Week 3 in the SEC was the first meaningful slate of conference games, and boy, did it ever live up to expectations.
We had Kentucky going into Kyle Field and earning a statement victory. We had Florida and Auburn duking it out in a battle of first-year SEC head coaches. And, of course, we had Lane Kiffin making his return to Oxford.
(Baller move by the Ole Miss fans not to storm the field after the win, by the way.)
Needless to say, there were some big changes to our weekly power rankings to account for the weekend’s carnage.
Let’s dive right into this week’s SEC football power rankings:
16. Arkansas Razorbacks (1-2 overall, 0-1 in SEC)
- Previous ranking: 16
- Last week: 45-17 L vs. No. 2 Georgia
- This week: vs. Tulsa
The Arkansas Razorbacks are a program in turmoil. The fans are frustrated with the administration and attendance is suffering. Losing 45-17 to the No. 2 team in the country isn’t exactly unexpected, but struggle against Tulsa this week and things will get even worse. And let’s not forget that Tulsa has a transitive property win over Oregon this year (Tulsa beat Oklahoma State and Oklahoma State beat Oregon). It’s not a pushover, by any means.
15. Vanderbilt (3-0, 0-0)
- Previous ranking: 15
- Last week: 35-31 W vs. NC State
- This week: at Auburn
It took one of the worst mistakes in all of football history to bump Vanderbilt to 3-0. NC State absolutely imploded in the final seconds of the game, so I have trouble giving the Commodores too much credit here. I think this is a Vandy team that loses by 2+ touchdowns at Auburn this coming week.
14. Auburn (2-1, 0-1)
- Previous ranking: 14
- Last week: 44-39 L vs. Florida
- This week: vs. Vanderbilt
Yes, that’s how far the gap is between 14 and 15 in my rankings. I believe Auburn will beat the crap out of Vanderbilt at Jordan-Hare this weekend. Byrum Brown and the offense gained some momentum even in a tough home loss to Florida last week. This should be a confidence-boosting weekend for Alex Golesh and company.
13. South Carolina (2-1, 0-1)
- Previous ranking: 11
- Last week: 41-34 L vs. Mississippi State
- This week: at Alabama
This week will be the defining game of the Shane Beamer era. His teams have had their backs against the wall before and have come out swinging and pulled off some big wins. But there’s also a scenario where South Carolina sleepwalks into Bryant-Denny Stadium and gets crushed. In the latter scenario, the writing is probably on the wall regarding Beamer.
12. Oklahoma (2-1, 0-0)
- Previous ranking: 10
- Last week: 14-6 W vs. New Mexico
- This week: at Georgia
This team is a mess right now. John Mateer looks borderline unplayable and Oklahoma just lost star DL David Stone to an injury in practice. Brent Venables provided encouraging news on that front, but if he’s anywhere less than 100% for a clash against Georgia, things could get ugly for the Sooners.
11. Texas A&M (2-1, 0-1)
- Previous ranking: 4
- Last week: 31-21 L vs. Kentucky
- This week: at LSU
The Texas A&M Aggies are the team that dropped in the rankings the most this week. Marcel Reed is struggling this year as a passer. The defense gave up way too many big pass plays to Kenny Minchey and the Kentucky offense. And now a road trip to LSU looks daunting.
10. Mizzou (3-0, 0-0)
- Previous ranking: 9
- Last week: 27-17 W vs. Troy
- This week: at Mississippi State
A home game against Troy was supposed to be a confidence-booster for the Missouri Tigers heading into SEC play. It was anything but, as the Tigers looked sloppy and sluggish. If they play like that in Starkville on Saturday, they’ll suffer their first loss of the season.
9. Kentucky (2-1, 1-1)
- Previous ranking: 13
- Last week: 31-21 W at No. 9 Texas A&M
- This week: vs. South Alabama
I thought it would take until Year 2 for Will Stein‘s impact to be felt in Lexington. Then the Kentucky Wildcats went down to College Station and pulled off an incredible victory. That was no fluke, either. Good times are right around the corner for Big Blue Nation. Don’t be surprised if this team keeps rising up the rankings and gets to 7 or 8 wins this fall.
8. Mississippi State (3-0, 1-0)
- Previous ranking: 12
- Last week: 41-34 W at South Carolina
- This week: vs. Mizzou
The Mississippi State Bulldogs are cruising so far this year. Another winnable game looms at home this weekend against Mizzou. I wrote last week about what it would take for Kamario Taylor to win the Heisman Trophy, coming to the conclusion that it would be nearly impossible because the Bulldogs need 9+ wins in the regular season. After that performance at South Carolina, I now think it’s at least within the realm of possibilities.
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7. Tennessee (3-0, 0-0)
- Previous ranking: 7
- Last week: 42-9 W vs. Kennesaw State
- This week: vs. Texas
The Tennessee Volunteers have to dive right into SEC play with a visit from the No. 1 team in the nation. The atmosphere on Rocky Top should be insane, as usual, but beating Texas won’t be easy. Pull off the win and Josh Heupel‘s squad will rocket up these rankings.
6. Florida (3-0, 1-0)
- Previous ranking: 8
- Last week: 44-39 W at Auburn
- This week: vs. Ole Miss
Turn around and hand the ball to Jadan Baugh. That’s been the recipe for success for QB Aaron Philo and the Florida Gators this season. He’s been incredible, and the Gators have new life under coach Jon Sumrall. Even if I don’t think the Gators have any business being 3.5-point favorites over Ole Miss this weekend, it’s still looking like it’ll be a solid debut season for Sumrall.
5. Alabama (3-0, 1-0)
- Previous ranking: 5
- Last week: 50-36 W vs. Florida State
- This week: vs. South Carolina
First-half Alabama looks like a 5-win team. Second-half Alabama looks like a top-5 team in the country. Whatever Kalen DeBoer is saying to the Tide at halftime, he needs to start doing it in the pregame locker room. All kidding aside, this team looks like a Playoff contender, especially as QB Keelon Russell continues to get more comfortable in big games and energetic environments.
4. LSU (2-1, 0-1)
- Previous ranking: 1
- Last week: 32-24 L at No. 8 Ole Miss
- This week: vs. Texas A&M
I’m not going to hammer LSU too much here. The Tigers were playing a top-10 team on the road in about as hostile of an environment as you’ll ever see and lost by 8. Lane Kiffin needs to get Sam Leavitt to take care of the football a lot better, but I’m not hitting the panic button for the Tigers just yet.
3. Ole Miss (3-0, 1-0)
- Previous ranking: 6
- Last week: 32-24 W vs. No. 7 LSU
- This week: at Florida
It wasn’t pretty at times, but the Ole Miss Rebels exacted their revenge on Lane Kiffin in perhaps the greatest atmosphere in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium history. They could be in line for a letdown at Florida this week, but I actually think Pete Golding was given a gift by the oddsmakers who have Florida favored in this game. Talk about free bulletin-board material.
2. Georgia (3-0, 1-0)
- Previous ranking: 3
- Last week: 45-17 W at Arkansas
- This week: vs. Oklahoma
I was really looking forward to this week’s matchup between the Georgia Bulldogs and Oklahoma Sooners before the season because I thought it would be a battle between 2 Playoff contenders. Now that looks laughable with the way Oklahoma’s offense has played. When you’re struggling on offense, a Kirby Smart defense is the last thing you want to see. We’ll probably have to wait a little longer to see Georgia’s first real test.
1. Texas (3-0, 0-0)
- Previous ranking: 2
- Last week: 30-6 W vs. UTSA
- This week: at Tennessee
The Texas Longhorns move up to the top spot. They have the best win in the SEC this year (vs. Ohio State) and look to be strong on both sides of the ball. Of course, a trip to Rocky Top is never easy. If Steve Sarkisian and company can successfully navigate their first trip away from Austin, they’ll be an even stronger national-title candidate.
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Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.
