A&M wasn't ranked early. Neither was OkSU or tech if I recall correctly, or if they were it was right around 25. OU was top 3 and t.u. was top 10, and both lived up to that. So, in that respect, none were overranked at any time, and 4 moved up in their ranking. Now, OU goes NC game, t.u. goes Rose Bowl, A&M Cotton, tech Holiday, and OkSU Alamo Bowl. Can you name 5 teams out of any division, much less conference, with as high of Bowls?
The point about Cal can easily be made, but the South wasn't overrated.
There are four or five schools in the Big Ten and SEC alone that probably beat all three of those teams - (Mich, OSU, Wis, Iowa and MSU....FLA, Auburn, TN, Ark and LSU) -