COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Following his team's 14-7 loss at Ohio State on Saturday, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian summed up one of the biggest changes in competing for a national title in the era of the 12-team College Football Playoff.
"The days of a national champion being undefeated are over," he said, "especially when you play in games like this and you play in the conference we play in."
Week 1's blockbuster matchups guaranteed at least one playoff contender was going down, but the Longhorns' weren't alone. Alabama lost. Clemson lost. Boise State lost. Notre Dame lost. And while there's plenty of time to recover, the early results already shook up the playoff pecking order.