LSU Is Back In The SEC Race With One Huge Test Ahead

The SEC just spent last weekend tearing up its own script.

Georgia fell at home to Auburn. Texas lost at home to Florida.

Alabama was beaten on the road by Tennessee. Of the league’s top four teams, only Ole Miss survived, and the Rebels did it in style with a 31-3 win over Missouri at home.

That leaves Ole Miss sitting alone at the top of the first tier in this week’s SEC pecking order, though the Rebels face a tricky test Saturday when they head to Austin to face Texas. And with the conference still jammed together near the top, the bigger message is hard to miss: this may be less about chasing an at-large College Football Playoff spot and more about winning the SEC outright and claiming the league’s automatic berth.

There are four or five conference games left for every SEC team. All but Texas A&M, South Carolina, Arkansas and Vanderbilt are within one game of first place.

Four teams have one league loss - Ole Miss, Georgia, Tennessee and Kentucky - while eight teams sit with two conference defeats: LSU, Alabama, Florida, Auburn, Missouri, Texas, Mississippi State and Oklahoma. Oklahoma is the only team with three overall losses.

No team has separated from the pack. That is the story of this league right now, and it makes the race to Atlanta the cleanest path to the playoff.

Here’s how the conference stacks up heading into the eighth week of the regular season:

Tier 1

1. Ole Miss (5-1): Beat Missouri 31-3; next up - at Texas
2. Georgia (6-1): Lost to Auburn 27-24; next up - Open date
3. Tennessee (6-1): Beat Alabama 26-10; next up - at South Carolina
4. Kentucky (6-1): Beat Oklahoma 21-13; next up - Vanderbilt at home

No one would have predicted Tennessee and Kentucky would be here at this point in the schedule. Both teams have favorable games coming up, though Tennessee has the tougher assignment because it has to hit the road. Ole Miss, meanwhile, looks like the most likely team in this group to take a hit this week with its trip to Texas.

Tier 2

1. LSU (5-2): Beat Mississippi State 31-0; next up - at Auburn
2. Alabama (5-2): Lost to Tennessee 26-10; next up - Texas A&M at home
3. Florida (5-2): Beat Texas 27-24; next up - Open date
4. Auburn (4-2): Beat Georgia 27-24; next up - LSU at home

Florida and Auburn both forced their way back into the conversation with road wins over Texas and Georgia. LSU gets one of the toughest assignments in the group with Auburn waiting, and the Tigers will be dealing with a team that has plenty of momentum. Alabama, after its loss at Tennessee, can stop a three-game slide by taking care of Texas A&M.

Tier 3

1. Missouri (5-2): Lost to Ole Miss 31-3; next up - Open date
2. Texas (4-2): Lost to Florida 27-24; next up - Ole Miss at home
3. Mississippi State (4-2): Lost to LSU 31-0; next up - Oklahoma at home
4. Oklahoma (3-3): Lost to Kentucky 21-13; next up - at Mississippi State

Steve Sarkisian is in the hottest seat in the SEC this week. Texas has gone from No. 1 in the country to being on the outside of the College Football Playoff picture after back-to-back losses.

The Longhorns get a shot at turning things around immediately, with Ole Miss coming to town. The Mississippi State-Oklahoma matchup also has the feel of an elimination game.

Tier 4

1. South Carolina (3-3): Open date; next up - Tennessee at home
2. Texas A&M (4-3): Beat Citadel 41-0; next up - at Alabama
3. Arkansas (3-4): Beat Vanderbilt 31-21; next up - Open date
4. Vanderbilt (3-4): Lost to Arkansas 31-21; next up - at Kentucky

South Carolina and Texas A&M are the two teams in this group with the power to shake everything up this weekend. The Gamecocks host Tennessee, while Texas A&M heads to Alabama. Shane Beamer needs a loud win to keep his job in Columbia.

In Other News...

LSU Heads To Auburn With Two More Starter Questions

LSUs injury picture got a little murkier coming out of the Mississippi State game, and now the Tigers are heading into Auburn with two more starter questions hanging over the week. Princewill Umanmielen and Jackson Harris both went down in the contest, and both figures are likely to land on the injury report as LSU starts sorting out who will be available for a road trip that already figures to test the depth chart.

Umanmielens issue is an upper body injury believed to be head-related, which could put him into concussion protocol, while Harris left with a foot injury and was seen in a boot afterward. Brian Kelly didnt offer any medical updates, though he did indicate Harris is expected to be fine, and LSU is prepared to lean on backups if either player cant go against Auburn. [Read more 🡒]

LSU Just Lost A Key Piece In Will Wades First Season

LSU has settled one eligibility fight before the season even tips, and the result leaves Will Wades first roster with a notable hole. Guard RJ Luis Jr. will not be cleared by the SEC to play for the Tigers after the league determined he violated conference rules tied to signing a professional contract, ending the programs battle over his status and shifting the focus to getting ready for the year ahead.

There is at least one brighter note in Baton Rouge, though, because forward Saliou Niang has been ruled eligible for the season. Niang was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers, but his decision to attend college came before recent NCAA rule changes, allowing LSU to keep him in the mix as it tries to move past the Luis situation and sort out its rotation. [Read more 🡒]

LSU-Auburn Just Got More Complicated At Linebacker

LSUs trip to Auburn took a hit when linebacker Whit Weeks suffered a fractured right leg and is expected to miss the upcoming game. Weeks has been a key part of the Tigers defensive plans, so his absence adds another layer of uncertainty to a matchup that already carried plenty of weight.

Auburn is dealing with its own linebacker shakeup after Xaiver Atkins was dismissed from the team ahead of the game, following an earlier suspension for undisclosed disciplinary reasons. Atkins has said he plans to enter the transfer portal, while Auburn coach Alex Golesh has not revealed what led to the discipline, leaving both sides with major questions in the middle of a conference matchup that was already shaping up to be tricky enough. [Read more 🡒]