Where Texas Longhorns Rank in New AP Top 25 After Stunning Ohio State

There's a new No. 1 team in the AP Top 25 rankings headed into Week 3 of the 2026 college football season.

The Texas Longhorns rose up to No. 1 in the latest release of the rankings after an epic comeback over then-No. 1 Ohio State on Saturday night in Austin. After being down 23-3 in the fourth quarter, Texas rallied for a 24-23 win that ended with a game-winning one-yard rushing touchdown from Hollywood Smothers with 25 seconds left.

Texas moves up from the No. 4 spot while Ohio State drops five spots all the way to No. 6.

Texas Holds No. 1 Spot in Top 25 for Second Year in a Row

Texas Longhorns defensive end Colin Simmons (1) reacts during the first half against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Longhorns have now earned the No. 1 spot in the AP Poll at least once in back-to-back seasons.

Texas was the preseason No. 1 team last year before a season-opening loss to Ohio State dropped the Longhorns out of that spot. They finished 2025 as the No. 12 team in the AP Poll after a 10-3 record.

But this year's Texas team feels different, as it should after a monumental win over an Ohio State program that many college football fans felt was the national championship favorite headed into Saturday's game in Austin.

Those expectations might now be flipping in Texas' favor, but there's still a long season to go before we'll find out the answer to that.

Full AP Top 25 Rankings

Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Jeremiah Smith (4) celebrates a catch during the NCAA football game against the Texas Longhorns at Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin, Texas on Sept. 12, 2026. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Here is what the new Top 25 rankings looks like:

No. 1 - Texas Longhorns

No. 2 - Georgia Bulldogs

No. 3 - Notre Dame Fighting Irish

No. 4 - Indiana Hoosiers

No. 5 - Miami Hurricanes

No. 6 - Ohio State Buckeyes

No. 7 - LSU Tigers

No. 8 - Ole Miss Rebels

No. 9 - Texas A&M Aggies

No. 10 - Alabama Crimson Tide

No. 11 - BYU Cougars

No. 12 - USC Trojans

No. 13 - Texas Tech Red Raiders

No. 14 - Penn State Nittany Lions

No. 15 - Tennessee Volunteers

No. 16 - SMU Mustangs

No. 17 - Utah Utes

No. 18 - Iowa Hawkeyes

No. 19 - Michigan Wolverines

No. 20 - Missouri Tigers

No. 21 - Oregon Ducks

No. 22 - Houston Cougars

No. 23 - Louisville Cardinals

No. 24 - Oklahoma Sooners

No. 25 - Virginia Cavaliers

What Steve Sarkisian Said After Win Over Ohio State

Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian walks across the field prior to the NCAA football game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin, Texas on Sept. 12, 2026. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian said postgame that scheduling matchups like the one with Ohio State is what college football is all about.

It didn't work out last year for Texas, but it did this time around.

"I definitely think it was helpful because we can be like some other teams and we can play Jones Junior High tonight and win 66-0. And I don't know what that does for us," Sarkisian said. "What I think it did for us tonight is we found out that we can, and we've been close, and we've been knocking on the door, and so I do think that that's helpful for us that that we got an opportunity to play in a game like this before we got into conference play against any lead opponent, and and and come out on top. Surely that's helpful for us moving forward from a mentality standpoint."

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram for the latest news.

Add us as a preferred source on Google