ESPN Analytics has updated the SEC race heading into Week 4, and the numbers point to a tight battle at the top between Texas and Georgia.
Texas sits first with a 33 percent chance to win the league, while Georgia is right behind at 32 percent. At this stage of the season, ESPN is basically treating the conference like a two-team fight.
That showdown in the projections gets a real test this weekend, because Texas is headed to Knoxville to face Tennessee. It’s not exactly the kind of trip that comes with a soft landing.
Last season, Texas went 2-2 in SEC road games and had a hard time away from home, taking losses to Florida and Georgia. Even in wins over Kentucky and Mississippi State, the Longhorns had to dig out of trouble after being pushed around for stretches.
Neyland Stadium is a brutal place to sort that out, and Saturday will show plenty about whether Texas is any different now.
Georgia, meanwhile, is still drawing the kind of respect that comes with being Georgia. Kirby Smart’s team may not be dominating the conversation early, but ESPN still sees the Bulldogs as a real contender.
Their Week 4 matchup comes against Oklahoma, a team trying to steady itself on offense. The Sooners have scored only 24 points in games against Michigan and New Mexico, and against the Lobos they ran the ball 32 times for just 61 yards.
Alabama checks in at No. 3 in ESPN’s SEC odds and gets South Carolina at home in Week 4. The Crimson Tide came out slowly against Florida State last week, but the offense eventually found its rhythm.
Ole Miss lands at No. 4 on the list, which stands out given how the Rebels looked last week. They posted the biggest win of the weekend at home against LSU, and now they face a major road challenge at Florida.
Week 4 feels like the point where the SEC starts to separate itself a little more. With four ranked conference matchups on Saturday, the contenders will start to reveal themselves in a hurry.
In Other News...
LSU Fans Have A New Reason To Be Furious About Ole Miss
Lane Kiffin left Oxford with more than a loss to sort through after LSUs trip to face Ole Miss, zeroing in on what he described as a rules issue tied to the in-game atmosphere. He said the music and crowd noise kept rolling as the centers hand was on the ball, which he argued runs afoul of SEC regulations that require music to stop before the snap.
The complaint only adds another layer to a night LSU would rather forget, with Ole Miss staying unbeaten and the Tigers taking their first loss of the season. For Rebels fans, it is the kind of gripe that usually follows a home win in a loud building, but for LSU it gives the defeat an even sharper edge as the postgame debate shifts from the scoreboard to how the game was played. [Read more 🡒]
Urban Meyer Just Validated What Florida Fans Are Starting To Believe
Florida has spent the week trying to build on the kind of performance that can change a season, and Urban Meyer just added another voice to the optimism around the Gators. Now working as an analyst and part of The Triple Option podcast, Meyer said he expects Florida to beat Ole Miss in the upcoming matchup, pointing to the way the Gators have been playing and the coaching behind it.
Jadan Baugh is part of what Meyer likes about Floridas chances, with the running back emerging as a key piece in the offense. For Ole Miss, it adds another layer to a game already carrying plenty of attention, especially with both teams coming in off recent performances that have shaped how this meeting is being viewed. [Read more 🡒]
Ole Miss Faces A No. 1 Test Some Insiders Don't Trust Them To Pass
Ole Miss is headed into a marquee SEC matchup with plenty of momentum, but not everyone around the sport is sold on the Rebels carrying that confidence into the next step. Both teams arrive at 3-0 after recent conference wins, and the stage is set around quarterback Trinidad Chambliss for Ole Miss and Florida running back Jadan Baugh for the Gators, two players who have helped give their teams early-season belief.
Even Rece Davis, who placed Ole Miss No. 1 in the AP Poll, leaned the other way when it came to the actual result and picked Florida to win. That kind of split view only adds to the intrigue, because it captures the larger question around this game - whether Ole Miss is ready to back up its ranking against a Florida team that has also shown it can handle SEC pressure. [Read more 🡒]