SEC play begin Thursday, Jan. 4, when the conference’s 14 teams will be in action. Here are the seven conference-opening contests:
- No. 1 South Carolina (12-0, 0-0) vs. Florida (9-3, 0-0) (7 p.m. ET, SEC Network)
- Texas A&M (12-1, 0-0) vs. Georgia (9-4, 0-0) (7 p.m. ET, SEC Network+)
- Ole Miss (10-3, 0-0) vs. Alabama (13-2, 0-0) (7 p.m. ET, SEC Network+)
- Vanderbilt (13-1, 0-0) vs. Mississippi State (13-2, 0-0) (7:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network+)
- Tennessee (7-5, 0-0) vs. Auburn (11-2, 0-0) (8 p.m. ET, SEC Network+)
- Missouri (9-4, 0-0) vs. No. 7 LSU (13-1, 0-0) (9 p.m. ET, SEC Network)
Before the games tip, let’s take a look around the conference, assessing what’s changed since preseason and three teams to watch in the first few weeks of conference play.
What’s the state of the SEC?
Entering the season, we expected one team to dominate the conference, with another situated as the clear second-best team. That’s still true. Those teams have just switched places. While defending national champion LSU has experienced some shakiness despite a stacked roster, defending SEC champion South Carolina has looked like the conference’s—and the nation’s—best team even with a less-experienced roster.
After beginning the season ranked No. 6, South Carolina has risen to No. 1,…
