LSU
Miss State
Oklahoma
Ole Miss
Tennessee
Texas
LEAD STORY: Texas Sits at No. 1 — and Its Head Coach Is Nowhere Near Satisfied
The Texas Longhorns climbed to No. 1 in both major polls after Saturday's stunning comeback win over the Ohio State Buckeyes, but the message inside the building this week has been anything but celebratory. "We were not perfect, okay, and we've got plenty of things to work on," Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian said Monday, and he identified two glaring problems before SEC play opens against the Tennessee Volunteers in Nashville.
The first is ball security. Texas put the ball on the ground four times against Ohio State — a shocking regression for a team that trimmed its lost fumbles from 12 in 2024 to just two last season — and quarterback Arch Manning threw an end-zone interception against Texas State the week before. Running back Raleek Brown fumbled on the game's first snap from scrimmage, Hollywood Smothers fumbled near the goal line on the tying touchdown drive, and wide receiver Emmett Mosley coughed one up on a 15-yard catch that teammate Cam Coleman had to rescue. "Our ball security is awful right now, if you want to know the truth," Sarkisian said. "We have got to value the football more in the organization than we have through two games."
The second problem is third-down defense, where Texas is tied for last in the SEC with opponents converting 50 percent — major regression from last season's 33.5 percent rate that ranked third in the conference. Ohio State went 6-of-14 (42.9 percent) and converted 3-of-5 on third-and-9 or longer, including a 43-yard stutter-and-go by Jeremiah Smith against press coverage. "We're too good up front with our pass rushes, we're too good with our coverages to be last in the Southeastern Conference in third down defense right now," Sarkisian said. "We're not a finished product yet."
QUICK HITS
- Lacy the X-factor in Oxford? ESPN's Bill Connelly, joining The Paul Finebaum Show, previewed the top-10 clash between No. 8 Ole Miss and No. 7 LSU and said a heavy dose of running back Kewan Lacy could be the difference-maker for the Rebels, per ESPN.
- Power rankings shakeup. SEC Network's Dari Nowkhah released his Week 3 SEC Network Power Rankings, highlighting Oklahoma's free fall and Mississippi State's early-season magic as the biggest movers heading into Week 3.
- Texas runners sweep SEC honors. Ernesto Torres became the first Longhorn ever named SEC Men's Runner of the Week in cross country, while teammate McCullough claimed his second consecutive SEC Freshman of the Week award.
- LSU fills the fall calendar. LSU softball released a 2026 fall schedule featuring eight games, six of them at Tiger Park, and tickets are now on sale for the LSU-Samford fall baseball exhibition games in Biloxi, Mississippi.
- Sooners land a court sponsor. Oklahoma Athletics and Learfield's Sooner Sports Properties announced a multi-year partnership with Nextep that puts the Oklahoma-based company's branding on the Lloyd Noble Center floor for all men's and women's basketball home games beginning in 2026-27. Mississippi State women's tennis also released its fall schedule Tuesday.
PORTAL WATCH
A quiet 12 hours on the transfer front — no new SEC portal entries or commitments to report. With football programs deep in their September grind, expect movement to stay minimal until the season's first wave of roster shakeups.
RECRUITING BUZZ
No new commitments crossed the wire in this window. The recruiting trail should heat up around the weekend's marquee matchups, with Ole Miss-LSU offering a prime official-visit stage.
GAMES TO WATCH
No SEC games on today's slate, but the weekend looms large: No. 8 Ole Miss hosts No. 7 LSU in a top-10 showdown with early SEC West-of-old bragging rights on the line, and No. 1 Texas closes non-conference play before opening its SEC schedule against Tennessee in Nashville. Circle both — the conference pecking order starts sorting itself out now.
