SEC Week 8 had some major shake-ups at the top of the league. Georgia and Tennessee showed out, and Texas and Alabama showed some signs of trouble. But here’s the rundown on college football’s top league after Week 8.
SEC Power Rankings after Week 8
16. Mississippi State (1-6)
TrendingAnother week, another better-than-expected performance for the Bulldogs. Michael Van Buren has a bright future, but that’s all there is to say.
15. Auburn (2-5)
The Tigers looked like they were about to upset Missouri, but the offense fell apart late and left another solid effort from the defense unfulfilled. The Auburn/Kentucky game next week is an epic battle between turnover-prone Auburn and semi-hopeless Kentucky.
14. Kentucky (3-4)
As advertised above, Kentucky’s game with Auburn has to be pleasant for one team… maybe. The Wildcat defense would be one of the SEC’s top units if they had a capable offense to help them out. But Florida exploited the offense and the defense bent and eventually broke. Long season in Lexington.
13. Florida (4-3)
Could DJ Lagway save Billy Napier’s job? There’s still some heavy lifting ahead in November, but at least there’s a shadow of a chance. Napier finally beat Kentucky, so at least things are moving in a positive direction.
12. Oklahoma (4-3)
Speaking of miserable offenses, there’s always the Sooners. The move to the SEC certainly hasn’t gone swimmingly, and two straight weeks of single-digit scoring probably cinches OU’s place in the lower echelon of the SEC.
11. Arkansas (4-3)
It was a tough week for Arkansas, and there’s a big split in quality between the Hogs and Sooners. Arkansas is still probably a few spots higher than expected, and there are some opportunities in the back end of the schedule to move higher.
10. South Carolina (4-3)
The Gamecocks came off a tough battle with Alabama and absolutely took the game to Oklahoma. South Carolina has been a bit up and down, but they look like a bowl-bound program and one that is at least arguably moving in the right direction.
9. Vanderbilt (5-2)
This Vandy in the top 25 business is a little crazy. They just beat Ball State by 10 and Kentucky by seven. They’re very capable of playing things within their style of play, but it’s still far from out of the question that the Commodores might end up 5-7. Still, even getting this high is kind of astonishing.
8. Missouri (6-1)
An incredibly underwhelming victory for Missouri won’t really move the needle. There’s a case to be made that Mizzou, which will probably go 9-3, is kind of the anti-Vanderbilt. The ‘Dores will be better than their final record, while Missouri, in reality, is probably worse.
7. Ole Miss (5-2)
The Rebels were off, so they’ll hold their spot here. The personnel is there for Ole Miss to make a run at the CFP, but the results so far have been uninspiring and it’s getting late.
6. Alabama (5-2)
The Tide probably hasn’t been this low in an SEC Power Ranking in a good long while. But watching the fourth quarter, as Tennessee ground out a win on Alabama, it was clear that this isn’t the Alabama program Nick Saban ran. Kalen DeBoer has plenty of work ahead.
5. Texas A&M (6-1)
Since their season-opening loss to Notre Dame, A&M just keeps chugging along. There are some tough spots in the schedule ahead (LSU, Texas), but the Aggies are a team in control of their own destiny and have a reasonable CFP chance.
4. LSU (6-1)
The Tigers are quietly hanging around the CFP picture, piling up victories and looking more and more consistent in the process. They’re still holding plenty of cards in the SEC season to come, and their battle with Alabama looks like a possible playoff elimination game.
3. Tennessee (6-1)
What a big-time win by the Vols. Tennessee’s passing game has been a bit underwhelming, but give them credit for finding a way to beat Alabama. The Vols are certainly for real and have played their way into the CFP. The battle with Georgia probably sets a spot in the SEC title game.
2. Texas (6-1)
The whispers that maybe Texas hadn’t seen quality competition yet ended up being true. There’s no over-reaction here, though. The Longhorns still belong in the playoff, and if they can learn from the physicality of Georgia, they can still win a title.
1. Georgia (6-1)
Georgia loves to be an underdog. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, they rarely get a chance. But Kirby Smart had his defense nearly foaming at the mouth and they proved that the road to the SEC crown still goes through Athens.
