The SEC’s cross-division games make up just one-sixth of each team’s schedule, but they’re often the most important games of the year in the conference.

Because not all cross-divison schedules are created equal, certain teams have more to gain and more to lose from cross-divison games than others, which is why these games can have so much sway in the final SEC standings.

There are still a few months standing between us and the return of SEC football, but we’ve tried to determine which teams might benefit most from their cross-divison schedules, and which teams might benefit the least. Take a look at our nominees below:

MOST TO GAIN

1. Ole Miss: The Rebels already get Vanderbilt on their schedule every year as their permanent cross-division rivalry, which, for what it’s worth, is absolutely something other SEC teams point to when they claim the permanent cross-divison matchups are not fair for all teams. Nevertheless, Ole Miss will have the benefit of playing the SEC’s weakest team yet again this year, and advantage only one other West rival will enjoy. But where the Rebels really lucked out was in drawing Florida as this year’s rotating cross-divison game. The Gators are as down as they have been in recent memory, so to draw them now in the six-year rotation as opposed to in a few years when the ship may be righted is extremely fortunate for the Rebels.

2. Tennessee/Arkansas: These two teams both took major strides last season in their respective rebuilding efforts, both rejoining the postseason after a long hiatus with a pair of dominant bowl wins to close the 2014 campaign. There are more similarities between these two teams as well, be it their third-year coaches or passionate fan bases or high expectations for 2015. This year the two emerging programs face one another in one of the most pivotal cross-divison games of the season, a game that’s intensified by those lofty expectations. The winner has a great chance to win eight or more games, continuing its gradual rise in the SEC. The loser runs the risk of taking a step back from a year ago, and that dip in momentum could be more severe than it seems. And considering Tennessee is a true contender to win the East, especially with UGA facing Alabama and Auburn, if UT can top the Hogs it could be a division-title-clinching victory.

3. Texas A&M: The Aggies are in desperate need of a big season in 2015 to justify Kevin Sumlin’s enormous contract and to ensure the head coach can win with his own players, not just the ones he inherited from Mike Sherman. Sumlin has been a recruiting machine at A&M, and he has the talent in place (and a returning starting quarterback — something many SEC teams lack) to compete for 10 wins this season. Like Ole Miss, it has the benefit of drawing Vanderbilt this season to lighten its SEC burden, and it’ll once again face a South Carolina team that lacks the personnel to contain A&M’s spread offense. If the Aggies can repeat their performance against the Gamecocks a year ago, a 6-2 conference record is absolutely within reach.

MOST TO LOSE

1. Georgia: Many consider Alabama and Auburn to be the SEC’s two best teams entering 2015, and those happen to be both of Georgia’s cross-divison opponents this season. This really stinks for the Bulldogs, not only because will no other East team face as difficult a scheduling challenge as playing both Alabama-based schools, but also because Georgia is one of few teams in the East capable of winning the division and this difficult schedule could be the difference between a trip to Atlanta or a trip to the sofa in December.

2. Alabama: This doesn’t change the fact that many still view Alabama as one of the two or three best teams in the SEC this fall, but Alabama has a ton to lose due to its difficult cross-division schedule. There are two teams in the East that, on paper, appear noticeably better than the rest of the division: Georgia and Tennessee. Alabama drew both those teams as its two cross-division games, as if the grueling SEC West wasn’t difficult enough. No matter how good Alabama is, Georgia has just as much roster talent and just as much quarterback uncertainty, and Alabama had a tough time separating from Tennessee in last year’s game once Joshua Dobbs entered the action. If the Tide drops even one of these games while fellow West teams beat up on Vandy and Kentucky and Florida, it could cost Nick Saban’s squad a chance to defend last year’s conference crown.

3. South Carolina: The Gamecocks already have one of the strongest non-division schedules in the SEC, one that includes a neutral-site game with UNC to open the season and a tough home game against UCF in the first month of the season. Additionally, South Carolina draws its annual cross-division foe in Texas A&M, a team we already discussed as a bad matchup for SC’s personnel, and then it’ll have to play LSU as its rotating opponent. Those who followed South Carolina last year know the defensive line was just awful, and while the team has revamped the line this year much of that talent is new to the SEC. If you thought facing Leonard Fournette would be a nice “welcome to the SEC” gift, think again.