And then there were five.

The SEC began the year with 14 teams hoping to survive the nation’s toughest conference and play for the conference crown. The 12 weeks since whittled that to just five teams still eligible to reach the conference championship game.

The East scenario is simple: If Missouri wins its final two games it defends its East title from 2013; if it loses even once Georgia wins the East.

The West scenarios aren’t any tougher to understand: If Alabama wins the Iron Bowl, it wins the West; Mississippi State and Ole Miss each need two wins and an Alabama loss to win the division.

Those scenarios will play themselves out in the final two weeks of the season. However, looking ahead at the potential matchups these five teams could form in the SEC championship game brings about some fascinating possibilities.

From the perspective of each of the five teams still alive to win the conference, here are the cross-division foes they’d most like to see in the SEC title game:

Georgia

Best matchup: Ole Miss

Why: Georgia has the SEC’s No. 2 pass defense, and that defense would match up well with Ole Miss and its one-dimensional passing offense. The Rebels haven’t run the ball effectively in SEC play all year, and if Georgia was able to settle its defense in obvious passing situations it could terrorize an Ole Miss offense playing without No. 1 wideout Laquon Treadwell.

On the other side of the ball, Georgia would have to assert its dominant running game against the nation’s No. 1 scoring defense from Ole Miss. Only one team has scored more than 20 points against the Rebels this season, and neither Georgia nor Missouri would be set up to score very many points in a potential showdown with the Rebels.

However, if UGA could wear down Ole Miss with a punishing rushing attack, it could control the pace of the game and break through in the second half with a couple of scoring drives.

This would be a fantastic matchup for the viewing audience, pitting two of the most physical teams in the conference against one another. Georgia would struggle against Ole Miss, but it would struggle less against the Rebels than it would against Alabama or Mississippi State.

Missouri

Best matchup: Ole Miss

Why: As previously stated, the Rebels have the nation’s best scoring defense through 12 weeks, and if they can win the West points will be at a premium in the SEC championship game. However, Missouri’s defense is built to force a quarterback like Bo Wallace into unnecessary mistakes, which could set the Tigers up with a few short fields in what could be a low-scoring game if these two teams were to meet.

The Rebels have struggled to run the ball effectively on a consistent basis this season, and if they are forced into obvious passing situations it will allow Mizzou’s Shane Ray and Markus Golden to pin their ears back and go after Wallace, forcing turnovers or at least keeping Ole Miss behind the chains.

The Tigers will have to find creative ways to score when they have the ball, but with Maty Mauk’s inconsistencies this year they’d have to do that against any of the three remaining West contenders. However, Mizzou’s greatest strength is its defensive line, and that line would match up better with the Ole Miss offense than any other.

Alabama

Best matchup: Missouri

Why: Based on how Georgia played against Auburn last week, the Tide does not want to be tasked with stopping Nick Chubb and the Bulldogs’ rushing attack, nor does it want Blake Sims to have to beat the SEC’s No. 2 passing defense on a neutral site (take a look at Sims’ numbers at home compared to away of Tuscaloosa and you’ll see he’s far less effective outside Bryant-Denny Stadium).

Alabama has the SEC’s No. 1 run defense, meaning if matched up with Missouri it could force the game into the hands of quarterback Maty Mauk, who has completed only 53 percent of his throws in games where he’s attempted 33 or more passes. Georgia’s Hutson Mason is nothing special as a passer, but although he’s less dynamic he’s also less mistake-prone than Mauk.

The Tigers have found ways to win unusual games all season, but there won’t be anywhere to hide against Alabama in the SEC championship game. Georgia has faced top 25 opponents on big stages all year, and this collection of players is more familiar with premier matchups than Missouri. Thus, the Tide would love to face Mizzou with a conference crown on the line.

Mississippi State

Best matchup: Georgia

Why: The strength of Mississippi State’s offense is its rushing attack, led by the dynamic duo of Dakman and Robinson (quarterback Dak Prescott and tailback Josh Robinson). Even after a poor showing against Alabama (138 yards) the Bulldogs still rank third in the SEC in rushing offense, and when Prescott has a run game to rely on he is a much more proficient passer.

Georgia has a weaker run defense than Missouri, as the Bulldogs have allowed at least 150 yards rushing in three straight games and four times in SEC play this season. As a result, Mississippi State would match up much better with UGA than Missouri, which boasts arguably the best defensive line in the conference.

On the other side of the ball, Georgia also operates a run-heavy offense, led by Chubb, compensating for a pedestrian quarterback in Mason averaging just 168 yards per game in 2014. This also benefits Mississippi State, which has a suspect secondary but boasts a front seven loaded with NFL talents like Preston Smith, Chris Jones and Benardrick McKinney.

Georgia may have accomplished more than Missouri to this point in the season, but on paper MSU matches up better with the Dawgs.

Ole Miss

Best matchup: Missouri

Why: Ironically, Ole Miss wants Missouri for a lot of the same reasons Missouri wants Ole Miss in a potential SEC championship game showdown.

Ole Miss has battled its fair share of injuries in recent weeks, but it still boasts one of the best defenses in college football this season. The Tigers have explosive playmakers on offense in Marcus Murphy, Russell Hansbrough and Bud Sasser, but the Rebels have silenced far better players than those three this year.

It’s been said enough in this piece, but Mauk is as turnover-prone as any quarterback of relevance in the SEC, and Ole Miss could set its offense up with a few short fields by forcing Mauk into critical mistakes.

The Rebels passing offense might struggle without Treadwell and with a banged up Laremy Tunsil at left tackle, especially against deadly pass rushers in Ray and Golden, but with a defense as good as Ole Miss’ it all comes down to who has the inferior offense. Right now, that’s Missouri, and that’s who Ole Miss wants if it finds a way to win the West.