Overview
- Texas coach Steve Sarkisian told the Touchdown Club of Houston on Thursday that an unnamed in-state team plays an easy slate that his backups could beat and that the team still might reach the College Football Playoff.
- Texas Tech donors and officials quickly pushed back, with billionaire booster Cody Campbell posting “Schedule us then!” on X and general manager James Blanchard publicly calling Sarkisian’s comments excuses.
- Multiple outlets cited analytics to back up Sarkisian’s point about schedule gaps, noting ESPN’s SP+ and strength-of-schedule metrics place Texas’ upcoming slate well above Texas Tech’s nonconference and conference opponents.
- Sarkisian used the moment to press the CFP selection process for more transparency and to argue that uneven conference and nonconference scheduling should matter more in at-large decisions.
- No game or series renewal has been announced and scheduling experts note matchups are negotiated years in advance, so the public feud could pressure future talks but does not change existing contracts or commitments.