Texas Plummets To No. 19 In AP Poll As Playoff Hopes Fade

The Texas Longhorns were the No. 1 team in college football just two weeks ago. Now they're barely hanging onto a spot in the national top 20.

Texas plunged 12 positions to No. 19 in Sunday's Associated Press Top 25 rankings following a stunning 27-24 home loss to Florida, extending a collapse that has dramatically altered the Longhorns' College Football Playoff outlook.

MORE: Texas Gets A Playoff Lifeline After College Football Goes Crazy

For Steve Sarkisian, the rankings represent something considerably more troubling than a temporary setback.

Texas has lost consecutive games to unranked opponents, falling to Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry before surrendering a 17-3 lead against Florida on Saturday.

The Longhorns are now 4-2 overall and 1-2 in SEC play.

And suddenly, a season that began with national championship expectations has become a fight for postseason survival.

Quarterback Arch Manning and the Texas offense have struggled with consistency, while the Longhorns' inability to protect leads has become an increasingly costly problem.

Against Florida, Texas appeared to have established control before the Gators rallied behind freshman quarterback Tramell Jones Jr.

The Longhorns had opportunities to recover but couldn't finish.

Saturday's unprecedented collection of upsets across college football provided some relief. Five of the nation's top seven teams lost, including Georgia, Notre Dame, Indiana and Alabama.

Georgia slipped to No. 5, Alabama tumbled to No. 13 and Notre Dame remained fourth despite losing to BYU.

But Texas received considerably less forgiveness from poll voters.

The Longhorns are now ranked just one position ahead of Florida, the team that beat them Saturday.

The good news?

Texas still has opportunities to reshape its seasonEnough Is Enough: Texas Must Consider Benching Arch Manning.

The bad news?

The next challenge is enormous.

No. 7 Ole Miss visits Austin on Saturday, October 24, giving the Longhorns another opportunity to defeat a nationally ranked SEC opponent.

A victory could immediately change the conversation surrounding Sarkisian's team.

Another loss would leave Texas with three defeats before November and make its College Football Playoff path considerably more difficult.

MORE: Enough Is Enough: Texas Must Consider Benching Arch Manning

The Longhorns still control how they respond, even if their championship margin for error has virtually disappeared.

Texas doesn't have a rankings problem anymore. It has a winning problem. And the Longhorns are running out of Saturdays to fix it.