ESPN’s Bill Connelly has updated his SP+ ratings for the final time before the start of the 2025 season.
This update follows the spring edition of SP+ and there have been a few changes in the intervening months. As is usually the case, SP+’s numbers suggest the SEC has the best and deepest group of teams entering the 2025 campaign.
Ohio State will begin the year as the preseason No. 1 team in SP+, but 3 of the top 5 programs hail from the SEC. With that being said, here’s where every SEC team ranks in SP+ entering the 2025 season:
- Alabama: No. 2
- Georgia: No. 3
- Texas: No. 5
- Ole Miss: No. 9
- LSU: No. 11
- Tennessee: No. 12
- Texas A&M: No. 13
- Oklahoma: No. 15
- Florida: No. 16
- South Carolina: No. 17
- Missouri: No. 20
- Auburn: No. 22
- Arkansas: No. 34
- Kentucky: No. 44
- Vanderbilt: No. 54
- Mississippi State: No. 66
SP+ is even higher on the SEC’s strength than the AP Top 25, which featured a remarkable 10 teams from the league in its preseason poll that was released this week.
SP+ is a bit lower on Texas than the consensus. While some have the Longhorns as the favorite to win the National Championship, Connelly’s model puts them at No. 5. The reverse could be said for Alabama, who landed at No. 8 in the AP’s preseason poll but is only behind the Buckeyes in preseason SP+.
SP+ also has teams like Oklahoma, Missouri and Auburn ranked much higher than the consensus.
Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
