Week 7 SEC Power Rankings:
Another exciting weekend in the SEC has brought us to the mid-way point in the season, where we take a look at the Last Word on Sports SEC Power Rankings.
The common theme at the mid-season mark revolves around teams looking forward, either to continue their strong starts, salvaging their season and finishing strong, or looking forward to imminent change in the off-season.
Let’s take a look at how are voters see the SEC this week.
LWOS College Football SEC Week 7 Power Rankings
SEC West: LSU took control of the SEC West with their victory against Florida coupled with Alabama’s defeat of Texas A&M. LSU is now the SEC’s last unbeaten team and they still face a tough schedule ahead. It’s not unreasonable to think the SEC might have a two-loss champion, which could put the conference’s playoff and championship hopes in jeopardy.
1. LSU (34)
The Tigers continue to grind out wins the LSU way, with defense and a solid running game. LSU won the battle of SEC unbeatens and, with Texas A&M’s loss to Alabama, is now in the driver’s seat in the SEC West. And, oh, by the way, they are the last SEC unbeaten team and still have to play Alabama, Ole Miss, and Texas A&M. If the Tigers can get some sustained good play from the quarterback position they have a chance to finish things out. But the schedule is back-loaded and all three of those remaining SEC teams has enough talent to beat LSU if they get some breaks.
2. Alabama (31)
It seems that Alabama does this every year. Even in their past two national championship seasons, they were a one-loss team. After a horrible offensive performance against Ole Miss, Alabama went to Athens and absolutely destroyed Georgia and then to College Station and dismantled Texas A&M’s vaunted offense. The Tide offensive and defensive units individually scored more points than the Aggie offense. The Crimson Tide look like they’re gearing up for another College Football Playoff run with only one ranked team remaining on the schedule, at home against LSU on November 7th.
3. Texas A&M (25)
Another promising season, another stunning let down? Freshman quarterback Kyle Allen looked confused and frustrated all day and gave up three interceptions returned-for-touchdowns. The retooled John Chavis defense – really the hope of Aggie fans everywhere – gave up 236 rushing yards to Derrick Henry. The season isn’t all lost, however. Texas A&M still has a chance to climb back into the national discussion if they can beat the two remaining ranked teams on their schedule, Ole Miss and LSU. If they can finish with only one loss, to Alabama, then they will certainly be in the playoff picture. And with a little bit of help, A&M is still in contention for the SEC West crown. But Aggie fans have to be smarting at missing this weekend’s opportunity.
4. Ole Miss (18)
Ole Miss fans thought it couldn’t get any worse than the beating they took from Florida. Then they drive an hour up the road – to the city they recruit heaviest – and watch Memphis run past them. Ole Miss fans have seen this before, a big win against Alabama and then a season that slips away into disappointment. The good news? They probably won’t have to play TCU in a New Year’s Bowl this season. The Rebels still have to face LSU and Texas A&M this season.
5. Mississippi State (17)
Dan Mullen’s charges continue to fly under the radar. Picked dead last in the preseason by the SEC media, they sit at 5-2 and only have two ranked opponents – including arch-rival Ole Miss – remaining on the schedule. Mississippi State could end up being the surprise team out of the SEC West. If the Bulldogs finish in the top four of the SEC West, you have to consider Dan Mullen’s coaching job this season after losing so much talent from last season to be one of the best in the conference. Which, of course, would fuel speculation about Mullen moving to a higher profile program. But that’s a long way away.
6. Auburn (8)
The Tigers offense finally showed some signs of life on the road against Kentucky on Thursday evening. Sean White was more effective than Jeremy Johnson and might be the starting quarterback for the rest of the season. But the Tigers are starting the hardest part of their schedule on the road against Arkansas next week. Have the Tigers figured things out just in time? Or will the nightmare season drag on all the way to the Iron Bowl?
7. Arkansas (7)
Arkansas host Auburn this week in the battle to determine the most disappointing team in the SEC West. A couple of key injuries, disappointing quarterback play and some defensive gaps have left the Razorbacks in the cellar of the SEC West. Arkansas is another team looking to right the ship before the season gets out of hand.
SEC East: The East has taken an interesting turn this season. The overwhelming favorite, Georgia, barely beat Missouri in what looked like a baseball final score. And the upstart team, Florida, suddenly had their momentum stunted against LSU. After Tennessee and Kentucky, where the juries are still out, the rest of the Division looks like they are barely treading water.
1. Florida (35)
The Gators dreams were finally punctured against LSU. But, nevertheless, the Gators are still atop the SEC East due to Georgia’s lackluster play and Tennessee last minute woes. But Florida is facing adversity. Will Grier is out and the rivalry game against Georgia in Jacksonville is this coming up weekend. The Bulldogs, licking their own wounds, would like nothing more than to put a damper on the Gators promising season.
2. Georgia (28)
Georgia was looking to rebound after two disappointing losses to Alabama and Tennessee. And while the Dawgs won the game against Missouri, they did it in less-than-impressive fashion. Georgia has a chance to right the ship with this weekend’s match-up against Florida, but fans in Athens have got to wonder about the direction of the program after what’s shaping up to be another disappointing season.
3. Tennessee (27)
The bye week clearly hurt the Vols, as they can’t jump the Bulldogs after beating Georgia two weeks ago. Tennessee gets a chance at another signature win visiting Alabama this week. Tennessee has a mobile quarterback, who lead the offense in out-scoring Alabama in last year’s meeting after replacing the starter. Tennessee is coming off a bye and Alabama is coming off a strong of emotional games. Even if it doesn’t work out for the Vols, they have their best stretch of the schedule afterwards, with Missouri, Kentucky, South Carolina, North Texas and Vandy – all teams the Vols will be favored against and should win. There’s still time and likelihood the Vols can keep building momentum for their program.
4. Kentucky (19)
Kentucky let a chance at a big win slip away on Thursday against Auburn. Kentucky is still trying to avoid repeating last season’s collapse, and while they’ve got more talent and some positive momentum, they’ve got to translate that into some wins. That starts with their game on the road against Mississippi State this week. Kentucky can make a strong statement with upcoming games against Tennessee and Georgia, as well. Kentucky still has a lot of season left in it’s schedule.
5. Missouri (16)
The Tigers back-to-back division championships won’t be defended this year. The Tigers look like a team lost at sea. Young but ineffective quarterback play and a sputtering running attack have Missouri mired in the middle of the SEC East without any upward momentum. It looks like the Tigers’ luck might finally be up.
6. South Carolina (10)
After a changing of the guard in Columbia, the Gamecocks established themselves as the second-worst team in the division after a win against Vanderbilt. South Carolina still has talent on this team and some emotional games remaining on the schedule, particularly Tennessee and Clemson. An upset against a Top 10 Clemson would certainly bring some energy to an otherwise down year for the Gamecocks.
7. Vanderbilt (7)
Vanderbilt extended their conference losing streak against the team they had the best chance of beating in the conference. There’s no doubt that this offseason will bring change in Nashville. The only questions are what kind of change and how fast can the program recover from the post-James Franklin era.
About this poll: Points are awarded on a sliding scale 7-1 for places 1st through 7th.
This week’s voters: Mike Loveall, Kevin McGuffey, Matt Atkinson, Charlie Taylor, and Lauren Beasley.
