SEC Power Rankings: Alabama leapfrogs Georgia ahead of marquee Week 6 showdown

The Crimson Tide are making moves on the strength of an offense that has scored at least 45 points in every game of its 5-0 start Oct 6, 2026 at 9:38 am ET • 6 min read Going into Week 6, the SEC is a muddled mess. Teams in the middle of the pack are beating one another, and there's even a lack of clarity closer to the top.Georgia has steamrolled every team it's played so far, but its toughest opponents have been Oklahoma and Vanderbilt. Meanwhile, Alabama is also 5-0 with an offense that's been lighting the world on fire against mediocre to bad defenses.Luckily, we'll get some more insight into both teams when they meet in Tuscaloosa on Saturday night. For the time being, however, the Crismon Tide have leapfrogged the Bulldogs on the strength of their blowout victory over Mississippi State in Week 5. Keelon Russell and the Alabama passing attack looked unstoppable, but Kirby Smart has silenced plenty of explosive offenses in the past.Elsewhere around the conference, Florida got a dose of reality, and Will Stein kept his strong first season at Kentucky rolling with an exhilarating overtime win against South Carolina. With another week of data points to work with, let's see how each team stacks up in the Week 6 SEC Power Rankings. CBS Sports 138: Alabama joins Texas, Georgia in top four as SEC teams headline college football rankings Chip Patterson 1. Texas Last week: 1The Longhorns got a week off before their rivalry clash against Oklahoma. Texas does have a little added pressure as it brings the No. 1 ranking into Dallas, but the Horns are the more complete team by a comfortable margin. That said, you have to expect the unexpected in the Red River Rivalry, so don't be shocked when John Mateer and the Sooners suddenly look like the Greatest Show on Turf. 2. Alabama Last week: 4It might be time to acknowledge that Alabama might just be an elite, national-championship caliber team. The Crimson Tide entered the season with some question marks, especially on offense, but they have answered all those questions in impressive fashion. This weekend's showdown against Georgia will be the real test, though. If Keelon Russell continues his heater against the Bulldogs, the Heisman hype train will be off the rails. 3. Georgia Last week: 2Georgia's slight dip is more about what Alabama has done and not what the Bulldogs have done wrong. After all, it was another week and another casual blowout for Georgia. The Bulldogs didn't exactly play a crisp game against Vanderbilt, but they still rolled to a 38-14 win. For the first time all season, Georgia won't be able to enter autopilot mode next when it visits Tuscaloosa. We know the Bulldogs are great. We'll know exactly how great they are at this time next week. 4. LSU Last week: 6We didn't learn anything new about LSU in its beating of McNeese on Saturday, but what continues to stand out are Sam Leavitt's lapses, which seem to pop up every game. He's thrown an interception in every game, and he's up to seven interceptions on the season, which is tied for the most in the SEC. We'll see how Leavitt and the Tigers' offense operate on the road this week as they travel to Lexington for a matchup against Kentucky that looks much tougher now than it did prior to the season. 5. Florida Last week: 3College football is a week-to-week sport, and Florida made that very clear in Week 5. The Gators were the talk of the town entering that matchup after a huge win over Ole Miss, and Missouri was a team full of question marks. Then the Tigers absolutely smashed the Gators, effectively derailing Jadan Baugh's Heisman Trophy campaign in three hours. Florida is still a very good team, but it's far from invincible. 6. Ole Miss Last week: 5Ole Miss got an open date to regroup after its loss to Florida, and it gets to dip its toe back into conference play with a matchup against Vanderbilt this weekend. Pete Golding has to find some band-aids for his run defense or the Rebels will get torched in the second half of their schedule. 7. Missouri Last week: 12Congratulations to the Tigers. They're the first team to make me look stupid, and it only took a week. Not only did Missouri beat Florida, but it dominated that game from start to finish. Austin Simmons got anything he wanted in the passing game, and the defense slammed the door on Florida's previously explosive run game. Vindication for Eli Drinkwitz. Now, can Missouri sustain this level of play? 8. Tennessee Last week: 8We have a full-blown quarterback controversy in Knoxville. Tennessee was headed for a devastating loss before Josh Heupel replaced Faizon Brandon with George MacIntyre, and that switch sparked the offense. Heupel is already tired of answering quarterback questions, but they're going to keep coming. How he approaches that position in a winnable game at Arkansas will be very telling. 9. Kentucky Last week: 10The Wildcats survived a road scare against South Carolina, and Will Stein's decision to go for the two-point conversion in the first overtime period paid off. Vibes are extremely high in Lexington these days, but those vibes are about to be tested. LSU is up next, and the last time Kentucky hosted a premier conference opponent, the result was a 45-17 loss to Alabama. 10. Mississippi State Last week: 7There was a reality check in Starkville last week. Mississippi State is a very good football team, especially with Kamario Taylor at quarterback, but it's still a couple of rungs below the SEC's elite tier. The Bulldogs will have to lick their wounds this week with a road trip to Death Valley on deck. 11. Oklahoma Last week: 9Brent Venables and Ben Arbuckle have gotten two weeks to fix whatever was ailing the offense, including the quarterback. If the Sooners can't get that side of the ball fixed, they'll be 2-3 leaving the Red River Rivalry, and Venables will face serious pressure to make staff changes. 12. Texas A&M Last week: 11Arkansas is the perfect elixir for struggling football teams. The Aggies got a relatively stress-free win over the Razorbacks, and Marcel Reed played a relatively clean game with 236 total yards and a touchdown. This weekend's game against Missouri is a fascinating matchup. Texas A&M has the talent to beat Missouri, but it's looked like a mess against quality opponents so far. 13. Auburn Last week: 13Tennessee had zero passing yards for most of the first half, and Auburn still lost the game by 10 points. That's how ineffective the Tigers' offense was, and that's a big concern for Alex Golesh moving forward. The bad news is that Auburn's next game comes against Georgia. Hopefully, the Tigers' defense is up to the task because it will need to be. 14. Vanderbilt Last week: 14Even with Jared Curtis sitting out due to injury, Vanderbilt managed to hang with Georgia for a half in an admirable effort. Blaze Berlowitz hit a couple of explosive plays in the passing game, but the Commodores ran out of steam. Vanderbilt will need Curtis next week to give it a puncher's chance at upsetting Ole Miss. 15. South Carolina Last week: 15It feels like Shane Beamer sealed his fate when South Carolina blew yet another multi-score lead in an overtime loss to Kentucky. The Gamecocks won't be favored to win another game until they visit Arkansas on Nov. 14, so there should be plenty of opportunities for South Carolina to make a change if it wants. 16. Arkansas Last week: 16When South Carolina is circling you as its next best opportunity for a win, you know things are bad. Then again, the Razorbacks do host Tennessee this week, and the Volunteers haven't won in Fayetteville since 2001.