Rivalry week is the most important week of the year for some SEC schools. No matter how well your season has gone, it can feel like a waste if a loss to a hated foe is what sends you into the offseason.
The SEC went 2-2 in its nonconference rivalry battles last weekend. Outside of Texas A&M, the SEC’s Playoff contenders — Ole Miss, Georgia, Vanderbilt and Alabama — all prevailed on the road, while Oklahoma managed to avoid an upset bid by LSU at home. Proving to oneself that you can get win in a hostile environment this late in the season should only bode well for a College Football Playoff run.
Saturday’s SEC Championship Game is the last matchup of SEC schools that we’re guaranteed to see this year. It should be a great appetizer to an exciting CFP. Good luck to both the Georgia Bulldogs and the Alabama Crimson Tide in that matchup.
Games are listed in order of approximate start time. Plays mentioned are based on win probability added, via ESPN analytics. Rankings are from the College Football Playoff Week 14 reveal.
No. 7 Ole Miss vs. Mississippi State (38-19 Ole Miss)
Play: 2:32 Q2, 1st-and-10, Mississippi State 35-yard line. Fluff Bothwell runs for 43 yards to the Ole Miss 22-yard line. First down Mississippi State (+5.3% for Mississippi State).
The Rebels (11-1) deserve immense applause for completing the best regular season in program history. It’s a shame that He Who Shall Not Be Named is no longer leading their charge for their first undisputed national championship. Winning the whole thing without him, though, would be immensely gratifying. Mississippi State isn’t going bowling, but the improvements Jeff Lebby brought in Year 2 are encouraging for the future, even if the final stretch wasn’t as competitive as one would hope.
No. 4 Georgia vs. No. 23 Georgia Tech (16-9 Georgia)
Play: 6:05 Q2, 3rd-and-10, Georgia Tech 36-yard line. Gunnar Stockton pass complete to Zachariah Branch for 22 yards to the Georgia Tech 12-yard line. First down Georgia (+4.7%).
Most of the Bulldogs’ big wins this season — including their victory over Austin Peay — can rightfully be characterized as “ugly.” But in the end, wins are wins. Once you’re in the CFP, you don’t get any extra credit for margin of victory. No opposing fanbase should feel secure about advancing if they see Kirby Smart and Co. lined up across from them. Unless there’s triple zeros on the clock at the end of regulation, Georgia has a chance to win any game it plays.
No. 3 Texas A&M vs. No. 16 Texas (27-17 Texas)
Play: 0:23 Q3, 2nd-and-12, Texas 44-yard line. Arch Manning pass complete to Jack Endries for 54 yards to the Texas A&M 2-yard line. First down Texas (+17.7%).
Friday night’s performance was disappointing for Aggies fans. Their loss in Austin shook them awake from what had been a dream season. Would it have been nice to play for the SEC Championship? Yes, especially since Texas A&M has never done so before. However, as Ohio State showed last year, getting an extra week of rest ahead of the national title chase could prove beneficial. Meanwhile, Texas needs a sizeable, possibly unreasonable boost from this victory — and losses from BYU and Alabama (probably) — to potentially sneak into the CFP as the last at-large team. Never say never.
Kentucky vs. Louisville (41-0 Louisville)
Play: 8:18 Q2, 4th-and-1, Kentucky 43-yard line. Miller Moss pass complete to Jacob Stewart for 44 yards, touchdown. 17-0 Louisville (+10.8%).
Big Blue Nation thought Mark Stoops was going to remain in Lexington after a 3-game winning streak, highlighted by triumphs over subpar Auburn and Florida squads, to open November. Blowout losses to Vanderbilt and Louisville to end the 2025 campaign changed that. The Wildcats will now be led by a home-grown Bluegrass kid in Will Stein. He and Cutter Boley could be fun to watch in 2026.
Clemson vs. South Carolina (28-14 Clemson)
Play: 5:29 Q2, 1st-and-10, South Carolina 26-yard line. LaNorris Sellers pass complete to Vandrevious Jacobs for 74 yards, touchdown. 14-14 Tie (+19.7% for South Carolina).
It’s safe to say this year didn’t go as anticipated for South Carolina. The Gamecocks opened the season as the No. 13 team in the country and proceeded to beat just 2 Power 4 schools (Virginia Tech and Kentucky, who both fired their head coaches). Shane Beamer is now squarely on the hot seat entering 2026, but he’s confident in his ability to turn things around. Keeping LaNorris Sellers in Columbia would be a nice start to his quest.
LSU vs. No. 8 Oklahoma (17-13 Oklahoma)
Play: 4:16 Q4, 1st-and-10. John Mateer pass complete to Isaiah Sategna III for 58 yards, touchdown.17-13 Oklahoma (+39.3%).
The Sooners rode their defense and a long passing touchdown to victory at home against a Tiger team for the second-consecutive weekend to wrap up their regular season. Oklahoma’s time off could allow John Mateer to find his early season groove ahead of the CFP. For Brent Venables‘ squad to truly compete for a national championship, it’s going to need Mateer to play at a higher level.
No. 14 Vanderbilt vs. No. 19 Tennessee (45-24 Vanderbilt)
Play: 10:34 Q2, 2nd-and-6, Tennessee 48-yard line. Joey Aguilar pass complete to Chris Brazzell II for 52 yards, touchdown. 14-14 Tie (+14.3% for Tennessee).
Clark Lea and Diego Pavia walking into Knoxville and throttling the Vols to seal their first-ever 10-win campaign looks like it’s going to be a bittersweet cherry on top of a fairytale regular season. Through no fault of their own, the Commodores — with losses only to Alabama and Texas, both on the road — are likely to find themselves on the wrong side of the CFP cutline. If either LSU or South Carolina had come closer to meeting preseason expectations, Vanderbilt would be in the bracket.
Missouri vs. Arkansas (31-17 Missouri)
Play: 11:57 Q3, 1st-and-10, Mizzou 47-yard line. Ahmad Hardy rushes for 53 yards, touchdown. Missouri 20-17. (+17.2%).
The Missouri Tigers beat everyone they were supposed to beat and lost to everyone they were supposed to lose to in 2025. There’s no shame in falling to Alabama, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt and Oklahoma, but defeating at least 1 of them would have been nice. Regardless, Eli Drinkwitz can reach 9 victories for the third straight year — something Mizzou has never done before — with a bowl game triumph. His latest extension is well-deserved. On the other side of the coin, saying Razorback fans aren’t thrilled with the hiring of Ryan Silverfield is an understatement.
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Florida State vs. Florida (40-21 Florida)
Play: 3:26 Q1, 1st-and-10, Florida State 39-yard line. DJ Lagway pass complete to J. Michael Sturdivant for 34 yards to the Florida State 5-yard line. First down Florida (+7.1%).
Florida fans didn’t/don’t seem too thrilled about their hiring of Jon Sumrall. Multiple other SEC fanbases were clamoring for him, but the Gator gig is obviously a different, unique beast. He’ll need to be as effective as he was at Troy (23-4) and Tulane (19-7) in a short period of time to avoid the scorn that plagued Billy Napier. The former SEC linebacker won’t be phased by anything thrown his way. If anyone is equipped to handle the pressure Florida’s fanbase can provide, it’s him. Note: The play sequencing in portions of the second and third quarters of this game in ESPN’s analytics is out of order. We chose a play that does not seem to be affected by this error.
No. 10 Alabama vs. Auburn (27-20 Alabama)
Play: 12:57 Q4, 3rd-and-9, Auburn 30-yard line. Ashton Daniels pass complete to Malcolm Simmons for 66 yards to the Auburn 4-yard line. First-and-Goal Auburn. (+18.5% for Auburn).
It’s never easy in the Iron Bowl. Auburn was driving for a potential game-winning touchdown — the Tigers surely would have gone for a 2-point conversion if they scored, right? — in the final minutes on Saturday night. Then Bray Hubbard swooped in and saved the day, punching the ball out of Cam Coleman’s possession. Deontae Lawson’s recovery (+7.3% win probability) essentially sent the Crimson Tide to the SEC Championship Game. Beat Georgia again, and Alabama will reach the CFP. Lose to the Bulldogs, and the Crimson Tide may have to sweat it out. Note: ESPN analytics showed the score of this game as 17-6 until Auburn scored its first points.
