Texas, the ACC among Week 14 college football winners and losers

Texas, the ACC among Week 14 college football winners and losersStory byTyler Nettuno, For The WinMon, December 1, 2025 at 11:46 PM UTC·7 min read

Just like that, the 2025 college football regular season is a thing of the past.

Rivalry Week is now in the books, and it's time to turn our attention to conference championship weekend. However, results from the final weekend of the regular season have certainly made things more interesting when they come to the College Football Playoff.

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The biggest result of the week was previously unbeaten Texas A&M's 11-0 start being spoiled on the road by rival Texas, while Ohio State finally got the proverbial monkey off its back by handily beating Michigan to end a four-game losing streak to its biggest rival.

Before we look ahead to the postseason, let's break down the winners and losers from the rivalry action in Week 14.

Winner: Texas ends a disappointing season on a high note

Nov 28, 2025; Austin, Texas, USA; Texas Longhorns defensive back Kobe Black (6) and teammates react after making an interception during the second half against the Texas A&M Aggies at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

The Longhorns have had a disappointing season after beginning the year ranked No. 1. A 27-17 win over rival Texas A&M won't undo a 9-3 finish to the regular season, but it certainly makes it a bit more palatable.

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Finally, we saw something resembling the version of Arch Manning we were sold during the offseason. The final numbers weren't stellar, as Manning completed 14 of 29 passes for 179 yards and a touchdown, but he made some big throws that aided in the win.

The most welcome revelation, however, was a run game that has struggled mightily this season. In this game, Texas gashed the Aggies for more than 200 yards with Quintrevion Wisner leading the way with 155 yards. Defensively, the Longhorns stymied an explosive TAMU offense, holding Marcel Reed to under 200 yards and no touchdowns while intercepting him twice.

Texas and coach Steve Sarkisian will certainly be lobbying for a spot in the CFP. It has two of the most respectable losses in college football, which have come against Ohio State and Georgia, but its loss to 4-8 Florida is an outlier among CFP contenders.

The Longhorns are likely to finish on the outside looking in, but thanks to their huge upset on Black Friday, they have a shot entering championship weekend.

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Loser: Was this a sign of things to come for Texas A&M?

AUSTIN, TEXAS - NOVEMBER 28: Head coach Mike Elko of the Texas A&M Aggies looks on during the second quarter of a game against the Texas Longhorns at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on November 28, 2025 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images)

Texas A&M's loss certainly came at a cost. Not only did it deprive it of a 12-0 regular season, but it cost it a spot in the SEC championship game. The Aggies are still a CFP lock, but was Friday night's result a preview of what's to come in the playoff?

TAMU had a remarkably easy path through the SEC, with its only victories over teams with winning records coming against LSU and Missouri. Exposed to a playoff-caliber team for the first time since its early-season win over Notre Dame, the Aggies showed some signs of problems.

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Texas A&M's dangerous pass rush only sacked Manning twice, and its defense got gashed by a struggling run game and offensive line. Texas' defense caused major problems for Reed, whose decision-making has again been called into question.

Perhaps this was a one-off for the Aggies. But if this is a preview of what this team will bring to the table in the CFP, it could be an early exit for Mike Elko's squad.

Winner: Ohio State and Ryan Day exorcise Michigan demons

ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN - NOVEMBER 29: Head coach Ryan Day of the Ohio State Buckeyes celebrates with Caden Curry #92 after a 27-9 victory against the Michigan Wolverines at Michigan Stadium on November 29, 2025 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. (Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images)

Even for a staff currently defending a national championship, the pressure was on in Ann Arbor on Saturday as the Buckeyes looked to arrest a four-game losing streak to their arch-rival.

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They did just that, thoroughly dominating the Wolverines in a 27-9 victory on the road in the snow. It was another defensive masterclass for Matt Patricia's unit, which held Michigan to just 163 yards, including a 63-yard passing day from Bryce Underwood.

Offensively, the Buckeyes leaned on the rushing attack. They ran the ball 47 times for 186 yards, but Julian Sayin still had a productive and efficient outing, throwing for 233 yards and three touchdowns.

Ohio State finishes a 12-0 campaign, and with a win over Indiana in the Big Ten championship next weekend, it will enter the CFP with a first-round bye as the top seed.

Loser: Nightmare scenario for the ACC

BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 29: Jacob de Jesus #21 of the California Golden Bears celebrates with a backflip after he scored a touchdown against the Southern Methodist University Mustangs in the first half at California Memorial Stadium on November 29, 2025 in Berkeley, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)

The ACC entered the final weekend of the regular season with quite a few title game scenarios at play, and things ultimately broke in the worst way possible for the league.

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Virginia held its end of the bargain, beating Virginia Tech to clinch a spot in the championship. However, with SMU's loss at Cal and Pitt's loss to Miami, Duke ultimately clinched the other spot in the championship game with its win over Wake Forest.

Now, if the Blue Devils ultimately upset the Cavaliers in Charlotte next weekend, the ACC stands to miss the CFP entirely — at least if James Madison wins as a heavy favorite in the Sun Belt championship and Miami isn't able to sneak into the field with an at-large bid.

A Virginia win would nullify all of that, but if Duke ultimately wins this conference, it's the absolute worst case scenario for the ACC.

Quick Hitters

NORMAN, OKLAHOMA - NOVEMBER 29: Peyton Bowen #22 and Taylor Wein #44 of the Oklahoma Sooners celebrate a turnover on downs against the Louisiana State Tigers during the fourth quarter at Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on November 29, 2025 in Norman, Oklahoma. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

Winner: Ole Miss

Ignoring the Lane Kiffin of it all, Ole Miss avoided distractions and took care of business against rival Mississippi State to punch its ticket to the playoff. Now, it will move forward with Pete Golding at the helm.

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Winner: Arizona

The Wildcats took down rival Arizona State to complete a surprising 9-3 season. Brent Brennan entered the year on the hot seat, but he's engineered one of the more impressive turnarounds in the country this season.

Loser: Nebraska

The injury to Dylan Raiola completely derailed things, and a promising season ended with a 7-5 record after a blowout loss to Iowa.

Winner: New Mexico

The Lobos were absolutely railroaded by the Mountain West's tiebreaker procedure, but they still finished 9-3 after an overtime win over San Diego State in what has been an impressive Year 1 for coach Jason Eck.

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Loser: Michigan

This was always a rebuilding year for the Wolverines, and a 9-3 finish is nothing to scoff at. Still, the end of the streak is no doubt a bummer for Michigan fans.

Winner: Oklahoma

Brent Venables entered the season in a tenuous spot, but he's now heading to the CFP after the Sooners sealed their bid with a rock-fight win over LSU.

Loser: Pittsburgh

The Panthers got the help they needed to get to the ACC title game. Unfortunately, they couldn't get the job done against Miami.

Winner: Vanderbilt

The Commodores' dream season continued as they moved to 10-2 with a blowout win on the road against Tennessee. Whether Vandy sneaks into the CFP field remains to be seen, however.

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Winner: Virginia

The Hoos had beaten Virginia Tech in just one of their previous 20 tries, but with the stakes as high as they've ever been, they got the job done and are now one win from a spot in the CFP.

Loser: SMU

All the Mustangs had to do to return to the ACC championship game for the second year in a row was beat Cal. Unfortunately, they couldn't pull it off.

Loser: Kentucky

The Mark Stoops era ended embarrassingly with a 41-0 loss to rival Louisville.

Winner: Houston

The Cougars took down Baylor to finish 9-3 in Year 2 under Willie Fritz, who is well ahead of schedule.

Winner: Jacksonville State

The Gamecocks held on to win a barnburner against Western Kentucky and clinch a spot in the Conference USA title game.

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Winner: Boston College

The Eagles finally got an ACC win to end the year, taking down a hapless Syracuse team 34-12 on the road.

Winner: Penn State

Interim coach Terry Smith salvaged a bowl berth with a win over Rutgers to conclude the regular season.

Winner: Duke

Not only did the Blue Devils beat rival Wake Forest to end the regular season, but they got the hlep they needed to sneak into the ACC title game at 7-5.

Loser: Cincinnati

The Bearcats looked like they had something going at one point, but after a big loss to TCU, they ultimately finished a disappointing 7-5.

Winner: Troy

The Trojans took down Southern Miss on the road to win the de facto Sun Belt West championship game.

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Loser: Florida State

Just days after confirming Mike Norvell would return in 2026, FSU ended the season with a loss to 3-8 Florida that cost it a bowl bid.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: College football winners and losers Week 14: Texas' big rivalry win

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