College Football SEC power rankings entering Week 3
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Turn away, SEC haters. This conference has earned its rightful place as the top conference in college football after its non-conference performances in the first two weeks of the season. After securing huge wins over the Big Ten with Mississippi State beating Minnesota and Texas beating Ohio State, the SEC now sits at 8-2 in games against other Power-4 opponents.
That number is staggering, and it suggests we could be heading toward a 4-bid or 5-bid SEC in this year’s CFP. This is also the only conference where a top-10 list leaves off legitimately good football teams. So apologies to Auburn, Florida, and South Carolina for missing out on the list this week. You’ve done nothing wrong, but others have been more impressive. It just means more!
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10. Missouri
The “Border War” against Kansas was competitive for a half, but the Tigers really pulled away in the 2nd. One of the underrated QB/WR duos in the SEC, Austin Simmons and Donovan Olugbode, connected early and often, and the Missouri offense was a thing of beauty. Simmons is showing us why he beat out Trinidad Chambliss to start the season in 2025 before his injury allowed him to get “Wally Pipp-ed.”
9. Mississippi State
Mississippi State boosters – get your checkbooks ready. Kamario Taylor is the real deal, and there are going to be some high-major programs that are going to throw a ton of NIL money at him to acquire his services for 2027 (Miami? Notre Dame? USC?). The velocity that he is able to put on the ball without losing accuracy is something special, and his mobility adds another layer to the offense. This team is appointment viewing for the rest of the season.
8. Oklahoma
This was about as bad a loss for Oklahoma as I possibly could have imagined. The impotent Michigan offense, which scored 13 points against Western Michigan, put up 17 on the vaunted Sooners defense, and it was enough to win. This is a bad, bad sign. Oklahoma has at least 4 teams remaining on their schedule that are much better than Michigan.
The biggest red flag is that the offense has not appeared to fix their problems from 2025 – the run game is non-existent, and too many plays turn into John Mateer running around trying to make something happen. The defense is still rock solid, which prevents them from sliding further down this list, but the Sooners have a lot of figuring out to do.
7. Tennessee
The Josh Heupel offense is at its best when it has a solid run game, and that’s what the Volunteers exemplified Saturday night against Georgia Tech. They ran for a staggering 299 yards, and Faizon Brandon only attempted 21 passes on the night, which really kept him sheltered from making a big mistake that could have been costly.
6. Texas A&M
The Aggies won a very strange game against Arizona State. They were outgained, yet won by 28 points. The development of Marcel Reed is concerning – he doesn’t appear to have taken any steps forward in this season. The defense and the game management by Mike Elko will have this team competitive in every SEC game, but Reed needs to take the next step forward if this team wants to make the CFP.
5. Alabama
The Tide rolled with a big second half to defeat Kentucky 45-17 in their first SEC road test. Keelon Russell continues to impress, and the secondary is one of the best in college football. This team should be able to compete at the top of the SEC.
4. Ole Miss
In perhaps a bit of a look-ahead scenario, the Rebels had a sleepy Saturday in a 43-9 victory over Charlotte (who may be the worst team in all of FBS football). This week is the main event, as Lane Kiffin makes his return to Oxford. This game has wide-ranging implications.
3. LSU
In perhaps a bit of a look-ahead scenario, LSU beat Louisiana Tech 45-14, despite Sam Leavitt’s three interceptions. Leavitt is going to have to be sharper if the Tigers want to leave Oxford with a win. Through two weeks, this team is showing that they may have the best roster in all of college football.
2. Georgia
The Bulldogs are 2-0 on the field and 2-0 against the spread so far this season. Much had been made of Kirby Smart taking it easy on lower-tier opponents and not covering large spreads. Well, he appears to have changed his ways, and the Dawgs really put it on hapless Western Kentucky in Week 2, winning 70-20. This team has been dominant so far, but we know nothing because the competition has been quite poor.
1. Texas
How could you not put the Horns at #1 after the victory over Ohio State? The 4th quarter was nearly a perfect quarter of football for Texas, and if not for some very unfortunate drops and a questionable end-around on 4th down, Texas could have won this game by much more.
Arch Manning finally played up to his potential, and the defense really flew around and made plays in the second half. But the biggest key to Texas’ huge win was the offensive line, which created running lanes that you could drive a truck through and gave Arch all day long to sit in the pocket. That offensive line will travel well and allow Texas to have the upper hand against any opponent.
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