The spring transfer portal has officially closed, spring practices and spring games are in the books, spring commencement ceremonies are under way or complete, and that means one thing, August and the 2025-2026 college football season is right around the corner. While teams will continue to finalize official rosters throughout the summer, it’s time to start predicting who SEC’s top teams will be for the 2025-26 season.
Below are early predictions of how the SEC stacks up after the close of the spring portal, spring practices, and the annual spring games. As summer approaches, these subjective rankings are where teams stack up based on how they did last season and how they are expected to look coming in the 2025-26 season based on offseason losses, additions, and the strength of schedules this season. These rankings are subjective.
What about Florida?
Coming off a disappointing 8-5 season (4-4 in conference play), Billy Napier and the Florida Gators lost seven players to the NFL Draft, including quarterback Graham Mertz and wide receiver Chimere Dike.
And while Florida wasn't super aggressive in the transfer portal, they still have one of the stronger rosters in the SEC and have hopes of beginning the 2025 season the way they ended 2024. The Gators finished strong with a four-game win streak, defeating SEC opponents LSU (27-16) and Ole Miss (24-17); dominating the sunshine state showdown against Florida State (31-11), and cruising past Tulane in the Gasparilla Bowl in December, 33-8. The Gators hope to carry that momentum into 2025. Billy Napier and his staff knew they had to be aggressive and make moves, especially with one of the toughest schedules in 2024-25. They will be a team to keep your eye on going into the fall.
We’ll talk more about Florida later in the rankings, but those are some of the most-highly anticipated incomers.
Below are how the rankings fully pan out at the close of the Transfer Portal window.
The Early Post-Spring Portal Close Rankings:
4-8 (1-7 in conference play)
The Kentucky Wildcats are coming off one of their worst seasons and though they did well in the offseason transfer portal, they lost three of five starters from their offensive line and are far from being a top contender in the SEC.
Along with losing a big part of their offensive line, they picked up a six-season veteran quarterback with more negative stats than positive, Zach Calzada. He will be entering into his seventh college season. He has time under his belt with Texas A&M, a sidelined season at Auburn, and two seasons at Incarnate Word. He has not done well so-far in his SEC career, only having a 55% pass percentage and 10 interceptions at Texas A&M.
With a defense-minded head coach, many don’t predict Calzone to do well at Kentucky either.
2-10 (0-8 in conference play)
While Mississippi did not win a single conference game in 2024-25, head coach Jeff Lebby has done his job over the offseason. He is bringing in 32 transfer prospects from the offseason portal to attempt to build his program in 2025-26. Bulldog quarterback, Blake Shapen will be returning to Mississippi this fall, and he will be joined by freshman quarterback Kamario Taylor.
In their 2025 spring practices and spring game, their defense showed signs of improvement and with 32 new transfers coming in and Lebby now entering his second season with the program, all signs point to an improved 2025-26 season.
7-6 (3-5 in conference play)
While Arkansas is coming off a 7-6, Bowl Eligible season, many point to 2025-26 being a continued developmental and building year for the Razorbacks. They are bringing in OT Corey Robinson II to help protect quarterback Taylen Green, but other than that, for as active as they were in the transfer portal, they have not received many guaranteed commitments.
7-6 (3-5 in conference)
While the Vanderbilt Commodores did impressed in 2024-25 upsetting Alabama, the talent of their roster still lacks and they did not do much of anything in the transfer portal this offseason, having one of the worst offseasons in the SEC.
Vanderbilt, under head coach Clark Lea, they have shown signs of improvement, but the question remains of, can they continue to build on that? They do have quarterback Diego Pavia returning, along with Eli Stowers. But with not showing action in the transfer portal, and a tougher 2025-26 schedule, it will be a strong challenge for Vanderbilt to improve on their 2024-25 season.
10-3 (5-3 in conference)
The Missouri Tigers have been a surging surprise in the SEC over the last couple seasons. In 2024-25, they had impressive wins over Vanderbilt (30-27 in 2 OT), Auburn, Oklahoma, and Iowa to name a few. They have continued to show signs of improvement.
They Tigers had a little bit of a roller coaster offseason portal as they lost DL Jaylen Brown, DL Williams Nwaneri, and LB Mikai Gbayor. However, they also gained EDGE Damon Willson II from Georgia, WR Kevin Coleman Jr., and EDGE Nate Johnson.
What could save Missouri next season is facing a bit of an easier SEC schedule. However, they are still not predicted to sit near the top in 2025-26.
10-3 (6-2 in conference play)
Tennessee is coming off a strong 2024-25 season; however, they lost a key piece of their offense in quarterback Nico Lamaleava to the UCLA Bruins. In a heated offseason surrounding Lamaleava’s NIL deal, Coach Josh Heupel, Tennessee, and Lamaleava agreed it would be best for all parties if they part ways. He ended up signing with UCLA.
But that’s not all Tennessee lost; they had 21 players enter the portal, and will only be bringing in seven new players to join the Volunteers in 2025. This could severely impact the season Tennessee has this fall as they will be getting a brand new quarterback and majority new roster ready to go ahead of opening their season against Syracuse, ETSU, and then quickly face SEC top dawg, Georgia Bulldogs in September.
It’s going to be a hard ask to see a lot of success out of Tennessee this year.
5-7 (2-6 in Conference Play)
Coming off a 5-7 season, the Tigers made one big move in the transfer portal, bringing in former Oklahoma QB Jackson Arnold, who was looking for a fresh start. However, beyond that, Hugh Freeze and the Tigers did not do much else in the transfer portal.
Some rankings predict Auburn could pull off an upset this season, but that they won’t make many more waves with the strength of their schedule. They open the 2025-26 season in August against Baylor. Beginning week four, they will have back-to-back-to-back SEC games in a challenging three weeks against Oklahoma, Texas A&M, and then Georgia. That week four game will see the matchup of Jackson Arnold and Oklahoma. The question will be if he can get past his former defensive teammates or if Oklahoma will outsmart Auburn and know how to defend Arnold in Auburn’s first SEC game of the season.
9-4 (5-3 in Conference Play)
The South Carolina Gamecocks surprised many in 2024-25 and were a team many called “one of the most fun to watch” toward the end of the season. After a rough start to 2024-25, they went on to defeat Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt, Missouri, and Clemson to end their season before being defeated by Illinois in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl. They were a team many counted out, but the Gamecocks called the game and said, “Watch us finish strong with six straight wins!”
While they hope to start 2025-26 the same way they ended the 2024-25 regular season, they unfortunately lost many key components of their rosters in Nick Emmanwori, Kyle Kennard, Rocket Sanders, and others who were drafted into the NFL.
They did bring in the No. 8 portal class in the conference, but the question being asked now is if their wide receivers can be ready for the season opener against Virginia Tech in Atlanta. The Gamecocks do have one of the younger wide receiver classes entering into 2025-26. Outside of that, they are expected to build upon their 2024 season and continue to contend for a top spot in the SEC.
8-5 (5-3 in Conference Play)
Texas A&M has one of the top offenses in the SEC and it was led by a surprising, young freshman in Marcel Reed who showed a ton of upside. He was assisted by two very talented wide receivers Kevin Concepcion and Mario Craver.
The Aggies defeated Florida on the road, Arkansas in Arlington, Missouri at College Station, Mississippi on the road, and LSU at home.
Of biggest accomplishment was being one win away from reaching the SEC Championship, losing to in-state rival Texas 7-17.
While they lost WR Noah Thomas, TE Jaden Platt, and Quarterback Conner Weigman, they gained EDGE T.J. Searcy, WR KC Concepcion, and CB Julian. Quarterback Marcel Reed is also returning for another season in which the hopes are he can improve this season with a brand new wide receiver class.
One win away from an SEC Championship birth will leave Texas A&M hungry and striving to reach Atlanta at the end this season.
6-7 (2-6 in Conference Play)
While the 2024-25 season was less than impressive and one of Oklahoma’s worst, they are coming in with a new offensive coordinator and offensive line.
During the offseason, Oklahoma hired Washington State OL coach Ben Arbuckle to lead the offensive line at Oklahoma. He brought with him quarterback John Mateer from WSU as well. He was ranked the 2024 Pac-12 conference offensive top performer with a 64.6% completion rating, threw for 29 touchdowns, rushed for 15 touchdowns, and led the country with 44 total touchdowns for 3,965 yards.
Coming off a strong season in the PAC-12, while the SEC is a whole other animal, rankings predict Mateer to do well in the SEC with Oklahoma’s offensive line and maintaining his offensive line coach, Arbuckle.
The sooners had a strong offseason portal, bringing in many pass catchers and star Cal running back, Jaydn Ott, one of the top ranked runnings backs in the portal.
Oklahoma faces Michigan at home week two. They will quickly find out the strength of their newly-formed offensive group.
8-5 (4-4 in Conference Play)
Needless to say, the Florida Gators' 2024 season was less than impressive to START. They finished strong, as mentioned at the start of this article. They left fans with a taste of hope with a four-game win streak defeating SEC opponents LSU (27-16) and Ole Miss (24-17); dominating the sunshine state showdown against Florida State (31-11), and cruising past Tulane in the Gasparilla Bowl in December, 33-8. Fans would like to see that momentum continue into 2025-26.
Coming into 2025-26, they lose EDGE T.J. Searcy, EDGE Jack Pyburn, and CB Ja’Keem Jackson. However, they gain WR J. Michael Sturdivant, S Michael Caraway Jr., EDGE Kofi Asare, out of the transfer portal.
The Gators also acquired 5-star recruit Dallas Wilson this spring, and he showed a lot for Gator fans to be excited about, setting Florida records for catches and yards in the spring game and excelling tremendously in spring practices. He will be a very strong addition to this Gator offense.
The Gators will also have Quarterback DJ Lagway back. And if he stays healthy, he can quickly become one of the best quarterbacks in the country with two more years of eligibility left after this season as well.
Their upcoming schedule is one of the toughest and will be a true test of exactly how improved their offense is this season. Over the course of the 2025 season, Florida plays LSU, Georgia, Texas, and Ole Miss in conference play; and in-state rivals, Florida State and Miami (FL) during non-conference play. And while yes, the conference games are of most importance, for Florida fans, the annual FSU game and this year’s Miami game might as well be mini Super Bowls in and of themselves, as those are must-wins for the Gators.
Early predictions say that if the Gators can go at least 9-3, they will have a chance of making the College Football Playoff. And after the way they ended last season, there’s no reason to expect Florida to do anything less in this upcoming season. Will the Gators rise to the top and make a push at the college football playoffs? Many predictions say yes. But come August, we will begin to find out as the season begins for the Gators.
10-3 (5-3 in Conference Play)
The Ole Miss Rebels fell short of making the college football playoffs in 2024, however, as usual, Lane Kiffin and the Rebels were all-in this offseason in the portal.
Ole Miss will see the return of Austin Simmons, who showed a lot of upside in 2024. He will be joined on the field in 2025 by a new room of wide receivers.
Ole Miss added WR Harris Wallace III, WR Traylon Ray, and TE Luke Hasz to their offensive weaponry. The defense also added key pieces at edge rusher and defensive back. Suntarine Perkins will also be returning for Ole Miss this season.
Whether or not Ole Miss can make a run at Atlanta or the college football playoffs will be how much more Simmons develops and how competitive the Rebels can play this season.
9-4 (5-3 in Conference Play)
Alabama was not as impressive as fans are used to seeing them in 2024-25. In their first season without storied coach Nick Saban, they suffered surprising upsets to Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Michigan in the ReliaQuest Bowl. It was a season that head coach Kalen DeBoer and Alabama do not want a repeat of as they try to once again make a run at the SEC Championship and the college football playoffs.
At the close of spring portal and spring practices, it looks like Ty Simpson will get the ball as the starting quarterback for Alabama to start the 2025-26 season when they open up against Florida State in August in Tallahassee, FL.
Their biggest losses this year were OT Elijah Pritchett, DL Damon Payne, and RB Justice Haynes.
However, they add WR Isaiah Horton, LB Nikhai Hill-Green, and CB Cameron Calhoun.
Alabama has talent, but with rebuilding with a new coach, they have to put the pieces together to have a chance at being a playoff-contending team.
9-4 (5-3 in Conference Play)
Coming off a 9-4 season (5-3 in conference play), LSU will be returning a lot of their top talent in Heisman front-runner Garrett Nussmeier, Whit Weeks, Harold Perkins Jr., Aaron Anderson, and Caden Durham.
Along with returning players, the Tigers were aggressive in the transfer portal as well, acquiring AJ Haulcy, Patrick Payton, Mansoor Delane, Bernard Gooden, and Jack Pyburn to upgrade their defense. They also added Nic Anderson, Barion Brown, Destyn Hill, and Bauer Sharp to their offense. All of that combined for the No.1 transfer portal class in the nation.
Head Coach Brian Kelly and the LSU Tigers are much higher on the SEC power rankings heading into 2025, and if there was any season for Kelly to prove himself and make a run at the college football playoffs, he needs to do it this year.
11-3 (6-2 in Conference Play), SEC Conference Champions 2024
After winning the SEC Title in 2024, the Georgia Bulldogs are once again coming into 2025-26 as a top contender and are expected to make a run once again at the SEC Championship game.
The Bulldogs did see 13 players drafted in the 2025 NFL Draft, however the Bulldogs are expected to rebuild quickly as they added Noah Thomas and Zachariah Branch to the outsides of their offense.
They will be looking for Gunner Stockton to develop and progress quickly. But in the little playing time he has had, he has shown upside and promise.
The 2024 SEC Champions are poised to come out strong again in 2025.
13-3 (7-1 in Conference Play)
While the University of Texas Longhorns were defeated 22-19 in the SEC Championship game by the Georgia Bulldogs and ended up being defeated by Ohio State in the college football playoff semifinal game, the Longhorns are the No. 1 team in the power rankings once again coming into 2025.
Arch Manning will be the starter for the Longhorns. He has already shown a ton of promise and is a player the Longhorns are excited about, along with their fans. He will now have Ryan Wingo and an elite wide receiver room to throw to as well.
On the other side of the ball, the defensive front returns incredibly strong defensively linemen in Anthony Hill, Collin Simmons, Trey Moore, and Ethan Burke.
Texas is poised to once again make it to the top of the SEC and make an appearance in the SEC Championship game and the college football playoff in 2025.
As we enter mid-May, we are just over three months away from the start of the 2025 college football season. We will see if these power rankings hold, who the secret surprisers are, and who will ultimately be crowned champion of the SEC and champion of the college football playoffs next winter.