Florida decimated Georgia in the Cocktail Party while Texas A&M delivered another resounding win to shake up the SEC football power rankings.
Six SEC football teams, including the now-No. 1 ranked Alabama Crimson Tide, had a bye in Week 10 but one of the biggest conference games of the season was still on the slate. The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party offered the Georgia Bulldogs and Florida Gators both ranked in the top 10 nationally and looking to take firm control of the SEC East. The stakes were high and the matchup was highly anticipated.
But after Georgia used some big plays early to jump out to a lead, it was clear that Florida was the dominant force between the two rivals. The Gators onslaught delivered a huge win to the Gainesville faithful and now has them heading for the SEC Championship Game.
Elsewhere on the shortened slate, the Texas A&M Aggies continued their midseason surge with a blowout victory over South Carolina while Mike Leach and Mississippi State remembered what a win feels like thanks to a tasty matchup with Vanderbilt. Also, the resurgent Arkansas Razorbacks came through with another big win, toppling Tennessee.
So what does that mean for the SEC football power rankings? Let’s check in and see how the 14 teams in the conference stack up against one another.
SEC football power rankings entering Week 11
Vanderbilt continued their dubious streak of losing in the 2020 season and it’s becoming more apparent with each passing game that they’re going to finish the year without a victory. Losing to a Mississippi State team that had looked downright hapless previously isn’t going to change any minds about that.
Had the Gamecocks not kicked a ceremonial field goal with 5:55 remaining in the fourth quarter, South Carolina would’ve lost 48-0 to Texas A&M. That’s where this team was at as Colin Hill and the offense managed only 150 total yards and allowed the Aggies to hang 500+ on them. Will Muschamp might not want to renew his lease in Columbia.
It almost feels dirty moving Mississippi State up one spot in the SEC football power rankings after the Bulldogs beat Vandy. Having said that, with South Carolina’s awful loss, it pushes them narrowly ahead. Regardless, it’s clear that Mike Leach misses Kylin Hill and has a lot of work to do to get things humming in Starkville.
After the offense looked promising under TJ Finley and the defense showed life, LSU crashed back to Earth with a blowout loss to Auburn. Now they have a matchup with rival Alabama looming in Week 11. Barring some drastic changes on both sidelines before that game, Ed Orgeron and the rest of Baton Rouge should brace for a beatdown from the Crimson Tide.
Is it time to truly sit back and evaluate Jeremy Pruitt and whether or not he’s viable to turn around the Tennessee program? Because losing to a first-year head coach trying to orchestrate a rebuild in his own right will get you to that point. The Vols looked out-gunned and overmatched against the Razorbacks, which is pretty damning of Pruitt and where he has this program right now.
Whether Terry Wilson or Joey Gatewood, the Kentucky offense is a legitimate problem right now. That’s a shame given the quality of their defense and even the offensive line. They’ll have a nice get-right opportunity in Week 11 as they get to play the lowly Commodores but it’s hard to be optimistic about the Wildcats moving forward.
Considering that Texas A&M just hung 48 points on South Carolina, Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss have to be salivating at the thought of their Week 11 matchup with the Gamecocks. The story is still that Matt Corral and the Rebels offense have the goods to keep up with anyone when they are on but the defense is just not where it needs to be for the folks from Oxford to compete at the top of the conference.
Missouri’s 41-17 loss to Florida prior to their week off looks better considering what the Gators did to Georgia this week. Eli Drinkwitz is clearly a quality coach and the right hire for this program, which will help them compete in many games. But as a matchup with Georgia looms in Week 11, the fact that the talent gap hasn’t yet been closed will be evident.
Dropping Auburn one spot after an off week might look even sillier after they dismantle Mississippi State in Week 11 but my doubts about the Tigers still remain. Bo Nix flashed against LSU but has yet to do the same against a good SEC defense. The trenches still worry me and, even as Auburn is now the No. 24-ranked team in the country, consider me dubious of how good they actually are.
There’s been no bigger surprise in SEC football this season than Arkansas but they’ve been consistently showing their merit. A home win against Tennessee would’ve looked good regardless but with the way Feleipe Franks and the rest of the Hogs dominated the action on both sides of the ball — and considering they should’ve beat Auburn if not for the refs — they move ahead of the Tigers and into the top five of the power rankings.
Georgia had the opportunity to silence doubters in the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party if they could topple rival Florida. Instead, they got run off the field. Stetson Bennett and/or D’Wan Mathis limit this offense too greatly for the Dawgs to compete with the SEC football elite and that’s becoming clearer by the day. And that begs the question: Where exactly is J.T. Daniels?
Since stumbling against Vanderbilt and then getting boat-raced by Bama, Texas A&M has done nothing but prove themselves this season. With a win over Florida and a good Arkansas team in addition to blowing out South Carolina this week, Kellen Mond is hitting his stride and, perhaps more importantly, so is the defense. No one wants to see the Aggies in this zone.
If you had any doubt about what Florida can be this season, they answered it tenfold in the Cocktail Party as Kyle Trask shellacked Georgia, even with Kyle Pitts forced out of the game early due to injury. Are the Gators in the same class as Alabama? I still wouldn’t go that far. But it’s abundantly clear that they are now on track to meet the Tide in the SEC Championship Game now.
Being the dominant SEC football force can get tiring, so the Alabama Crimson Tide had the week off and now travel to Death Valley to play LSU in Week 11. Spoiler: Mac Jones might throw for 500 yards against that defense while the Tide’s own defense should cause a roller-coaster LSU offense fits for 60 minutes. Bama is as locked-in as it gets in the No. 1 spot for the conference.
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