SEC Football Unfiltered

Georgia earned the bye, but which SEC team received the best College Football Playoff draw ? That’s difficult to answer. The second-seeded Bulldogs are one step closer to the national championship game than either Texas (No. 5 seed) or Tennessee (No. 9 seed). However, Texas will open at home against 12th-seeded Clemson, the playoff’s only three-loss team, before a potential quarterfina...

Missing the inaugural 12-team playoff leaves Alabama feeling out of sorts - and evaluating its schedule. In the wake of the College Football Playoff selection committee choosing SMU over Alabama for the final playoff bid, UA athletics director Greg Byrne indicated the football program will consider watering down its future non-conference schedules.  Never mind that Alabama's three losses came...

Will the College Football Playoff committee have the gall to deny the Script A and the allure that comes with Alabama a spot in the 12-team bracket? More to the point, will the committee be more interested in Alabama’s lofty strength of schedule, or its miserable showing in a blowout loss at Oklahoma? Miami’s loss to Syracuse left a playoff spot up for grabs. Top contenders for the bid include a t...

In the SEC this season, it just means more losses, more parity, fewer elite teams and a struggle to qualify teams for the College Football Playoff . Ole Miss got swallowed up in The Swamp. Alabama suffered malice at The Palace. Kalen DeBoer and Lane Kiffin each possessed enough talent to field a playoff team, so why are they left needing more chaos to serve them up bids to their underachieving, th...

Tennessee needs help . The Vols won't be in full control of their quest for the College Football Playoff after losing at Georgia , marking Tennessee's second loss. And while Tennessee retains multiple avenues to receive an assist into the playoff, the most interesting one might be this: Lincoln Riley and his USC Trojans revive and beat Notre Dame in the regular-season finale, thereby spoiling the...

The CFP picture gained no clarity Saturday. In fact, it became more opaque after No. 3 Georgia fell to Ole Miss and No. 4 Miami went down against unranked Georgia Tech. Miami and Georgia remain in the mix, but make room for Ole Miss. It’s getting crowded on that playoff bubble, and you’d need a spreadsheet to tell you who’s best in line to make the SEC championship game. On today's episode, hosts...

Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss have a chance to offset a loss to Kentucky from earlier this season when the Rebels face Georgia on Saturday. Oddsmakers put this game on a razor’s edge, and the Bulldogs suddenly look vulnerable. And if Ole Miss pulls it off, then what? The Rebels would re-enter the playoff picture and crowd the bubble, and Kiffin would remain a top choice for ravenous Florida fans who ar...

Florida's Billy Napier still owns the hottest seat in the SEC. The nation's most volatile conference had a quiet spin of the coaching carousel for two months. Arkansas' Sam Pittman inches his way off the hot seat. Auburn's Hugh Freeze bought himself a moment of calm by beating Kentucky. Even the long-embattled Napier marches on in his third season with the improving Gators. Napier's about to launc...

The College Football Playoff bubble is becoming awfully crowded. As many as eight teams in the SEC could finish the regular season at 10-2. The Big Ten pushes for three or more bids. The ACC and Big 12 are shaping up as two-bid leagues. Notre Dame won't go away. How would the committee wade through that mess?  On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adam s update their 12-team playoff p...

They're starting to sweat in Tennessee . They're pulling their hair out in Alabama . They're wondering in Georgia when the mean machine broke down . And at Ole Miss ? Oof. It's bleak. Robust Texas looks like a near-lock for the College Football Playoff. Elsewhere in the SEC, it's hold on tight. On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams bust out the panic meter and take a reading of...

Alabama football suffered one of its most humiliating moments in the proud history of its blue-blooded program on Saturday when Vanderbilt stunned, shocked and embarrassed the Tide . Tennessee, knowing misery loves company, provided rival Alabama a little comfort by losing to Arkansas. And Missouri got unmasked as a fraud in College Station. The SEC's playoff picture is topsy-turvy, and, on today'...

Georgia could get off the mat and win the national championship after losing to Alabama . The Bulldogs have that level of talent. Or, alternatively, Georgia could miss the College Football Playoff entirely, in what would be a stunning way to begin the 12-team playoff era. Meanwhile, Auburn’s Hugh Freeze has elbowed his way onto the hot seat to give Florida’s Billy Napier and Arkansas’ Sam Pittman...

It’s not the “ Game of the Century ,” but it is the Game of September. No. 1 Georgia at No. 4 Alabama. This is Kirby Smart’s latest opportunity to prove he rules college football in the absence of Nick Saban. It’s Kalen DeBoer’s chance to show that the Alabama job is not too big for him, that the Tide selected the proper heir to Saban. On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams previ...

It's not a college football coaching search if Urban Meyer's name doesn't appear atop a fan base's wish list . 'Hire Urb! Back up the Brinks truck. Make him say no!' Great plan, but what's idea No. 2 when Urb's Audi doesn't come roaring down University Avenue? Better yet, what's idea No. 3 if Lane Kiffin says no? Where would Florida football turn then when the time comes to replace Billy Napier ?...

Our preseason College Football Playoff projections missed the mark. I mean, Iowa ? Was that pick for real, or a bad dream? In any case, we're making revisions. At least we don't have to eliminate Notre Dame from the field. We never had the Irish in our projections. On today's episode, hosts  Blake Toppmeyer  and  John Adams  admit their mistakes and revise their playoff projections. Later in the e...

If Dabo Swinney wants to stand on principle and refuse to take transfers at Clemson, then he should follow Nick Saban into retirement. Also, Billy Napier's Florida tenure is toast after the Gators' flop against Miami. Are those Week 1 overreactions, or smart takes? On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams unpack those ideas and more after a tumultuous opening week. The SEC's chance...

Week 1 is loaded with marquee matchups involving SEC teams, but do season openers mean what they used to in this era of a 12-team College Football Playoff? Florida State lost its opener against Georgia Tech, but the Seminoles retain a clear path to the playoff if they win the ACC Championship. However, that result still carried weight. It decreased the chances of the ACC qualifying multiple teams....

No more whimsical predictions. It's time to get serious and lock in our playoff picks before the season begins. Yes, we made previous predictions in the winter, spring and earlier this summer, but those were fanciful ideas that come when the season is months away. But, let the record show: These are our final playoff predictions of the preseason. On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John...

Georgia is the runaway preseason No. 1 team, and it doesn't matter who's voting. The AP Poll matched the US LBM Coaches Poll in putting the Bulldogs atop the rankings, by a wide margin. Georgia isn't the only loaded team, though. Ohio State bursts with All-America talent, too. On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams examine Georgia's credentials as preseason No. 1, and they unpack...

The SEC crowded out the competition in the preseason US LBM Coaches Poll . Nine SEC teams are ranked . That’s three more ranked teams than even the Big Ten. Who’s overrated? Who’s underrated? And does the SEC possess a playoff sleeper team lurking under the radar? On today’s episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams unpack the preseason Top 25 and what it means for the College Football Playoff...

Georgia football navigates another offseason marred by player disciplinary issues. The latest: Wide receiver Rara Thomas faces a felony charge of child cruelty and multiple counts of family violence after his arrest last week. Thomas also got cited for three traffic incidents this offseason, adding to Georgia’s string of dangerous driving. Georgia suspended Thomas from the team indefinitely. But,...

The mercury is rising on the SEC’s hot seat before the season even begins. Multiple SEC coaches face potential make-or-break seasons. Sam Pittman (Arkansas) and Billy Napier (Florida) are battling the most heat prior to their openers, but Clark Lea (Vanderbilt) and Shane Beamer (South Carolina) also will encounter critical seasons. On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams take the...

Greg Sankey says the SEC is 16 strong today and will remain at 16 strong tomorrow. What about the day after that? How about next year? Sankey has less to say about that subject. Meanwhile, fissures linger in the ACC. Florida State wants out of the ACC. The Seminoles and Clemson are both suing the ACC. That's not the sign of a league in harmony. If FSU, Clemson and others defect, where would they g...

If Georgia is No. 1 in the SEC, then who's No. 2? The media who cover the SEC will vote to predict the standings next week. The elimination of divisions adds intrigue to the vote. The Bulldogs likely will be picked to win the conference. But, will the media go with newcomer Texas at No. 2? Or, maybe blue blood Alabama? Others like Ole Miss shouldn't be ignored, either. On today's episode, hosts Bl...

The move that  put the realignment carousel into motion three years ago finally is complete . Oklahoma and Texas are members of the SEC, and the nation's most powerful conference  literally partied for days in celebration . The realignment of this conference and these brands was enough to shake up college sports. This marks the third SEC expansion in the past four decades. Oklahoma and Texas  are...