One big upset in the Southeastern Conference this past weekend has generated a complete cluster in our SEC Power Rankings. Two others winning ugly games against lower-level competition added to that. There are now three teams with just one loss and eight in the College Football Playoff race. Here’s how they and everybody else in the league stack up.
16. Mississippi State
Jeff Lebby’s Bulldogs were showing improvement for weeks until they got blown out by the Arkansas Razorbacks two Saturdays ago. A bye week may have helped them improve for a strong finish, but they still have just one win on the year, so they belong at the bottom of the league for right now.
15. Kentucky
Playing the Tennessee Vols tough on the road should be enough to move the Wildcats up slightly, particularly given how banged up they were. However, they got even more hurt in that game, and they lost by a much larger margin than the score itself showed, so they remain near the bottom.
14. Auburn
Picking up an SEC win two Saturdays ago is the only thing keeping the Tigers out of the bottom spot of our SEC Power Rankings. They are still a bad team, and Hugh Freeze should be on the hot seat simply due to his refusal to upgrade his quarterback play during the offseason. That arrogance proved costly.
13. Oklahoma
At the end of the day, the Sooners beat Auburn who beat Kentucky in our competition for the worst team in the SEC. It’s still amazing how UK ever beat the Ole Miss Rebels. Either way, Brent Venables’ team had thew best weekend of that group with a dominating win over Maine, but they have still proven nothing.
12. Arkansas
From proving they have turned a corner with a blowout win over Mississippi State to suffering a blowout loss to Ole Miss, we have no idea what to make of Sam Pittman’s Razorbacks. Regardless of what we think, though, they are still 5-4, even after that loss, and they face the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs later this year, so a bowl looks likely.
11. Florida
Maybe the Gators’ resurgence against lesser competition wasn’t a fluke? All four of their losses were to top 15 programs, three in the top 10 and two in the top five, and they put up a fight against the Georgia Bulldogs and at the Vols. They’ve looked much better since late September. Will that carry them to a couple of big November upsets?
10. Vanderbilt
Diego Pavia beat Hugh Freeze with the Liberty Flames when he was with the New Mexico State Aggies, he beat Freeze at Auburn when he was at NMSU, and now he’s beaten Freeze again at Auburn while he’s with the Commodores. He also beat the Alabama Crimson Tide, so Vandy owns Alabama, and they are now a top 25 team.
9. Missouri
Despite Vandy’s rise, the Tigers still beat them in a close matchup, so they deserve to be higher in our SEC Power Rankings for now. Mizzou is very much in the CFP race and has a reliable path to 10-2, so don’t sleep on the possibility that they are in the debate once the regular season ends despite their easy schedule.
8. South Carolina
How about Shane Beamer! Just when you are ready to write him off, the Gamecocks always pull off a huge upset in November against a team in the playoff race. This group is now 5-3 after that huge win over the Texas A&M Aggies and has a realistic path to 9-3, even if beating the Clemson Tigers on the road will be tough.
7. Ole Miss
Lane Kiffin and the Rebels were down and out. They suffered a bad loss to Kentucky and didn’t look ready for the big time against the LSU Tigers. However, they dispelled all mercenary myths by blowing out a dangerous Arkansas team on the road, proving they have CFP potential with this offense.
6. LSU
Not playing didn’t really do anything for the Tigers in our SEC Power Rankings, but this week will determine if they remain in the CFP race or not, as they face the Alabama Crimson Tide. Brian Kelly continues to seem unable to win big games, and this one on Saturday is his chance. If LSU wins out, they still go to Atlanta.
5. Texas A&M
Remember, Mike Elko still has a team adjusting to him, and it’s always tough for kids to handle success under a first-year head coach. That explains the Aggies’ loss to South Carolina. They still are very much in the CFP race with a visit from the Texas Longhorns on the horizon later this year, so don’t count them out just yet.
4. Alabama
Kalen DeBoer and the Crimson Tide enter November as much in the CFP race as anybody, and they are still loaded with talent. The last time we saw them, they blew out a two-loss Mizzou team. Now, they face LSU in what is likely a CFP elimination game for both teams, and a win could shoot them up this list.
3. Tennessee
Josh Heupel and the Vols continue to win in the most hideous fashion regardless of the quality of the opponent. Nonetheless, they are one of the three one-loss teams in the league, and they did beat Bama, so they belong in the top three of our SEC Power Rankings. For now, though, they’re stuck at No. 3.
2. Texas
Texas A&M losing and the Vols looking ugly propelled the Longhorns to No. 2 in our SEC Power Rankings. They also don’t look as bad for struggling against Vandy on the road given the fact that Clark Lea’s team continues to be dangerous in Nashville. They are still a favorite to go to Atlanta, so Steve Sarkisian’s team is fine.
1. Georgia
That loss to Alabama was tough earlier in the year, and Carson Beck keeps making a ton of mistakes, but Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs have multiple quality wins at this point and are easily the best among the teams tied with the best record in the league. With two straight ranked games coming, though, we’ll know a lot more about them soon enough.
