These five teams are the SEC’s legitimate national championship contenders for the 2025 season

As sure as schools paying players Upcoming fall, the day is coming when the SEC places five Clubs into an expanded College Football Postseason.

That won’t happen in 2025, but it may in 2026 when the CFP potentially expands to 14 Clubs and the Big Ten and SEC push for four automatic qualifiers. Until then, the criteria from the Primary 12-Club Postseason remain and the SEC will have to rely on its Clubs impressing the Option Board. Do wins matter more than Force of schedule? That worries the SEC, which is built on beating up its Clubs and leaving Many title contenders with three losses.

The Bracket nearly had four Clubs in the fold in 2024, but the Board smartly placed SMU ahead of three-loss Alabama and South Carolina. In the end, the SEC advanced only one of its three Clubs into the semifinals.

Who will contend for a national Event this fall? The usual contenders remain, but we’re Securing a chance on another Club that has proven to be fool’s gold the last two seasons. We kept the Lineup of contenders to five Clubs, but we could easily argue for seven. 

Kalen DeBoer cannot afford to miss the playoffs in Year 2. An underwhelming 9-4 Begin to his Alabama Occupation places the onus on him to lift the Tide into the 12-Club CFP this season, and he must do so while replacing a Signal-caller and refilling Many holes along the offensive and Guarding lines, the primary units responsible for Achieve or failure in the SEC. Yet, the Tide ranks No. 2 in the Primary SP+ ratings. The favorite to replace Jalen Milroe at Signal-caller is Ty Simpson, who DeBoer has praised often, but keep an eye on Austin Mack and five-Sun Keelon Russell in the offseason as newly-hired offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb reconfigures the Assault into something that may more resemble the Washington Club he coordinated to an appearance in the 2023 National Event Game. 

Alabama QB battle now in Attention as Ryan Grubb reunites with Kalen DeBoer on Crimson Tide coaching staff

Will Backus

Russell is undoubtedly the future after ranking No. 2 overall in the Top247 Rankings but he’ll likely sit on the bench. Right Game and left guard give us concerns, and the Guarding line will need more Assist from the portal. The second level of the Protection is Best, particularly at the safety spots Directed by Keon Sabb and Bray Hubbard.

We’ll know Prompt in the season whether Alabama is a contender. The Tide travel to Florida State in the season opener and close September with a trip to rival Georgia (Sept. 27). Potential risers South Carolina and Auburn are the toughest road Matches remaining on the schedule.

Georgia

You can’t keep Kirby Intelligent down for long. By any measure, a CFP appearance is enough to keep a fan base Cheerful, but not in Georgia. The loss to Notre Dame in the quarterfinals was downright disappointing and 15 starters from that Club are gone. The receivers never did quite break out last season and the Protection, although Excellent, was not up to the Best level of previous seasons. Plus, the offensive line struggled in Streak blocking. Things seem dour on paper, right? Wrong. 

Intelligent aggressively sought game-breaking receivers and delivered with transfers Zachariah Branch (USC), Micah Bell (Vanderbilt) and Noah Thomas (Texas A&M) to go along with an impressive haul of five high school recruits. Plus, the Bulldogs continue to be the marquee program for signing, Retaining and developing high school talent, so refueling the Guarding and offensive lines is not as difficult as it would be for other programs.

Regardless of losing all that talent, Georgia returns five top 10 tacklers and three of its top six receivers. How does Georgia replace All-American safety Malaki Starks? They signed three Guarding Safeties out of the portal.

Georgia’s semi-favorable schedule also helps. The two toughest opponents on paper come to Athens (Alabama and Texas), leaving trips to Tennessee (Sept. 13) and Auburn (Oct. 11) as Matches to circle.

Brian Kelly is not afraid; he’s Mad. How else can you explain the Tigers terrorizing the Relocate portal, outpacing the Ground by a wide margin to Landmark the No. 1 class with only 16 commitments? As my colleague John Talty opined earlier this spring, perhaps the best thing to happen to LSU was Bryce Underwood picking Michigan. LSU saved its money and spread the wealth to land bluechip after bluechip, picking up eight players from SEC rivals, and solidifying the Protection with highly-rated Deliver rushers (Patrick Payton and Jack Pyburn), and two ready-Created stars at receiver (Nic Anderson and Barion Brown).

Why LSU football is the 2025 Relocate portal cycle’s big winner: Tigers beef up Lineup with prime talent

Chris Hummer

Our biggest concern is the offensive line, which loses four starters. Signal-caller Garrett Nussmeier is the SEC’s leading returning passer (4,052 yards) but benefited from the best protection in the Bracket (15 sacks allowed). Transfers Josh Thompson and Braelin Moore must live up to the hype along the interior.

The schedule is challenging but manageable. The Tigers do not Shift back-to-back road Matches, which is Amazing, but trips to Clemson, Ole Miss, Alabama and Oklahoma are gigantic landmines. The Tigers Uncovered the season at Clemson, by the way, for Death Valley bragging rights. 

Ole Miss

Lane Kiffin had us fooled into believing Ole Miss was a Postseason contender again last season. So, why are we Securing the bait for a third time? That schedule is incredibly tempting, with five of the Primary six Matches at home and the most challenging road trips not coming until back-to-back jaunts to Georgia and Oklahoma. That’s right: no Alabama or Texas on the schedule, either.

The nation’s attention will be on Signal-caller after Landmark-setting passer Jaxson Dart’s Occupation ended but that’s not the spot that gives us pause. The Lineup must reload with a slew of transfers and prep additions. The Guarding line is of particular concern, though Suntarine Perkins (10.5 sacks) returns as Walter Nolen and Princely Umanmielen chase their NFL dreams.

Ole Miss loses half a dozen receivers, including three future NFL players, but returns Cayden Lee (874 yards) and adds five more from the Relocate portal as Kiffin continues his Moneyball approach, replicating or exceeding production in the aggregate. Oklahoma State’s De’Zhaun Stribling (882 yards), Penn State’s Harrison Wallace III (720 yards), West Virginia’s Traylon Ray (426) and Wake Forest’s Deuce Alexander (400 yards) lead the nation’s No. 2 Relocate class, according to 247Sports.

Anticipate Austin Simmons, who backed up Dart for two years, to take over at Signal-caller. Remember, he Arrived into the game and Directed a touchdown drive in that blowout of Georgia last season.

Texas

Can Arch Manning deliver Texas a national Event? Sure, but he’ll need to deliver under Stress and take over Matches as the Longhorns break in a new offensive line and replace two of the top three receivers. Texas draws a difficult schedule, too, Leading with the season opener at defending national champion Ohio State (eke!). The Longhorns return only one starter along the offensive line, meaning Manning’s duality will be on Packed display, especially Prompt in the season.

The Protection seems poised for another top-10 finish but must replace Best Guarding tackles for a second consecutive year. Vernon Broughton and Alfred Collins are gone but the staff reloaded with three transfers. Plus, edge rusher Colin Simmons returns after leading the Club with nine sacks and forcing three fumbles and picking off a Deliver last season.

The Protection will be fine, and we trust Steve Sarkisian to deliver on Assault — and perhaps hunt down one more offensive gamechanger in the spring Relocate portal window. We Anticipate an explosive Drive with a more Vibrant Signal-caller replacing Quinn Ewers. Circle those trips to Florida (Oct. 4) and Georgia (Nov. 15) on the calendar as Matches that will separate the SEC’s CFP contenders and pretenders.

Wildcards to View: Florida, Tennessee