The 2022 college football regular season is officially over, and before we head into bowl season, it’s time to look at the best conference in college football the SEC and rank the teams.
14. Vanderbilt Commodores
The Vanderbilt Commodores once again finish as the worst team in the SEC, and they come in last place in the power rankings. The Commodores are not bowl-eligible once again, but they did make progress this season. They won their first SEC game since 2019, beating Kentucky, and then the week after beating Florida.
The Commodores finished the season with a losing record of 5-7 and an SEC record of 2-6. However, Vanderbilt can take another step forward and become bowl-eligible next year.
13. Missouri Tigers
The Missouri Tigers come in second to last place here in the rankings. They finished 6-6 and 3-5 in the conference and second to last place in the SEC East right in front of Vanderbilt.
Missouri had Georgia on upset alert early in the season when they led for almost the entire game until Georgia took control late and won 26-22. Missouri had some excellent SEC wins, beating Arkansas and South Carolina, but yet again, they had another bad SEC season.
The Tigers will take on Wake Forrest in the Gasparilla Bowl on December 23rd. It will be interesting to see how they play in the bowl game and how they will get ready for the 2023 season.
12. Texas A&M Aggies
Texas A&M comes in at number twelve, and it was close between them and the next team, the Auburn Tigers, but they had way too much talent and lost to Appalachian State early in the season.
I was very close to putting this team last, but they got a win over a top 10 team in LSU the last week of the season, so I bumped them up a few spots, but their season was horrible.
They finished with a losing record of 5-7 and won two games in the SEC. But then, we saw this team finally beat Alabama in 2021 and then get one of the best-recruiting classes we have ever seen, and they couldn’t even win six games.
Head Coach Jimbo Fisher should be embarrassed by how bad this season was, and they are paying him over 80 million dollars, not even to make a bowl game.
There’s not much more this team can lose in 2023, so if you’re a Texas A&M fan, you better hope the fall of 2023 gets here fast so you can get the bad taste of 2022 out of your mouth.
11. Auburn Tigers
The Auburn Tigers are next, and their season was off to a horrible start from the beginning. Head Coach Bryan Harsin was on the hot seat and didn’t make it through the season. Auburn hired Liberty’s coach Hugh Freeze as the new man in charge, and he has a lot of work to do to get this program back on track.
Auburn finished 5-7 and won two games in the SEC. If it weren’t for Texas A&M, Auburn would’ve finished last in the SEC West.
10. Florida Gators
The Flordia Gators and their new head coach Billy Napier comes in at number ten. Florida had one of the best quarterbacks in the country coming into the season, Anthony Richardson, and they could only win six games and lost to Vanderbilt.
Florida’s season started great, beating Utah, a top-ten team in the county then, and then it went downhill. After that, they only won three SEC games beating Missouri, Texas A&M, and South Carolina.
Florida finished with a record of 6-6 and an SEC record of 3-5 and will be heading to the Las Vegas Bowl next week to play the Oregon State Beavers.
Quarterback Anthony Richardson has declared for the draft so the Gators will need a new quarterback next season. It will be interesting to see what this team does in 2023.
9. Kentucky Wildcats
The Kentucky Wildcats come in at number nine. It’s surprising this is where they finish after a great start to the season, but when you let Vanderbilt get their first SEC win in three years on you, there must be a price to pay.
Kentucky had one of the top quarterbacks in the country, Will Levis, and he has just declared for the NFL Draft and will be a high pick this upcoming April.
Kentucky started the season 4-0 and then lost two straight to Ole Miss and South Carolina. However, they would win three more games, two coming in SEC opponents Missouri and Mississippi State and then out-of-conference opponent Louisville.
The Wildcats finished with an overall record of 7-5 and an SEC record of 3-5, and they will be playing Music City Bowl on New Year’s Eve against Iowa.
8. Ole Miss Rebels
The Ole Miss Rebels come in at number eight, and this could be a shocker to many but look how they finished off the season. They lost four of their last five games to LSU, Alabama, Arkansas, and Mississippi State, and the only win coming against Texas A&M by three points.
They were number 11 in the first College Football Playoff ranking in early November, but it went downhill quickly. Head Coach Lane Kiffin was rumored to have taken the Auburn Job and was getting into fights with reporters on Twitter.
Kiffin didn’t take the Auburn job and will be with the Rebels for the foreseeable future. Ole Miss finished with a record of 8-4 and 4-4 in the conference. The Rebels will take on Texas Tech in the Texas Bowl on December 28th.
7. Arkansas Razorbacks
The Arkansas Razorbacks come in at number seven on the list, and they shouldn’t be this high, but who else can you even put at this spot?
They came into the season in the AP Top 25 and had a massive win over the Cinnancnti Bearcats in Week One, but things didn’t go their way this season.
They went 6-6 and 3-5 in conference play, and they had a nice win over Ole Miss the second last week of the season, but they followed it up by losing to Missouri.
Arkansas will play Kansas in the Liberty Bowl on December 28th, and the Razorbacks can look forward to the 2023 season.
6. Mississippi State Bulldogs
The Mississippi State Bulldogs is the sixth team and had an excellent season. They finished with an overall record of 8-4 and an SEC record of 4-4. They finished the season beating their rivals Ole Miss in the Egg Bowl.
This was head coaches Mike Leach’s third season with the Bulldogs after winning four and seven games in his first two seasons. The Bulldogs will play Illinois in the ReliaQuest Bowl on January 2nd.
5. South Carolina Gamecocks
The South Carolina Gamecocks come in at number five after their strong finish. This was Gamecocks’s head coach Shane Beamer’s second season, and he had an excellent finish.
South Carlina also got transfer quarterback and one-time Heisman hopeful Spencer Rattler in the portal in the off-season, and he had some ups and downs, but against Tennessee in Week 12, he put on a show.
Rattler threw for 438 yards and six touchdowns in their 63-38 win. The week after, South Carolina went on the road and ruined their rival Clemson’s playoff hopes by beating them 31-30.
South Carolina finished the season 8-4 and 4-4 in the conference, and they will be playing Notre Dame in the Gator Bowl on December 30th.
4. LSU Tigers
The number four team is the LSU Tigers, and they finished 9-4 and 6-2 in the conference and won the SEC West. This was former Notre Dames head coach Brian Kelly’s first season in Baton Rouge, and he had a good one.
They lost their first game of the season to Florida State and then got smoked by Tennessee but came back and had a vast overtime win against Alabama. After that, they tripped up late in the season to Texas A&M, which was not good, and then got boat raced by Georgia in the SEC title game, but that was expected.
Still, LSU had a great season, and nobody thought this team would beat Alabama and win the SEC West in the first season under Kelly and did, so that is a significant step that the LSU program took.
LSU will play in Vrbo Citrus Bowl on January 2nd against Purdue, and they will look to close their 2022 season win a win.
3. Alabama Crimson Tide
Alabama comes in number three, and this was a debate, but I have to give them this slot since they did lose two games and what was their best win in the SEC. They beat Mississippi State and Ole Miss but could have been better; they dropped games to Tennessee and LSU, who were the most challenging opponents on their SEC schedule.
They lost both games on the last play, but they have the second most talent in the SEC, the best quarterback in Bryce Young, and the best defensive player in Will Anderson in college football.
Alabama will be fine next season, and head coach Nick Saban will probably bring the group to another title game, but in 2022, it was not their season, and they did win ten games, so it wasn’t a bad one, but in Alabama, its always championship or bust. Alabama will take on Kansas State at the Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Eve.
2. Tennessee Volunteers
The Tennessee Volunteers came in second in the rankings and had a great season. They finally beat Alabama for the first time since 2006, and their quarterback Hendon Hooker was so fun to watch. Tennessee was the number one overall team in the first release of the College Football Playoff Poll and then turned around and lost to Georgia a few days later.
Tennessee had one loss going into their final two games, and they were just two wins away from going to the playoff, but they ran into South Carolina and got destroyed.
Tennessee went 10-2 overall and 6-2 in the SEC, and they will be heading to the Orange Bowl to play Clemson on December 30th.
1. Georgia Bulldogs
The number one team is no surprise at all, the Georgia Bulldogs. They went 13-0, won the SEC East, and won the SEC title, and they will try to defend their national championship in a few weeks.
There isn’t much to say other than they are the best team in college football. To win the SEC or win it all, you must go through Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs.
Georgia will play in the Peach Bowl against Ohio State in the College Football Playoff on New Years Eve.
The SEC never disappoints; this year was another great season in the south.
