For this edition of SEC Debate, some of the SDS staff considers which team is the SEC’s most underrated through the season’s first month. The most significant trend? No teams from the SEC East are mentioned.

Ouch.

WHICH TEAM IS THE SEC’S MOST UNDERRATED?

Ethan Levine (@EthanLevineSDS): Ole Miss

Ranked No.10 in the last two Associated Press Polls, Ole Miss remains the most underrated team in the SEC. Yes, Ole Miss is just one of many talented teams in the loaded SEC West, and no, the Rebels have not played anyone experts would consider a “quality opponent.” But the eye test tells me this Ole Miss team is as talented as any in the conference on both sides of the ball, and when quarterback Bo Wallace limits his turnovers, the Rebels are nearly impossible to stop. Ole Miss’ star-riddled 2013 recruiting class has already begun paying major dividends, and the team’s upperclassmen have grown along with head coach Hugh Freeze over the last three years, progressing rapidly to reach the top 10 in the polls. The Rebels are deep at the skill positions on offense, and they might boast the best defense in the conference. Ole Miss does not have the storied tradition of success on the gridiron the way Alabama or LSU do, and the Rebels have yet to face an opponent good enough for them to prove their worth. However, if you watch an Ole Miss game for 60 minutes, you’ll find this team has quality athletes at every position and a coach as trendy as any in the country. After facing a feisty Memphis team Saturday, Ole Miss will finally have a chance to show what it’s capable of against Alabama on Oct. 4, and on that day I think fans will find this team is not only better than they thought, but also a realistic contender to win the West.

Jon Cooper (@JonSDS): Auburn

Despite winning the SEC last year, Auburn is quietly the No. 5 team in the country. Nobody is talking about the Tigers. If you look at many projections around the country, Alabama and Texas A&M seem to dominate headlines, and Auburn is exactly right where they want to be. I’ve said all along that Auburn is the best team in the SEC with the best offensive weapon with Gus Malzahn. Now, Auburn may not win the SEC Championship this year, but that has everything to do with playing the top schedule in the country. The Tigers just beat No. 25 Kansas State, and LSU, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Georgia, South Carolina and Alabama are all in front of them. That’s just ridiculous.

Brad Crawford (@BCrawfordSDS): Mississippi State

I’m close to giving up on trying to call the SEC this season. The SEC West is anyone’s guess, but the Bulldogs appear to have enough on both sides of the football for a stretch run. The elephant left the room last weekend in Baton Rouge as Mississippi State snapped a variety of streaks with a six-round knockout of LSU. And Dak Prescott? The kid’s fun to watch. He almost makes you forget about this team’s talent on defense. It’s scary to think where this group could be in late October considering the Bulldogs’ veteran leader, Benardrick McKinney, has been relatively quiet thus far. Spaces are filling up on the Mississippi State bandwagon, so grab a seat before it’s too late. Almost went with the Rebels here, but I don’t consider Ole Miss underrated considering Hugh Freeze’s squad was inside the Top 20 when the season began.

Brett Weisband (@WeisbandSDS): Arkansas

The Razorbacks are the only SEC West teams outside of the rankings, but they’re as dangerous as any of the teams above them. Bret Bielema’s rushing attack is a force to be reckoned with, and it’s showing on the scoreboard. Arkansas is third in the country in scoring offense, eighth in rushing yards and fourth in yards per carry. Their three-headed monster at running back — Alex Collins, Jonathan Williams and Korliss Marshall — can claim to be as good as any other in the conference, and the Razorbacks have a game-breaking receiver in Keon Hatcher. They’re 0-for their last 17 SEC games, but the Hogs look poised to spoil someone’s season this fall.

Jordan Cox (@Jordan_Cox): Arkansas

The sexy pick looks to be Mississippi State. But I actually think it’s Arkansas. If you look at that running game, you’ve got three backs in Korliss Marshall, Jonathan Williams and Alex Collins who would be the first options virtually anywhere else in the country and run behind an offensive line that is NFL-like. They’re huge. Brandon Allen is quietly a very good quarterback that rarely puts his team in bad situations. The defense has played well in games it should play well in (Nicholls State, Northern Illinois), but did give up some points to Texas Tech. Saturday against Texas A&M at JerryWorld will go a long way in telling us how good the Razorback defense is.
Christopher Smith (@CsmithSDS): Arkansas
Arkansas. The answer to this last week most certainly would’ve been Mississippi State, but now the Bulldogs are rated about where they should be. The Razorbacks haven’t won an SEC game in more than 700 days. The loss to Auburn in the season opener cemented the fact that they’d be taken for granted, at least until surprising an unsuspecting SEC foe. But the Hogs are one of the nation’s hottest teams, shredding the Vegas line by more than 20 points for three consecutive weeks.