Texas A&M lands the No. 7 seed and a brutal CFP road: Miami first, then likely Ohio State and Georgia, as the Aggies chase a national title.
The Texas A&M Aggies are in the College Football Playoff for the first time, and the committee wasted no time throwing them into the deep end.
Ranked No. 7 in the final CFP rankings, A&M punched its ticket to the 12-team dance but drew what might be the nastiest path of any contender.
First up: a home showdown with the Miami Hurricanes, one of the sport's biggest NIL power brokers. Win that, and the "reward" is a likely date with the defending national champion Ohio State Buckeyes. And even that would only get the Aggies halfway to the finish line.
For a one-loss SEC team, the seeding feels like a gut punch.
A&M has the same number of losses as No. 5 Oregon and No. 6 Ole Miss, yet was slotted behind both despite a stronger strength of schedule and a better marquee win than the Rebels.
Just two weeks ago, Mike Elko's squad sat at No. 3, firmly in control of its own destiny and a first-round bye. One loss in the Lone Star Showdown, and the Aggies tumbled into the grinder.
From A&M's point of view, there's a legitimate gripe.
Aggies coach Mike Elko has criticized the committee’s “word-salad criteria.’’ ... and we've seen that unfold here.
Metrics may justify putting Oregon and Ole Miss ahead, but the Aggies are the ones staring at Miami, Ohio State and potentially Georgia just to reach the national title game.
No Group of Five breather. No soft landing. Just three straight power programs with national title expectations of their own.
The Aggies, though, have lived in the fire all season and aren't backing down now. They’re 1-1 against Miami since 2010 and get to welcome the Hurricanes into a hostile College Station environment.
Ohio State, for all its hardware, has shown cracks against aggressive pass rushes - exactly the kind of defensive front A&M brings to the table.
And if the Aggies somehow punch through both Miami and the Buckeyes, a likely date with SEC champion Georgia becomes house-money football.
We get it with TexAgs boss Billy Liucci calling the committee “disgusting trash.’’
But ...
If Texas A&M is going to win its first national championship in the CFP era, it won’t be because the committee made it easy. It will be because the Aggies ran the meanest gauntlet of them all - and came out the other side still standing.