The first edition of the 2023 College Football Playoff Rankings was revealed Tuesday night.
Tennessee came in at No. 17 in the poll, ranking sixth out of six SEC teams to crack the Top 25.
Take a look below to see where the rest of the five SEC teams ranked in the initial 2023 CFP poll.
No. 2 – Georgia
Georgia comes in at No. 2 in the initial CFP poll for the second consecutive year. Last year, they were behind No. 1 Tennessee. This year, they are behind No. 1 Ohio State.
Being disrespected tends to work well for the Bulldogs. Kirby Smart has a knack for firing up his teams ahead of big games, using any sort of media disrespect as a strong motivator.
As ESPN analyst Greg McElroy noted on Tuesday night’s rankings release show, Smart is probably happy his team is not number one.
“Kirby Smart is doing back flips right now.” — @GregMcElroy 😂 @GeorgiaFootball is ranked No. 2 in the CFP rankings 👀 pic.twitter.com/INiBstxBzi
— Always College Football (@AlwaysCFB) October 31, 2023
Georgia’s No. 2 ranking will likely only give the Bulldogs a chip on their shoulder moving forward as they have three big games coming up on the schedule against No. 12 Missouri, No. 10 Ole Miss and at No. 17 Tennessee.
No. 8 – Alabama
Alabama comes in at No. 8 in the poll as the third-ranked one-loss team. The Tide lost to No. 7 Texas back in Week 2 in Tuscaloosa, but Nick Saban’s squad has looked, for the most part, better since then.
Sure, Alabama looked sluggish against Arkansas and at South Florida, but a comeback win against Tennessee and an impressive win over No. 10 Ole Miss have the Tide rightfully inside the Top 10.
No. 10 – Ole Miss
After a poor finish to the 2022 season, Ole Miss has rebounded to look more like the 10-win 2021 team. Lane Kiffin’s group is currently 7-1 with a 4-1 SEC record, sitting at second in the SEC West.
Ole Miss’ big win came in a thrilling 55-49 home win over No. 14 LSU, and the Rebels seem well on their way to a 10-2 record as they should take care of everyone remaining on their schedule outside of No. 2 Georgia.
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No. 12 – Missouri
The biggest surprise in the SEC so far this season has been Missouri. The 7-1 (3-1 SEC) Tigers have great wins over Kansas State and Kentucky and were leading for the majority of the game against LSU, which is their only loss.
The Tigers are the seventh-ranked one-loss team out of eight total. Head coach Eli Drinkwitz already has the most wins in a season in his four-season tenure in Columbia. We’ll see if the Tigers can finish with 10 wins for the first time as a program since 2014. To do it, they’ll have to win three out of their next four at No. 2 Georgia, vs. No. 17 Tennessee, vs. Florida and at Arkansas.
No. 14 – LSU
The fifth-ranked SEC team and first ranked two-loss team in the poll is LSU.
The Tigers’ season began with a loss to No. 4 Florida State in Orlando and has since been up and down. Brian Kelly’s squad has a nice win over No. 12 Missouri but a loss to No. 10 Ole Miss, along with a poor performance against Arkansas.
There’s no denying LSU’s offense is one of the best in the country, and the Tigers have a big opportunity to make a statement this weekend in Tuscaloosa against No. 8 Alabama. LSU hasn’t knocked off the Crimson Tide in back-to-back years since 2010 and 2011.
