CBS Sports has laid out its full preseason college football board from No. 1 to No. 138, and the SEC shows up in force near the top.
The first three spots belong to Ohio State, Oregon and Notre Dame, but the SEC starts right behind them with Texas at No. 4 and Georgia at No. 5. In all, 10 SEC teams landed in the top 25.
Here’s how CBS Sports slotted the SEC teams in its preseason rankings:
No. 4 - Texas
No. 5 - Georgia
No. 9 - Oklahoma
No. 10 - LSU
No. 11 - Texas A&M
No. 12 - Ole Miss
No. 13 - Alabama
No. 17 - Tennessee
No. 22 - Florida
No. 23 - Mizzou
No. 28 - South Carolina
No. 32 - Auburn
No. 36 - Vanderbilt
No. 49 - Arkansas
No. 51 - Mississippi State
Mississippi State looks a touch low on this list. The Bulldogs are grouped with Cal, Maryland and Northwestern, and the argument here is simple: do we really believe Mississippi State wouldn’t beat each of those teams by 10 or more?
Kamario Taylor is expected to turn heads with his athleticism, while Kelley Jones and Isaac Smith headline what should be a better defense. MSU was more competitive than many remember in 2025 against a difficult schedule.
There’s also a tight SEC cluster from No. 9 through No. 13, with Oklahoma, LSU, Texas A&M, Ole Miss and Alabama stacked right on top of each other. It’s easy to make a case for any of them, and the season won’t give us the real answer until it starts in a few weeks. For now, Oklahoma gets the nod at the front of that pack.
Time will tell.
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