SEC Power Rankings after Week 6
Mississippi State is No. 16. Texas is No. 1.
Those are the only set-in-stone rankings this week. Following one of the craziest Saturdays of college football we’ve seen in years, it’ll be important not to overreact too much to top teams like Alabama, Mizzou and Tennessee losing on the road.
But this is also a chance to re-evaluate things and look at the power rankings between 2-15 with a clean slate.
As we prepare for Week 7 in the SEC, here’s a look at how I have all 16 squads stacking up against one another:
16. Mississippi State (1-4 overall, 0-2 in SEC)
Previous ranking: 16
This week: OFF
Next week: at Georgia
Mississippi State had an extra week to prepare for a trip to Georgia. It probably won’t matter much in the battle of the Bulldogs. Maybe they’ll score 6 points instead of 3? We’ll see what happens, but I expect things to get ugly in Athens in Week 7.
15. Auburn (2-4, 0-3)
Previous ranking: 15
This week: 31-13 L at Georgia
Next week: OFF
The Tigers get a much-needed off week to rest up and figure out the quarterback position. The offense has some talented receivers and Jarquez Hunter is one of the best running backs in the league. But until Auburn gets some more dynamic play from Payton Thorne or Hank Brown, the wins aren’t going to come.
14. South Carolina (3-2, 1-2)
Previous ranking: 11
This week: 27-3 L to No. 12 Ole Miss
Next week: at Alabama
Do the Gamecocks deserve to be this low? Probably not. But they do have some issues at QB. You need to have consistent play from the QB position to win in the SEC. South Carolina doesn’t have that right now and it showed in a 27-3 loss to Ole Miss on Saturday. They need to figure out the QB spot soon, as a trip to Alabama awaits in Week 7.
13. Florida (3-2, 1-1)
Previous ranking: 14
This week: 24-13 W over UCF
Next week: at Tennessee
That was a nice home win for the Gators. They continue to get good play from both Graham Mertz and DJ Lagway, which is a good problem for coach Billy Napier to have. The Gators are now 1-1 in the Sunshine State, losing to Miami and beating UCF. They’ll finish the regular season with a game against Florida State with a chance to go 2-1 against their in-state rivals in 2024. But more pressing is a difficult Week 7 trip to Rocky Top to face a Tennessee team that will be playing angry after a loss at Arkansas.
12. Oklahoma (4-1, 1-1)
Previous ranking: 10
This week: OFF
Next week: vs. Texas (in Dallas)
Good defense, suspect offense. That’s been the story for the Sooners so far in 2024. That defense is going to be put to the test in a big way against rival Texas this weekend in Dallas. Both teams are coming into this game off bye weeks, so we’ll see who looks better in the first quarter. The Sooners will hope to channel some of the Week 6 chaos and bring it with them into Week 7.
11. Vanderbilt (3-2, 1-1)
Previous ranking: 14
This week: 40-35 W over No. 1 Alabama
Next week: at Kentucky
This is where I am going to try not to overreact too much. What an incredible win for the Commodores, but let’s not forget this team lost in disappointing fashion at Mizzou the week before. Vanderbilt will be tough to beat at home. But until the Commodores can win on the road in SEC play, I’m not going to bump them into the top 10. They have a great shot to do just that this week in Lexington, though.
10. Mizzou (4-1, 1-1)
Previous ranking: 5
This week: 41-10 L at No. 25 Texas A&M
Next week: at UMass
This offense is atrocious. Whoever stole Brady Cook and Kirby Moore and replaced them with the guys we’re watching this year, please return them ASAP. Cook can’t throw downfield with any accuracy. The Tigers didn’t throw over the middle of the field at Texas A&M. They couldn’t establish the run. This team needs to get its act together in a hurry.
9. Arkansas (4-2, 2-1)
Previous ranking: 12
This week: 19-14 W over No. 4 Tennessee
Next week: OFF
What an effort by the Razorbacks! Sam Pittman presided over another field-storming at Razorback Stadium and you know this one felt good. The Hogs are playing with a ton of heart for their embattled coach. Now they get a much-needed off week to regroup and try to finish the season on a strong note starting in Week 8.
8. Ole Miss (5-1, 1-1)
Previous ranking: 8
This week: 27-3 W at South Carolina
Next week: at LSU
It’s crazy to think about, but the Ole Miss defense might be the best unit on this team. The offense has been up and down all year, making too many silly mistakes. Meanwhile, the defense has kept the Rebels in every contest. That defense will need to be at its best on Saturday when the Rebels pay a visit to Baton Rouge.
7. Kentucky (3-2, 1-2)
Previous ranking: 7
This week: OFF
Next week: vs. Vanderbilt
Just a couple of weeks ago, the home game against Vanderbilt looked like it should be an easy win. Then Vanderbilt went to double-overtime with Mizzou and knocked off No. 1 Alabama. Now it doesn’t look like such a gimmie for the Wildcats. Will the week off help Mark Stoops’ squad take down another tough SEC opponent?
6. LSU (4-1, 1-0)
Previous ranking: 6
This week: OFF
Next week: vs. Ole Miss
LSU had a week to rest and now welcomes Ole Miss to Death Valley. The Rebels had to play in Week 6 at South Carolina. Will the rest be the difference in Saturday’s huge matchup of former SEC West rivals? Garrett Nussmeier and company will be eager to show they have the best offense in the league, not Ole Miss.
5. Tennessee (4-1, 1-1)
Previous ranking: 3
This week: 19-14 L at Arkansas
Next week: vs. Florida
Dylan Sampson continues to be a beast, scoring both of the Vols’ touchdowns. But the receiving corps is really beaten up and Nico Iamaleava looked like a freshman on Saturday in Fayetteville. The Vols will head back to Rocky Top in Week 7 to try to score a rivalry win over Florida.
4. Alabama (4-1, 1-1)
Previous ranking: 1
This week: 40-35 L at Vanderbilt
Next week: vs. South Carolina
The Crimson Tide got caught up in what Nick Saban would call “rat poison” this week. They clearly believed their own hype a little too much and it cost them in a big way at Vanderbilt. But Jalen Milroe and Ryan Williams are still insanely talented. If this defense can figure some things out against a struggling South Carolina offense, the Tide will get back on track.
3. Texas A&M (5-1, 3-0)
Previous ranking: 9
This week: 41-10 W over No. 9 Mizzou
Next week: OFF
I am going to overreact to the Aggies’ dominant 41-10 victory over the Tigers. Conner Weigman returned from injury and looked great. The defense stopped everything the Tiger offense tried to do. Amari Daniels and Le’Veon Moss are beasts in the running game. That was a masterful showing by Mike Elko’s squad. Starting 3-0 in the SEC isn’t easy. In fact, every other team that has played multiple SEC games at this point has at least 1 loss. The Aggies are for real and I’m buying in.
2. Georgia (4-1, 2-1)
Previous ranking: 4
This week: 31-13 W over Auburn
Next week: vs. Mississippi State
With the struggles other top SEC teams have had on the road, suddenly a narrow loss at Alabama doesn’t look all that bad. The offense still has some work to do, but the Dawgs face a get-right game against Mississippi State in Week 7. Look for Carson Beck to put up some big numbers in that one.
1. Texas (5-0, 1-0)
Previous ranking: 2
This week: OFF
Next week: vs. Oklahoma (in Dallas)
The Longhorns picked a good week to be idle. As chaos was happening all around them, they were sitting pretty with a perfect 5-0 record. We’ll see if Quinn Ewers is good to go against Oklahoma in the rivalry game, but it does seem to be trending in that direction. The Longhorns have a chance to take a big step toward Atlanta this coming weekend.