SEC Power Rankings

Our guys at secrivals.com have invited us to be part of their picks panel and they asked us to give our well-informed SEC Power Rankings.

 1) Florida Gators – Even though they have players that are struggling with the flu, this is still the best team in college football. This team misses Percy Harvin and Louis Murphy a lot more than people realized.

2) Alabama Crimson Tide – The Crimson Tide should be on upset alert this week against Arkansas. Alabama ranks No. 3 in the nation in total defense and this run game is very dangerous now that freshman running back Trent Richardson is having an impact with 215 yards and three touchdowns.

3) LSU Tigers – This team is quietly flying under the radar as everybody is talking about Florida, Alabama and Ole Miss (OVERRATED). Who predicted that Keiland Williams would have the same amount of rushing yards through three games as Charles Scott? Wide receiver Terrance Toliver has been one of the biggest surprises of the SEC with 206 yards and two touchdowns.

4) Auburn Tigers – You probably think I am overreacting by ranking Auburn over Ole Miss after the loss to South Carolina last night. The Tigers have a very strong offense under Gus Malzahn and this team could be 7-0 before their showdown with LSU on Oct. 24. This team that was once known for being a strong defensive team is now turning into an offensive powerhouse that has a poor defense.
5) Ole Miss Rebels – There is no way that I can put this team below this spot, even after losing to South Carolina last night. This has always been a very overrated team, but this team has too much NFL talent for this team not to still have a successful season. Quarterback Jevan Snead has six touchdowns and has been sacked six times on the season. The Rebels need star defensive end Greg Hardy to get healthy for this team to go on a run.

6) Georgia Bulldogs – Everybody jumped off this team’s bandwagon after the loss to Oklahoma State in Week One. If this team can beat LSU next weekend, there is a good chance that the Bulldogs will be 6-1 when they play the Florida Gators on Oct. 31 in Jacksonville. Just like Auburn, this is a team with a very strong offense and poor defense.

7) South Carolina Gamecocks – This is one of teams that is acting like a typical SEC team with a dominant defense and average offense. This defense shutdown a very good quarterback in N.C. State quarterback Russell Wilson in Week One. The defense made Jevan Snead look like an average quarterback Thursday night. This could be Steve Spurrier’s best team at South Carolina.

8) Tennessee Volunteers - The Vols had a very impressive showing in the 23-13 loss to the Gators. Tennessee's passing game is embarrasing to watch, but the Vols have one of the best defenses in the country now that Monte Kiffin is in charge. Will people ever pick Monte's defense to give up over 50 points again?

9) Arkansas – Why is this team ranked behind South Carolina and Tennessee? Arkansas has a very strong offense, but their only victory is over Missouri State. Saturday’s game against Alabama is a very tough matchup and we will see if the Razorbacks can hang with a top-tier SEC team. Who knew that Ryan Mallett is a better quarterback than Jevan Snead?

10) Mississippi State – Look at the next three games for the Bulldogs: No. 7 LSU at home, at Georgia Tech and No. 17 Houston at home. We will see if this offense can keep up with these strong opponents, but this team has performed better than people expected. Dan Mullen has this team headed in the right direction.

11) Kentucky – The Wildcats are 2-0 and have four tough opponents coming up against Florida and Alabama at home and South Carolina and Auburn on the road. The Wildcats need to win one of these four games for this team to make a good bowl game. Quarterback Mike Hartline has a QB Rating of 147.22.

12) Vanderbilt – It almost seems like the Commodores missed being buried at the bottom of the SEC. The Commodores have lost two in a row against LSU and Mississippi State and this team needs to start upsetting teams for the Commodores to make a bowl game again. This team can’t afford to lose to Rice on Saturday.