Georgia

Georgia, Tennessee riding high at top of conference: SEC vibes rankings

Published

11 months ago

October 21, 2024

Georgia, Tennessee riding high at top of conference: SEC vibes rankings

There’s a scene from a “Simpsons” episode when an elephant is bearing down on a peanut factory, and inside the factory, a manager is feeling suddenly validated: “This is the moment we’ve feared, people. Many of you thought it would never happen. But I insisted we spend two hours every morning training for it. Many of you thought I was mad; many of you requested to be transferred to another peanut factory. But now …”

Then the elephant crashes through the door.

This is how those who kept wondering about the SEC tiebreaker procedures might feel this morning as they survey the conference’s landscape. In a world of mega-conferences, without divisions and with half the teams not playing each other, there was always a chance for a confusing muddle at the top of the standings, with an aeronautics degree required to explain who would make it to the championship game.

And right now, the elephant might indeed be heading toward the peanut factory.

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Only two teams remain unbeaten in conference play: Texas A&M and LSU, and they play each other Saturday, so that’s good. But five other teams have only one conference loss, and among those seven teams, most won’t have played each other. Georgia, LSU and Texas, play only two of the other six teams with one loss or fewer. Texas A&M and Tennessee play only three of the other six.

And in the event — not unlikely — that a two-loss team factors in, Alabama and Ole Miss are sitting there, capable of running the table the rest of the way.

Georgia’s Trevor Etienne had three rushing touchdowns in the Bulldogs’ win over Texas on Saturday. (Tim Warner / Getty Images)

So, yeah, brush back up on those tiebreaking procedures, which probably won’t come down to a random draw but could involve “capped relative scoring margin,” a stat given to the SEC by SportsSourceAnalytics.

That’s not a huge deal, you might say, thanks to the expanded College Football Playoff. Perhaps. But the SEC champion getting a bye is a big deal, and the bigger the muddle at the top of the standings, the better the chance for chaos: a Playoff bubble team squeezing into the championship game and stealing a bid, for instance.

Perhaps a better tiebreaker: If your student section throws debris on the field to get a call changed, you’re eliminated. If your coach shoves the other team’s quarterback, even if he didn’t mean to, you’re out. Easy fixes and surprising the SEC didn’t have the foresight.

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So the vibes in the SEC office — getting ready for tiebreaking headaches, dealing with unprecedented officiating decisions — are stressed. As for the teams, we have another week of wildly fluctuating vibes, with a new basement dweller — hello, Oklahoma — another top program going in the very wrong direction, and a couple of others rocketing up after feel-good wins.

This a reminder that this is not a pure ranking of how good teams are but the feelings around the programs, both within the team and the fan base, and the perception outside, taking into account records, expectations, momentum and just the general mood:

1. Georgia (6-1, 4-1 SEC)

Won at Texas, 30-15

Last week: 8

For once, the vibes match the real rankings. Everything changed in a night, as the program whose fans were ready to pack this season in now can see the national title back on the table.

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2. Tennessee (6-1, 3-1)

Beat Alabama, 24-17

Last week: 6

Last week: Well, Nico Iamaleava isn’t that good, it looks like other teams have figured out Josh Heupel’s offense, and Heupel peaked too early at Tennessee. This week: Hey, we’re back baby! Maybe that’s a bit overexuberant, but other than a trip to Georgia — which is winnable — the Vols’ only other game against a team with a winning record is the season finale at Vanderbilt. There’s a good path to 10-2 and a probable Playoff bid.

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3. LSU (6-1, 3-0)

Won at Arkansas, 34-10

Last week: 4

Ever since Brian Kelly’s table-pounding after the team’s opening loss, this team has gradually gotten better. That includes the defense, which still ranks second to last in the SEC but just held Arkansas to a season-low 10 points. The big test for the Bayou Bengals comes during the next two weeks: at Texas A&M and vs. Alabama at home.

4. Texas A&M (6-1, 4-0)

Won at Mississippi State, 34-24

Last week: 3

It was a pretty nice Saturday for the Aggies: They got an SEC road win — not a blowout, but whatever — then got home in time to see their rival have their welcome-to-the-SEC humbling. The schadenfreude was oozing out of College Station.

5. Vanderbilt (5-2, 2-1)

Beat Ball State, 24-14

Last week: 2

Save the points for SEC games, such as this week when Texas visits. It’s a smart move for a smart school, whose program is now one win away from bowl eligibility for the first time since 2018, but that’s almost an afterthought at this point.

Won at Oklahoma, 35-9

Last week: 11

The offense, and the overall team results, are bizarro, but South Carolina’s defense is legitimate: The Gamecocks held Alabama, Ole Miss and LSU below their season yards-per-play averages, including Alabama more than 2 points below its average.

7. Texas (6-1, 2-1)

Lost to Georgia, 30-15

Last week: 1

The one concern about the Longhorns had been that their dominance was a product of their schedule, and now that’s a big, Stetson-hat-sized concern. The next four games — at Vanderbilt, Florida, at Arkansas and Kentucky — all have the potential to be interesting. Then, of course, there’s the trip to College Station, which sets up to be well beyond interesting. Could this team still win the national championship? Sure. But national title teams don’t usually get beat at home like Texas did Saturday.

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Beat Kentucky, 48-20

Last week: 15

(Looking around.) So we’re doing this? Yeah, we’re doing this. The vibes basement dweller early in the season, the team with the dead coach walking, is still hanging around and improving. By lasting this long, Billy Napier now gets an awkward reunion with Jaden Rashada before or after the team’s game against Georgia in Jacksonville. Hug it out, fellas.

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Billy Napier and Florida won a game they couldn’t lose, but a rugged path is still ahead

Beat Auburn, 21-17

Last week: 9

Per Adeen Rao of Rock M Nation, Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz spotted a bowl rep after Saturday’s game and blurted out: “Uh, oh, Cheez-It Bowl.” By record, Drinkwitz should have nothing to worry about. By look, however, this is the worst 6-1 team in the country, by far: barely skating by in home games against Boston College, Vanderbilt and now Auburn, getting clobbered at Texas A&M. Still alive for the Playoff? Sure. Looking like it will stay that way much longer. Ehhhh …

10. Ole Miss (5-2, 1-2)

Bye

Last week: 10

The Rebels had to be happy with how their bye week went because their faint Playoff hopes reside in beating Georgia and that being a resume-building win. First up, Oklahoma and Arkansas, which should be no problem, but when a team can’t beat Kentucky at home, a lot could be a problem.

11. Mississippi State (1-6, 0-4)

Lost to Texas A&M, 34-24

Last week: 16

Is this too high? Maybe, but the vibes keep steadily improving in Starkville, even in defeat. There have been three straight weeks during which Jeff Lebby’s team acquitted itself well as a heavy underdog, to the point when it’s probably time to stop making the Bulldogs heavy underdogs every week. Arkansas, which goes to Starkville this week, needs to be wary.

12. Arkansas (4-3, 2-2)

Lost to LSU, 34-10

Last week: 5

Oof. Saturday was the worst loss of the season, and it came at home, a big hit to what had been such positive vibes. This week in Starkville needs to be a win, and that along with a later game against UTEP would at least mean bowl eligibility, with games against Texas, Ole Miss and Missouri offering more upset chances. But if the Razorbacks mess around and lose to that improving Bulldogs team, things will get dicey again.

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13. Alabama (5-2, 2-2)

Lost at Tennessee, 24-17

Last week: 7

Let’s not overreact too much. Kalen DeBoer’s two losses each have come by one possession, and the team’s win over Georgia looks good. But … yeah, there are two losses, and the win over Georgia was almost a catastrophic loss. DeBoer went to Tuscaloosa and embraced the pressure. Well, here it is.

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14. Auburn (2-5, 0-4)

Lost at Missouri, 21-17

Last week: 13

At this point, you almost wonder whether Hugh Freeze is throwing games so Auburn doesn’t have to play a meaningless bowl game and can spend December concentrating on the transfer portal. In fact, the perfect scenario might be going 5-7, but the fifth win being in the Iron Bowl, and that’s very much on the table.

15. Kentucky (3-4, 1-4)

Lost at Florida, 48-20

Last week: 12

Your obligatory, “Well it’s almost basketball season” reference, this time with Mark Pope offering new coach excitement. As for the other Mark, the Stoops one coaching football, this has gotten back to the early-season, post-South Carolina feeling. It’s not good, but it’s hard to tell whether it’s leading to anything.

Speaking of which …

16. Oklahoma (4-3, 1-3)

Lost to South Carolina, 35-9

Last week: 14

As a general rule, when people are looking up a coach’s buyout number, things aren’t great. A further general rule, when the reaction to seeing that buyout could involve profanity, things really aren’t great.

This summer, for reasons that weren’t entirely clear, Oklahoma gave coach Brent Venables a two-year contract extension, with a buyout that would cost the school about $44.8 million.

The contract extension might have been a stroke of genius by longtime athletic director Joe Castiglione, who is one of the most respected ADs in the country, and he might have looked at the 2024 schedule and decided to stave off any hot-seat talk. But did Castiglione foresee it would be this bad?

Yes, Oklahoma is down its top five receivers. And yes, the hope is that Venables can fix the quarterback situation during the offseason and that can turn things around. But the way this team is losing, falling behind 21-0 to South Carolina a few minutes into the game and looking overmatched, doesn’t inspire confidence. Venables is trying to stop the bleeding by firing offensive coordinator Seth Littrell, whom he just hired this year.

It’s one thing to be struggling, which Oklahoma is. It’s another to feel stuck. That’s called purgatory.

(Top photo of Kirby Smart: Tim Warner / Getty Images)

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Georgia

Georgia football future SEC opponents, schedule announced

Published

2 days ago

September 23, 2025

Press Room

Georgia football future SEC opponents, schedule announced

The SEC has announced the future Georgia football conference opponents for the 2026 through 2029 seasons.

Georgia will face Florida, South Carolina and Auburn every season. The SEC announced on Friday that the annual opponents will be revisited every four seasons.

Georgia football future SEC opponents, schedule

2026: Florida (Atlanta), at South Carolina, Auburn, at Alabama, at Ole Miss, at Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Vanderbilt
2027: Florida (Tampa), South Carolina, at Auburn, at Kentucky, at Texas, at Texas A&M, LSU, Mississippi State, Tennessee
2028: Florida (Jacksonville), at South Carolina, Auburn, Alabama, Ole Miss, Arkansas, at Oklahoma, at Missouri, at Vanderbilt
2029: Florida (Jacksonville), South Carolina, at Auburn, Kentucky, Texas, Texas A&M, at LSU, at Mississippi State, at Tennessee

“it’s hard. I mean, it’s brutal. And everybody’s the same,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said on Tuesday night. “I mean, we all gotta play each other. It’s really tough, highly ranked teams, physical teams. It’s just going to continue to be a grind. I mean, looking forward with the nines coming, it’s going to be scary because you just don’t have enough. Nobody has enough depth.”

Dates for the 2026 schedule will be announced in December, according to the conference. The schedules will be flipped in 2028 and 2029 from the home-road splits in 2026 and 2027.

In its scheduling outline, the SEC made it clear it wants competitively balanced schedules, which will be determined using the entire schedule and not just the annual opponents. Tennessee reportedly will face Alabama, Vanderbilt and Kentucky in each of the next four years. The latter two are not exactly football powerhouses.

According to the SEC, the highest opponent average winning percentage for any school in the 2026-29 schedules is 55.67% while the lowest is 46.65%, a difference of only 9.02%. From 2020 through 2023 — when the league still used the divisional format — the highest winning percentage was 61.32% and the lowest was 39.76%.

In addition to nine conference games, the SEC stipulates that schools face one Power Four in its nonconference scheduling.

Georgia’s game against Georgia Tech satisfies that requirement. Georgia has future nonconference games against Louisville, Florida State, Clemson and Ohio State on its schedule for the time being.

As it stands, Georgia has 13 games scheduled for the 2025 season. The Bulldogs have nonconfernce games against Tennessee State, Western Kentucky, Louisville and Georgia Tech.

“We’re working through that right now, and a lot of that’s going to be determined as we learn when and where our schedule is going to be in the next few weeks,” Georgia athletic director Josh Brooks said. “But that’s something we’re attacking right now to see what our options are going to be in 2026. So we’re going to take it one year at a time right now. The first focus is going to be on 2026 and then 2027 and moving on. So still a lot of work to be done, and I work closely with Coach Smart and Mark Robinson and the league to kind of figure out what is that going to mean for our schedule moving forward.”

Georgia takes on Alabama this week, with the game scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC.

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Georgia

‘Tinder Swindler’ Leviev arrested upon Georgia arrival | The Jerusalem Post

Published

2 weeks ago

September 14, 2025

Press Room

‘Tinder Swindler’ Leviev arrested upon Georgia arrival | The Jerusalem Post

The grounds for his arrest are still unknown, even to his attorneys.

Screenshot of Simon Leviev, the Tinder Swindler, in his documentary series on Free TV.

(photo credit: COURTESY OF FREE TV VIA MAARIV)

ByYOAV ETIEL, JERUSALEM POST STAFF

SEPTEMBER 15, 2025 01:43

Updated: SEPTEMBER 15, 2025 02:03

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Georgia

Clemson vs. Georgia Tech: College football live scores, games, highlights and more

Published

2 weeks ago

September 13, 2025

Press Room

Clemson vs. Georgia Tech: College football live scores, games, highlights and more

We’re back for another week of college football action and the slate is loaded, including three games between ranked opponents.

Here’s how to watch in Week 3. Scroll down for live scores, highlights and more.

Here are the best games this Saturday:

Clemson at Georgia Tech (+3), Noon ET, ESPN: The Tigers are just 3-point favorites ahead of their first road game. It’s a sign that expectations for Clemson have been way off. With Haynes King back, the Yellow Jackets will want to keep it on the ground.

Georgia at Tennessee (+4), 3:30 p.m., ABC: Has Georgia’s offense been good enough ahead of this pivotal SEC game? Saturday is the day to air it out as Tennessee will be without its top two corners again.

South Florida at Miami (-17.5), 4:30 p.m., The CW: The Bulls are the surprise team so far this season. Can they pull off a third straight upset, or will the ‘Canes handle business?

Florida at LSU (-7), 7:30 p.m., ABC: This game was going to be the day’s marquee matchup before Florida’s loss to USF. A Florida victory would certainly quiet the idea that Billy Napier is on the hot seat.

Texas A&M at Notre Dame (-6.5), 7:30 p.m., NBC: Aggies QB Marcel Reed has thrown for seven TDs so far and A&M’s offense has racked up 953 total yards. The Irish will surely try to get the ball to their star running backs after a subpar opener.

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