jose State Spartans, however, the Texas offense still looked a bit inconsistent at best against the Spartans' defense.

It is still early in the season for both teams, and the squads should have a totally different look once the postseason rolls around. Florida State will get a chance to rest this weekend with a bye week, but will look to continue its momentum, taking on Kent State on Sept. 20.

As for the Longhorns, they will have the opportunity to continue polishing up any errors, as they host the UTEP Miners on Sept. 13