Which team did SEC Media pick to win the conference in 2026?

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After four days in Tampa, the SEC Media Days is over. The coaches from all 16 teams spoke at length to the media about last season, this season and everything in between. But who do the assembled press think will actually win the conference in 2026? Same as it ever was.

The Georgia Bulldogs have won the league three out of the past four years, including a 22-19 win over Texas in the 2024 SEC title game. Kirby Smart has built a program that has been one of the most successful in college football over the past decade.

UGA was in the national title game in 2017, and won the championship in 2021 and 2022. Georgia has replaced Alabama as the gold standard in the SEC. Smart, a former Nick Saban assistant, has elevated the 'Dawgs from a good team to a dominant one.

So when asked who will win the conference this season, the press made the logical choice: Georgia.

Texas coach Steve Sarkisian isn't going to argue with the pick. Sark agrees that you can't be the best until you beat the best.

"There's a lot of sayings and quotes, in the sports world in particular," Sarkisian said during his SEC Media Days press conference. "But this one is the most fitting. If you want to be the champion you've got to beat the champion. And it's no more fitting for us. We've played Georgia three times and they've beaten us. All the credit in the world to Kirby and their team. They're tough. They're good. So if we want to be the champion, I'm guessing we have to beat the champion to make that happen."

The Longhorns have faced Georgia three times in the two years Texas has been in the SEC. UT has lost all three meetings. The two teams don't face each other in the regular season, but there's a great chance the top two media picks will meet in the SEC Championship Game in Atlanta this December.

This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Which team did SEC Media pick to win the conference in 2026?

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