Arizona State football took a gut punch to close out its 2025-26 regular season. A painful 23-7 loss to rival Arizona in the Territorial Cup dropped the Sun Devils to 8-4 and officially eliminated them from returning to the Big 12 Championship Game.
Entering the weekend, ASU received more love from the College Football Playoff Selection Committee than the Associated Press. The team was ranked No. 20 by the former and excluded altogether by the latter, receiving just a handful of votes.
It appears the AP was vindicated in its lack of confidence in the Sun Devils despite a three-game winning streak prior. ASU got only three votes in the final poll of the regular season while Arizona shot up to No. 22.
NEW: College Football AP Poll🚨https://t.co/FXe5def5xS pic.twitter.com/L8zQjwQf2l
— On3 (@On3sports) November 30, 2025
We'll have to wait until Tuesday's CFP rankings to see whether the committee is just as harsh and willing to drop the Sun Devils more than five spots out of the list altogether. It would be a consolation to have the team still with a number next to its name as it plays its bowl game.
Big 12 has good chance to get 2 teams into CFP based on latest AP rankings
The only major upset on the weekend (besides the Territorial Cup) was seen in Austin when the Texas Longhorns took down undefeated Texas A&M. The Aggies dropped from No. 3 and the top of the SEC standings to now No. 7 with inclusion in the CFP field still practically guaranteed.
The rest of the playoff field remained relatively the same in the AP's eyes and that bodes well for the Big 12. The conference has a good chance of getting a second team into the bracket by virtue of chaos in the ACC and if No. 11 BYU finds a way to upset No. 5 Texas Tech.
The Cougars have a solid resume with just a single loss to the Red Raiders. If they get revenge, they claim the auto-bid and it would be extremely unlikely the committee is cruel enough to exclude a Red Raiders team with a loss in the conference title game and a loss to Arizona State (which isn't a bad loss by any means).
Despite Miami sitting at No. 12, the Hurricanes will not compete for the ACC title which means the winner of No. 16 Virginia vs. Duke will represent the league in the 12-team field. The Group of Five representative will likely be either No. 19 James Madison or the winner of the American Athletic Conference which will be determined between No. 20 North Texas and No. 21 Tulane.
We'll all find out on Tuesday night where the committee stands and how it wants to position teams entering conference championship week.