Ohio State Remains Championship Favorite After Texas Upset

Texas losing didn’t rewrite the sport overnight, but it did snap a lot of preseason storytelling back to reality. Every August, somebody gets crowned before they’ve proven anything in traffic, on the road, with a lead on the line. Then a game happens. Now we’re supposed to act shocked that Ohio State is still sitting on top of the championship odds. They have the roster, they have the depth, and they didn’t just win the offseason. A single upset isn’t a verdict.

The smarter point buried in the coverage is the simplest one: not every loss is created equal. Texas didn’t get exposed as a fraud for all time. But they did get a reminder that talent on paper doesn’t cash the check on Saturday. Bad angles, a couple busted assignments, a slow start you can’t buy back, and suddenly the “favorite” conversation shifts. College football is ruthless about margins.

Ohio State staying the favorite makes sense because they’re built for the long year, not the highlight reel. You can survive a weird quarter when your line holds up, your backs can grind, and your defense doesn’t fall apart the moment Plan A gets punched in the mouth. That’s not a shot at Texas. It’s just how titles get won now: survive the chaos, keep stacking complete games, and don’t turn a slip into a spiral. The teams that win it all look boring in the best way.

And here’s the part fans hate, because it feels cold: oddsmakers aren’t grading vibes. They’re pricing risk. One upset can dent a résumé, but it doesn’t erase the reality of who has the most ways to win three more big games when the stakes peak. Texas can still be a problem if they learn from it. Ohio State is the favorite because they’ve already shown they’re a problem even when they’re not perfect.