The SEC Championship Game has come and gone, and the top team stays on top while the loser takes a hard fall.

Here are our updated power rankings as we enter the postseason:

Note: () by each team indicates whether teams moved up, down or remained unchanged.

BASEMENT

14. South Carolina Gamecocks (-)
13. Missouri Tigers (-)
12. Vanderbilt Commodores (-)
11. Kentucky Wildcats (-)

None of these four teams were able to cap their regular seasons with victories, and none will get a chance to rectify that as they won’t be going bowling. For South Carolina, it’s the first time the school hasn’t been bowl-eligible since 2003 although they didn’t play in bowls in 2004 or 2007 despite winning six games. Missouri may have been selected to go to a bowl despite a 5-7 record, but the Tigers preemptively said they would decline if offered. Kentucky lost six of its last seven games after starting the season 4-1 to miss out on a bowl for the fifth straight season. Vanderbilt dropped four of its last five, and the last two contests were especially discouraging. The Commodores were blanked 25-0 at home to Texas A&M before their defense let them down in a 53-28 loss to Tennessee.

WHAT DO WE MAKE OF YOU?

10. Auburn Tigers (-)
9. Texas A&M Aggies (-)
8. Georgia Bulldogs (-)
7. Florida Gators (-4)

Auburn lost four of six to close the season, although three of those four losses came by one possession and to good teams in Arkansas, Ole Miss and Georgia. The Tigers will be in the Birmingham Bowl and will try to notch a win over a Memphis team that took down Ole Miss earlier in the season. Texas A&M went 3-4 after starting the season 5-0. Still, the Aggies will get a chance to win a fifth straight bowl game when they take on a Louisville team that’s won five of its last six games in the Music City Bowl. Georgia responded from its 27-3 loss to Florida by finishing the regular season on a four-game winning streak. However, with the exception of its dominating win over Kentucky, the other three wins were rather shaky, including a 23-17 OT win over Georgia Southern at home. The Bulldogs will be back in Jacksonville, the site of that painful loss to the Gators, when they face Penn State in the Taxslayer Bowl. Florida fits perfectly into the What Do We Make of You category because while the defense showed itself to be championship material against Alabama in the Georgia Dome, the offense doesn’t seem to even belong in the FBS.

SECOND TIER

6. Tennessee Volunteers (+1)
5. LSU Tigers (+1)
4. Arkansas Razorbacks (+1)
3. Mississippi State Bulldogs (+1)

With the exception of Dan Mullen’s first season in 2009, Mississippi State has been to a bowl every year since, and they’ll be in another one against NC State in the Belk Bowl. The Bulldogs did much better than expected this season. Meanwhile, Arkansas went 5-1 down the stretch with its only loss coming to Mississippi State in a 51-50 shootout. The Razorbacks take their balanced offense to the Liberty Bowl against a Kansas State team that started the season 3-0, then lost six straight before closing the season on a three-game win streak. LSU took down one Texas team to get back on track in its regular-season finale. Now, it will look to notch another one against a Lone Star State team in the postseason. Tennessee has won five straight and six of their last seven, with the only defeat coming in a 19-14 loss to Alabama. The Vols’ matchup with 10-2 Northwestern in the Outback Bowl might be one of the most competitive bowl games involving an SEC team.

BEST OF THE BEST

2. Ole Miss Rebels (-)
1. Alabama Crimson Tide (-)

Finally, we have the cream of the crop. Ole Miss is left to wonder what if, but it also has to wonder what if it doesn’t take care of business against Oklahoma State in the Sugar Bowl, right? The Rebels were manhandled by another Big 12 team in a major bowl last season, TCU, so there’s no time for that. The season could’ve turned out better than it did, but it could still be much worse, and it will be without a respectable showing against the Cowboys. Over the last three games, Chad Kelly is 64-for-98 passing (65.3 completion percentage) for 884 yards, 7 TDs and no interceptions while rushing 34 times for 265 yards and 6 TDs. He’ll look to continue his hot streak in what should be a fun game to watch. Alabama rebounded from its loss to Ole Miss on Sept. 19 by reeling off 10 straight, the latest was a 29-15 win over Florida for the SEC crown. Only unbeaten Clemson at 13-0 has a longer active streak in the FBS. Now that the Crimson Tide is the undisputed king of the mountain in the SEC, it has a chance to put the SEC back on top in the national landscape. First up is Michigan State in the College Football Playoff semifinals.