(09-05-2019 02:43 PM)bullet Wrote:  USNWR isn't worth much. Texas is in just about everyone's top 15 public schools. Other than California and Pennsylvania, Texas probably has the strongest #2 public school in the country in A&M.

First, USNWR is worth a lot, like it or not. They largely set the bar for national university rankings. Criticize them from here to high heaven if you like, but their rankings are taken seriously by the two entities that matter most - the media and academic administrators.

Second, in this case, they don't disagree with you: Even though Texas is the #49 national university this year, they are the #14 public school.

The great bulk of schools in the top 50 are privates, which is why Coog's complaint about no Texas schools in the top 25 is kind of unrealistic. There are only three public schools in the top 25, and one of them is ranked ... #25.

Public schools are to top college rankings like G5 schools are in the AP top 25 poll. You usually get only a couple in there, and they are usually towards the bottom end.