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The Southeastern Conference has long been college football's toughest neighborhood, and this season it's the only Power Four league without a single undefeated team. That fact alone underscores the grind of the new nine-game conference schedule, a change that many coaches and administrators approached with caution.
Take the Texas Longhorns, for instance. At 5-2 overall and 2-2 in SEC play, the No. 11 Longhorns boast a résumé that includes three wins over top-10 opponents, yet they've also stumbled twice against unranked foes. Those setbacks have raised questions about whether Texas can truly be considered among the nation's elite, despite back-to-back College Football Playoff semifinal appearances under coach Steve Sarkisian in 2023 and 2024.
The road doesn't get any easier. A matchup with Mississippi State (4-3, 2-3 SEC) looms as a must-win. A third loss to an unranked team—and a second to one starting a backup quarterback—would severely damage the goodwill earned from those marquee victories and likely cripple any playoff hopes.
The Ninth Game: A Double-Edged Sword
When SEC officials voted to add a ninth conference game, removing the traditional late-season matchup against an FCS opponent, coaches voiced reservations. The extra league game meant another week of physical punishment in a conference known for its brutality, with fewer opportunities to rest banged-up starters.
"I think we all had some reservations about going to the ninth conference game for a variety of reasons," Sarkisian said Thursday. "One is the obvious, that it's one more game of the physical pounding that this league takes its toll on you with, and so we all want to be at our best. We all want to be as healthy as we can be. We all have aspirations of making a playoff, and you want to be at your best if you can make the playoff and have a full roster available."
There's also the looming question of how the College Football Playoff selection committee will evaluate a 9-3 SEC team against a 10-2 or 11-1 squad from another conference. "What is it really going to look like when there's 9-3 SEC teams compared to 10-2 or even 11-1 teams from other conferences?" Sarkisian asked. "How much value is going to be placed in that? I think that's why we were so adamant about if we're going to go to nine conference games. To some degree, we put the cart before the horse, but that's OK. We're all competing our tail off, and I think there is some recognition for the level of competition that we're playing."
Texas wanted the SEC challenge, and it got it. But the early returns show just how treacherous the path can be.
David Hamilton Makes World Series History
Former Longhorn David Hamilton, who was traded from Boston to Milwaukee, capped his debut season with the Brewers in storybook fashion. Before this postseason, Hamilton was perhaps best remembered by Texas fans for tormenting Texas State—including a grand slam in an 11-10 win in 2018.
But the San Marcos High School product saved his biggest moments for October. In Game 4 of the NLCS against the Dodgers, he hit a ninth-inning homer to help complete a sweep. Then, in the World Series, he became the first Texas ex to homer in a World Series game (Game 3) and drove in another run in the clinching 3-1 win in Game 5, propelling the Brewers to their first championship in 57 years.
Hamilton batted .280 in the series and became the first Longhorn to hit multiple homers in a single MLB postseason. He joins an exclusive list of Texas alumni who have won a World Series, including Brandon Workman, Brandon Belt, Greg Swindell, Roger Clemens, Dennis Cook, Billy Bates, Burt Hooton, Keith Moreland, Howie Reed, Norm Branch, and Pinky Higgins.
"It's awesome," Hamilton told TMJ4 sports after the game. "This is everything you dream for as a kid. It's a good feeling."
Derrick Johnson's Charity Gala Returns
Former Texas star Derrick Johnson's Defend the Dream Foundation is back with its second annual Celebrity Waiter Night on Feb. 17 at the Four Seasons in Austin. The inaugural event, held last winter, sold out and raised $690,000 to combat illiteracy in underserved local elementary schools.
Longhorn legends Mack Brown and Vince Young will headline a deep roster of former Texas players serving as waiters. In the past four years, Johnson's nonprofit—founded in 2012 while he played for the Kansas City Chiefs—has donated books and resources to create "Discovery Dens" in local libraries, benefiting more than 3,200 students at eight Austin ISD elementary schools. Two more Dens are set to open at Blazier Primary and William Elementary in November.
The 2025 event, co-hosted by local radio personality Brad Booker, showcased the power of Texas greats coming together for a worthy cause.
Originally reported by yahoo.