Last Week’s Record: 3-4 (42.9%)
2026 Season Record: 51-14 (78.5%)
We haven’t had a losing record in a weekly predictions article in so long, we don’t even have the data to know when it was. Of the four losses in Week 6, the only one we’re really kicking ourselves about is the Texas-Oklahoma game, which we almost picked correctly before chickening out. This week, nothing gets easier: Alabama again is part of the premier game inside the conference, but almost every other game is worth watching (except for you, Texas A&M/The Citadel). Even the Arkansas-Vanderbilt game has implications – as in, who’s going to finish last in the SEC.
ARKANSAS at VANDERBILT
If Arkansas plays the way it did against Tennessee, the Razorbacks will win this game. Vanderbilt is shaky all around in 2026, and Arkansas showed enough at home against the Volunteers that we have to at least consider the possibility that the new staff is beginning to turn things to the good. The question here is can Arkansas go on the road and win, but it’s not like Vanderbilt is the conference’s toughest venue. The stats for these two teams are scarily similar, to the point of being almost identical. We’re going to take the home team but we’re not confident about it.
Vanderbilt 24
Arkansas 23
ALABAMA at TENNESSEE
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AUBURN at GEORGIA
If Georgia has any kind of hangover from the Alabama win, it might be enough to keep Auburn in the game for a quarter or two. But Georgia is a bad matchup for Auburn, especially with LB Xavier Atkins, far and away Auburn’s best player on either side of the ball, suspended for this game. Auburn’s offense may be an even bigger issue; the Tigers have scored 21 and 24 points the last two games against Vanderbilt and Tennessee, and that kind of output isn’t going to be enough to dent Georgia.
Georgia 38
Auburn 20
FLORIDA at TEXAS
This game is intriguing. Texas’ offense appears to have a hard ceiling in 2026, somewhere around 25-26 points against good teams, but what of Florida? The Gators opened the year by averaging 50+ points over its first four contests, but has since followed it up with output of 17 against Missouri and 19 against South Carolina. The common denominator here appears to be the relative strength of the opponent’s defense; i.e., Florida isn’t good enough yet to control the pace of the game. As for Texas and its offense, the Florida secondary doesn’t scare anyone – at least outside of its own fans – so perhaps Arch Manning will be able to be more involved in the outcome from a positive standpoint.
Texas 31
Florida 20
KENTUCKY at OKLAHOMA
Both teams were winners last week, unexpectedly. It’s debatable as to which upset was more impactful, Kentucky’s defeat of LSU or Oklahoma winning in the Red River Shootout. This much we know: Kentucky’s win is more important from the playoff standpoint, because the Wildcats, of all teams, control their own path into the playoffs. The schedule down the stretch is imminently manageable and this game might end up being the hardest of the bunch, outside of perhaps Tennessee due to the Volunteer defense. Oklahoma’s defense is better than Tennessee’s, but we’re not sure the offense is functional. There are all kinds of reasons to pick Kentucky here – developing offense, gutsy 1-point wins in back-to-back overtime games, Oklahoma coming out of a rivalry game, etc. – but the Kentucky defense just doesn’t look real to us, and the game is in Norman.
Oklahoma 27
Kentucky 24
MISSISSIPPI STATE at LOUISIANA STATE
Transition years are difficult and even Lane Kiffin isn’t immune to that; there’s no reason LSU should have lost to Kentucky but it happened anyway, and now LSU has to deal with a team that really put some pressure on its defense and is coming off a bye week. However, Mississippi State has little depth, we’re not sure the status of lingering injuries to key personnel — most notably Bulldog QB Kamario Taylor — and the game in is Baton Rouge. We’re assuming the Kentucky loss has Kiffin’s full attention at the moment, and that LSU will find a way to bounce back.
LSU 45
Mississippi St. 30
MISSOURI at MISSISSIPPI
By the rankings, this one is as much a marquee matchup as Alabama-Tennessee. Missouri finds itself ranked 13th and has a more balanced team on paper than does Ole Miss, as well as a win against a common opponent (Florida) that beat the Rebels soundly. But Missouri’s last two wins have come over Florida and Texas A&M, one of them erratic and the other dysfunctional offensively, a week after blowing a lead against Mississippi State. What we’re seeing here is that Ole Miss may be more than what the paper says it is, while Missouri may be operating at close to its potential peak already. The other subtext here is this will be a game between Ole Miss’ current quarterback and its former one, Missouri’s Austin Simmons.
Ole Miss 37
Missouri 35
THE CITADEL at TEXAS A&M
Texas A&M has scored 6 points in two of its last three games. If that happens again this week, Mike Elko won’t make it to the Alabama game next Saturday. The Citadel scored 8 points three weeks ago against Chattanooga. As much as we’d like to see an 8-6 score just for the comedy, Kyle Field would go prompt critical.
Texas A&M 41
The Citadel 7
IDLE: South Carolina
Follow Jess Nicholas on X at @TideFansJessN