Last Week’s Record: 4-1 (80.0%)
Season’s Record: 55-10 (84.6%)
Thanks to Florida Men, the Predictions Dept.’s attempt at a perfect week came apart in the Gators’ unexpected win over Texas. It’s another short-slate week coming up for the SEC, but while the quantity remains low after a five-game slate on Week 6, the quality is superbly high this week. The worst game on the docket is Washington State at Ole Miss, while any of three or four intraconference games could qualify as the top game of the week.
ARKANSAS at TENNESSEE
Sam Pittman is officially donezo in Fayetteville, replaced by former Arkansas head coach Bobby Petrino in a move literally everyone saw coming a year off when Petrino was hired as offensive coordinator. Petrino also becomes the de facto leading candidate to permanently replace Pittman, and you can bet he views this game as his initial salvo for the job audition. Tennessee is vulnerable to teams that have some offensive balance, especially those that tilt toward the air attack. Arkansas can certainly do both. The Razorbacks have the nation’s 8th-best offense, 18th in passing and 21st in rushing. Petrino certainly was doing his job this year. The defense is another story, though: The Razorbacks rank 117th in total defense and have given up 129 points over the last three weeks. Were the game in Fayetteville, or even Little Rock, we might be inclined to take this as a casino-chip kind of upset pick, but winning in Neyland Stadium is always tough.
Tennessee 45
Arkansas 35
ALABAMA at MISSOURI
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GEORGIA at AUBURN
For years, this game has been a difficult pull for Georgia, even during seasons in which the Bulldogs should win the game handily. And, the game is in Jordan-Hare Stadium, which has been voodoo central for multiple Auburn opponents, Alabama and Georgia chief among them. But the Tigers can’t challenge Georgia offensively. The Auburn offensive line, thought to have been solidified over the most recent offseason, is dead last in the country in sacks allowed and 98th in tackles for loss allowed. While Georgia hasn’t been great this year and getting pressure home to the quarterback, we bet the Bulldogs will find this week to be a bit friendlier to its defensive staff and players. If Auburn is going to win, it will come from a combination of the running game, keeping the ball away from the Bulldog offense and conjuring up some kind of ethereal shenanigans on top of it all. Otherwise, look for a relatively old-school score from this one.
Georgia 23
Auburn 10
FLORIDA at TEXAS A&M
Florida’s gauntlet of a schedule continues this week with a trip to Texas A&M, which may not be the SEC’s most complete team, but it is certainly a dangerous one. The Aggies played probably their most complete game of the year on both sides of the ball last week in taking down Mississippi State, performing well in both phases of the game and never really letting things get uncomfortably close late in the game. Florida’s big win over Texas was certainly something to celebrate, but the Aggies bring some offense to go with their defense and it might be too much to ask for Gator QB D.J. Lagway to repeat his heroics of a week ago. The Gator running game ended up a major factor in the upset of the Longhorns, though, and Texas A&M can be vulnerable when it can’t focus on shutting down just one aspect of an opponent’s offense – see Notre Dame as an example. Sooner or later, Florida is going to run out of gas in its attempt to save Billy Napier’s job; that moment might come this week.
Texas A&M 27
Florida 19
SOUTH CAROLINA at LOUISIANA STATE
This game is going to be intriguing simply from the standpoint that LSU’s defense figures to be sorely tested by South Carolina QB LaNorris Sellers. While LSU’s rush defense has been solid, the pass defense has been erratic, a continuing trend under Brian Kelly. Meanwhile, South Carolina hasn’t stopped the run well in 2025, but can LSU make the Gamecocks pay for it? This is a battle of two teams that most thought would be better than they’ve shown so far – although LSU remains highly ranked – and when both teams are sputtering a bit in an SEC matchup, take the home team.
LSU 27
South Carolina 20
WASHINGTON STATE at MISSISSIPPI
Washington State lost QB John Mateer to Oklahoma over the offseason, but remain 3-2 on the year. How the Cougars got to 3-2, though, is relatively insane. There was a 13-10 win over Idaho, which is no longer FBS. Colorado State and San Diego State were both shut down decisively, but then rival Washington destroyed the Cougars in the Apple Cup game, 59-24, and the coup de grace is most certainly a 59-10 loss at North Texas, which defies all logic and description. The offense has been inconsistent, and the Cougars have especially struggled to run the football. Their stat breakdown makes them look like Sam’s Choice LSU on the season, on both sides of the ball. That’s not going to be nearly good enough to upset an Ole Miss team that is undefeated and coming off a victory over the real LSU.
Ole Miss 40
Washington St. 17
OKLAHOMA vs. TEXAS (at Dallas, Texas)
The Red River Shootout now calls the SEC home, and this game could wind up being a contest between a team missing its starting quarterback, and a team whose fans are missing the quarterback their current starter replaced. Oklahoma leads the nation in total defense, and defense travels. Texas QB Arch Manning has struggled even against iffy defenses in 2025; now he gets to try his luck against a unit that is top-five in all five major defensive statistical categories. Word broke late Tuesday that Oklahoma QB John Mateer might try to return from a hand injury for this game, and if he can pull it off, this game could get ugly for Texas if Oklahoma can correct one of its few struggle points this year – creating turnovers. The Sooners rank 128th in that stat – but yet, might not even need it.
Oklahoma 23
Texas 14
IDLE: Kentucky, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt
Follow Jess Nicholas on X at @TideFansJessN