For the first time since joining the Big 12, the Houston Cougars warranted tangible respect from the College Football Playoff committee.
Houston appeared at No. 23 in Tuesday night’s rankings unveil, securing a spot in the CFP rankings for the first time since the final week of the 2021 season.
Houston (8-2, 5-2 Big 12) is one of four Big 12 teams in the top 25, behind No. 5 Texas Tech, No. 11 BYU, and No. 12 Utah. In a breakout 2025 campaign under head coach Willie Fritz, who already doubled his win
total from his debut season, the Cougars earned notable wins over 7-3 Arizona and 7-3 Arizona State to bolster their résumé. Houston is a perfect 5-0 on the road and its two defeats came at the hands of Big 12 frontrunner Texas Tech, as well as West Virginia.
The Cougars are still alive for Big 12 Championship Game contention, although it faces elimination this week with a loss combined with a BYU victory. In order to qualify, Houston needs at least three things to come to fruition:
- Win its remaining contests vs. TCU and at Baylor
- Rely on BYU to lose at Cincinnati and vs. UCF
- Rely on Utah to lose to either Kansas State at home or Kansas on road
Houston loses tiebreaker scenarios to 7-2 BYU and 7-2 Utah, as both Holy War rivals defeated West Virginia — a common opponent which knocked off Houston on Nov. 1. BYU is currently 6-1 in the conference standings and Utah 5-2, so Houston prefers both finish with at least three Big 12 losses for a shot at Arlington.
There could be even more teams in a 7-2 tiebreaker such as Cincinnati and Arizona State, so Houston will need to root against the conference’s entire batch of contenders each chance it receives. At No. 23, Houston is unlikely to secure an at-large bid to playoff, but the Cougars can still finagle their way in if enough favorable results fall into their lap.
With a No. 25 ranking in the AP Poll and a No. 23 from the committee, Houston continues its most successful Big 12 season this Saturday, hosting TCU at 4 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. CT on FOX.
