College Football SEC power rankings entering Week 6

So, let’s get this straight: Ole Miss beat LSU. Florida beat Ole Miss. Missouri beat Florida. Mississippi State beat Missouri. Alabama beat Mississippi State. We’ve got quite a bit of rock-paper-scissors-style parity in the SEC this season. However, the conference better pray some of these mid-tier teams can separate and reach 10-2 to safely make the College FootballPlayoff.

The committee hasn’t looked fondly on 9-3 SEC teams in either edition of the 12-team playoff, with Alabama, Ole Miss, and South Carolina left out in 2024 and Texas and Vanderbilt left out last year. This league has a plethora of quality football teams, but how many will make it to that elusive top-12?

MORE:College Football biggest risers & fallers after Week 5

Ranks 10-7

Sep 5, 2026; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach Will Stein calls his team in for a timeout during the second quarter against the Youngstown State Penguins at Kroger Field. Mandatory Credit: Arden Barnes-Imagn Images Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect (Reuters)

10. Kentucky

Will Stein just became a king in the eyes of football analytics experts. His decision to go for 2 at the end of the first overtime against South Carolina is something that has been championed by the analytics community. Overtimes 2 and 3 are likely to come down to both scoring and defending a two-point conversion, so why not have the game come down to only ONE 2-point conversion with your offense on the field? Especially considering that most offensive coordinators don’t have an extensive list of options for their 2-point play.

9. Tennessee

Josh Heupel made the interesting decision in Week 5 to bench freshman QB Faizon Brandon for George MacIntyre. Is this permanent? Time will tell. But regardless, all MacIntyre had to do was hand the ball to DeSean Bishop, who totaled 220 rushing yards in a dominant performance.

8. Mississippi State

The reaction to Mississippi State’s 56-23 loss to Alabama is neither an overreaction nor an underreaction. RB Fluff Bothwell was injured, and QB Kamario Taylor entered the game banged up and left early. But it is also true that the Bulldogs’ offensive tackles really struggled against Alabama’s pass rushers, and this team still has games left against dominant pass rushers from LSU, Oklahoma, and Texas. This performance deserves a drop in the rankings, but not out of the top-10 entirely.

7. Missouri

The Tigers scored a huge win over Florida, 45-17. The Missouri offense looked unstoppable, with Cayden Lee and Donovan Olugbode being open on seemingly every snap, and Jamal Roberts ran wild. This team felt a little overrated coming into Week 5, but they can’t be considered in that conversation now.

Ranks 6-4

Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss (6) smiles after a college football game between Ole Miss and LSU at Vaught Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Miss., on Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026. Ole Miss defeated LSU 32-24. Credit: USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect (Reuters)

6. Ole Miss

The Rebels had a well-deserved Bye in Week 5. Coming off of the LSU and Florida games, it was the perfect time to have a week where they can rest up and get healthy. And even better, the first game off of the Bye is Vanderbilt!

5. Florida

The Gators are ranked right here because of their overall resume. But now there are some concerns. Missouri showed the blueprint for how to shut down Florida. If you load the box, throwing massive numbers at Jadan Baugh, they really struggle to throw the ball. This is going to be a weakness that Buster Faulkner is going to have to really look at and see if he can either mask it or fix it over the coming weeks – the schedule doesn’t get any easier.

4. LSU

Even though they lost to Ole Miss, the Tigers look like the best team in the SEC’s crowded “tier 2,” of which any team could beat any other team on any given week. In Week 5, LSU really opened it up on McNeese, winning 63-14. A road trip to Kentucky awaits, and that’s actually one of the easiest games remaining on the Tigers’ gauntlet of an SEC schedule.

Top 3

Oct 3, 2026; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Keelon Russell (12) passes against the Mississippi State Bulldogs during the second half at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect (Reuters)

3. Alabama

One of the biggest statement wins of Week 5 was Alabama beating Mississippi State 56-23. Their defense was swarming around Kamario Taylor, giving him no time to throw and no space to run. The much-maligned Alabama defense looked outstanding, and Keelon Russell is getting better every week. The Tide appear to have separated themselves from “tier 2” in the SEC, and now in Week 6 they match up against a very clear “tier 1” team, Georgia.

2. Georgia

The Dawgs took care of business against Vanderbilt, winning 38-14. This team has simply not been challenged yet. The one lingering question that they haven’t answered: can Gunner Stockton and this passing offense win a game where they are chasing points? We may get our answer this week as the Dawgs travel to Tuscaloosa.

1. Texas

The Longhorns had a well-deserved Bye in Week 5 after the emotional roller-coasters that were the Ohio State and Tennessee games. Coming up next for the Horns: the Red River Rivalry game against Oklahoma at the Texas State Fair. One of the best traditions in the sport (but why does it kick off at 3:30 now?). On paper, this should be a lopsided victory for the Horns against an impotent Oklahoma offense that will struggle to score on Texas. But the RRR is one of those “throw out the record books” kind of rivalries.

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