SEC Scouts Football Power Rankings Week 8: Georgia Survives at No. 1 Despite Auburn's Stunner Between the Hedges

Week 8 of the regular season delivered the kind of chaos that makes October in the SEC appointment viewing. Auburn walked into Athens and knocked off top-ranked Georgia 27-24, Tennessee buried Alabama 26-10 in Knoxville, and LSU pitched a 31-0 shutout of Mississippi State. And yet, when the formula finished crunching the numbers, Georgia still sits on top.

That tells you how much the Bulldogs banked before Saturday. A 6-1 overall mark, a 4-1 conference record, and a league-best plus-190 point differential kept Georgia's Power Score at 83.4 — comfortably clear of surging Kentucky at 80.3. The Wildcats, winners of five straight, are the hottest team in the conference and the only one carrying a perfect last-five record into the back half of the season.

Below the top two, the margins are razor thin. Ole Miss and Tennessee are separated by less than two points, and the logjam from Alabama at No. 5 through Mississippi State at No. 11 spans barely 12 points of Power Score. In this league, one Saturday can rearrange everything.

The Rankings

1. Georgia (6-1, 4-1 SEC) — Power Score: 83.4 The 27-24 home loss to Auburn stings, but Georgia's resume absorbs the blow. A plus-190 point differential leads the SEC by a wide margin, and the Bulldogs still hold the No. 1 spot in the AP Poll. The formula says the body of work — 4-1 over the last five — outweighs one bad Saturday.

2. Kentucky (6-1, 4-1 SEC) — Power Score: 80.3 Nobody in the SEC is playing better right now. The Wildcats are 5-0 in their last five after going into Norman and beating Oklahoma 21-13, and their 4-1 conference record matches Georgia's. The AP Poll has Kentucky at No. 15; the formula says that is at least nine spots too low.

3. Ole Miss (5-1, 3-1 SEC) — Power Score: 76.4 The Rebels made a statement with a 31-3 demolition of then-No. 13 Missouri. A plus-82 point differential and a 4-1 stretch over the last five back up the AP's No. 9 ranking. Ole Miss owns the fewest losses of any team in the league alongside Georgia and Kentucky's one-loss club.

4. Tennessee (6-1, 3-1 SEC) — Power Score: 74.5 A 26-10 dismantling of No. 6 Alabama is exactly the kind of quality win the formula rewards. The Volunteers' plus-131 point differential ranks third in the conference, and at 6-1 they have matched Georgia and Kentucky in the win column. The AP's No. 14 ranking badly lags the on-field product.

5. Alabama (5-2, 3-2 SEC) — Power Score: 66.6 The Crimson Tide got handled in Knoxville, 26-10, and have now dropped two of their last five. The curious part: Alabama still sits No. 6 in the AP Poll, the second-highest ranking of any SEC team, while the formula slots them fifth in their own conference. A plus-125 point differential keeps the floor high.

6. Florida (5-2, 3-2 SEC) — Power Score: 63.3 Winning 27-24 at No. 7 Texas is the kind of road scalp that changes a season's trajectory. The Gators are 3-2 over their last five with a plus-79 differential, and the AP finally took notice at No. 16. The formula says they belong in the conversation with the league's upper-middle class.

7. LSU (5-2, 2-2 SEC) — Power Score: 61.9 A 31-0 shutout of Mississippi State is as emphatic as it gets. LSU's plus-172 point differential is second in the SEC, trailing only Georgia — a striking number for a team ranked just No. 22 in the AP Poll. The 2-2 conference mark is what's holding the Tigers back in the formula.

8. Missouri (5-2, 2-2 SEC) — Power Score: 60.4 The 31-3 loss at Ole Miss was a reality check for a team the AP had at No. 13. Missouri still owns a plus-81 point differential and a respectable 5-2 record, but the formula docks them for the manner of that defeat. The gap between their AP ranking and their No. 8 power ranking is now the widest overrating in the league.

9. Auburn (4-2, 2-2 SEC) — Power Score: 54.7 The Tigers authored the result of the week, going into Athens and beating No. 1 Georgia 27-24. That quality win over a ranked opponent is rocket fuel for the formula, though a modest plus-30 point differential caps the climb. At No. 22 in the AP Poll, Auburn suddenly has a resume piece nobody below them can match.

10. Texas (4-2, 1-2 SEC) — Power Score: 54.5 The home loss to Florida dropped the Longhorns to 1-2 in conference play — the number dragging down an otherwise solid profile. The AP still has Texas at No. 7, but the formula sees a team ranked tenth in its own league. A plus-74 differential suggests the talent is there; the conference wins are not.

11. Mississippi State (4-2, 2-2 SEC) — Power Score: 54.4 Getting shut out 31-0 at LSU erased most of the goodwill from a 4-2 start. The Bulldogs' point differential shrank to plus-24, and the AP's No. 16 ranking looks increasingly generous. They sit just one-tenth of a Power Score point behind Texas.

12. South Carolina (3-3, 1-3 SEC) — Power Score: 43.6 The Gamecocks' 38-19 road win at Florida was their best performance of the season, and a plus-73 point differential is strong for a .500 team. But 1-3 in the league and 2-3 over the last five keep the formula skeptical. The AP's No. 11 ranking is the biggest poll-versus-formula gap in the conference.

13. Texas A&M (4-3, 1-3 SEC) — Power Score: 41.1 A 6-27 loss at Missouri extended a 2-3 slide over the last five. The Aggies' plus-86 point differential says they have beaten up on somebody, but 1-3 in SEC play says it has not been conference opponents. The AP's No. 23 ranking feels about right.

14. Oklahoma (3-3, 1-2 SEC) — Power Score: 40.6 The Sooners could not hold serve at home against red-hot Kentucky, falling 21-13. At 3-3 with a plus-19 differential and a 2-3 recent stretch, Oklahoma is treading water. The No. 24 AP ranking is hanging by a thread.

15. Arkansas (3-4, 1-3 SEC) — Power Score: 30.2 Credit where due: the Razorbacks went to Nashville and beat Vanderbilt 31-21 to snap out of their funk. The minus-40 point differential still tells the story of a rough season, but that road conference win matters. Unranked in the AP Poll, Arkansas at least has momentum.

16. Vanderbilt (3-4, 0-4 SEC) — Power Score: 25.1 The strangest line in the sport: the AP Poll has Vanderbilt at No. 15 while the Commodores sit 0-4 in SEC play, 1-4 over their last five, and carry a minus-43 point differential. The home loss to Arkansas was the fourth defeat in five games. The formula does not see what the voters see.

Stock Up

Kentucky — Five straight wins, a road victory at Oklahoma, and a 4-1 SEC record have the Wildcats within 3.1 Power Score points of Georgia. The last-five form component (15% of the formula) is doing heavy lifting, and deservedly so.

Auburn — Beating the AP No. 1 on the road is the single most valuable result any team posted in Week 8. The quality-win component kicked in hard, lifting the Tigers to No. 9 despite a thin plus-30 differential.

Florida — Back-to-back data points favor the Gators: a win at No. 7 Texas and a climb to 3-2 in conference play. At 63.3, Florida has pulled within 3.3 points of Alabama.

Stock Down

Missouri — A 28-point loss at Ole Miss with only a field goal to show for it. The AP's No. 13 team ranks eighth in the formula, and the gap will widen if the Tigers do not respond.

Mississippi State — A 31-0 shutout loss carved the Bulldogs' point differential down to plus-24, the thinnest of any team in the top 11. The No. 16 AP ranking is on borrowed time.

Vanderbilt — Four straight conference losses and a 1-4 last-five stretch have the Commodores dead last in the power rankings while somehow still holding an AP number. The formula's 25.1 is a cold splash of reality.

What Could Shift the Rankings

The top of this board is volatile. Georgia leads Kentucky by just 3.1 Power Score points, and the Wildcats' perfect last-five form means any Georgia stumble flips the order. Ole Miss and Tennessee, separated by 1.9 points, are effectively tied for third — whichever one keeps winning convincingly claims the first chase position.

The middle tier is even tighter. Auburn, Texas, and Mississippi State are bunched within 0.3 points of each other, so every conference result in that group is worth a swing of multiple spots. And keep an eye on LSU: a plus-172 point differential paired with a 2-2 SEC record means the Tigers have the profile of a top-four team if the conference wins start coming. The formula is patient, but it rewards results — and in this league, the next set arrives fast.