College football winners and losers: Week 9 was Separation Saturday in the SEC as the real playoff contenders emerged Nick BrombergOctober 26, 2025 at 4:16 AM 0 We learned a lot about the SEC in Week 9.
- - College football winners and losers: Week 9 was Separation Saturday in the SEC as the real playoff contenders emerged
Nick BrombergOctober 26, 2025 at 4:16 AM
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We learned a lot about the SEC in Week 9.
Saturday gave us a much clearer picture of who the conference's real playoff contenders are this season. LSU? Sorry, you're out of the playoff mix. Vanderbilt? Yeah, you still have a real chance.
With five weeks to go in the 2025 regular season, the SEC is in line to get as many as five teams in the 12-team field. Four of them look like pretty safe bets. Who could be that fifth team?
We did our best to figure out who has the best playoff chances entering November. And don't worry, Texas A&M fans, all tiers are in alphabetical order.
The safest playoff bets
Alabama (7-1, 5-0)
Remaining games: vs. LSU, vs. Oklahoma, vs. Eastern Illinois, at Auburn
The Crimson Tide are building up some callouses this season. After a clutch win at Missouri, Alabama came back in the fourth quarter to beat South Carolina on Saturday. The Tide scored 15 points in the final 2:16 after recovering a LaNorris Sellers fumble following a game-tying TD.
Alabama could afford a loss over its final four games and still make the SEC title game. The Tide are favorites to win the SEC for a reason and could have a spot in Atlanta clinched with wins over LSU and Oklahoma.
Georgia (6-1, 4-1)
Remaining games: vs. Florida, at Mississippi State, vs. Texas, vs. Charlotte, vs. Georgia Tech
Yeah, we're putting Georgia in this category even though the Bulldogs have five games remaining and two of them are against ranked opponents. Even though Georgia hasn't looked especially convincing at times in 2025, the Bulldogs will be favored in all five of these matchups even if Georgia Tech enters at 11-0. Given the way Texas has been playing lately, that game against the Longhorns could be the ultimate chaos matchup.
Ole Miss (7-1, 4-1)
Remaining games: vs. South Carolina, vs. The Citadel, vs. Florida, at Mississippi State
Outside of Texas A&M, the Rebels are the easiest SEC team to pencil in the playoff after Week 9. Ole Miss doesn't have a ranked team remaining on its schedule, has three of its final four games at home and its remaining SEC opponents have a combined conference record of 3-11. Ole Miss will make the playoff at 10-2, and if the Rebels go 2-2 over this final stretch, they don't deserve to make the playoff anyway.
Texas A&M (8-0, 5-0 SEC)
Remaining games: at Missouri, vs. South Carolina, vs. Samford, at Texas
The Aggies are one of the best teams in the country. Full stop. A&M put that on full display in Baton Rouge on Saturday night as QB Marcel Reed ran wild on LSU for the second straight season.
The win over LSU means Texas A&M keeps pace with Alabama atop the conference and also has the biggest November margin for playoff error of any team in the SEC. The Aggies could potentially go to both Mizzou and Texas and lose and still have a very strong playoff case.
Marcel Reed and Texas A&M blasted LSU in Baton Rouge on Saturday night. (Tyler Kaufman/Getty Images) (Tyler Kaufman via Getty Images)Still some work to do
Vanderbilt (7-1, 3-1)
Remaining games: at Texas, vs. Auburn, vs. Kentucky, at Tennessee
You may look at the final score of Vanderbilt's 17-10 win over Missouri on Saturday and think it was a boring game. It was anything but, as Missouri came within inches of scoring on a Hail Mary as time expired. We don't need any more proof that Vanderbilt is legit, but it'll be hard to dispute their playoff bonafides with a win at Texas in Week 10. If Vanderbilt goes 3-1 over its final four games, it should make the playoff. What a college football world we're living in.
No margin for error
Missouri (6-2, 2-2)
Remaining games: vs. Texas A&M, vs. Mississippi State, at Oklahoma, at Arkansas
The Tigers probably have the smallest shot of any of the teams in this group after QB Beau Pribula suffered a significant lower left leg injury in the loss to Vanderbilt. True freshman QB Matt Zollers wasn't overwhelmed after replacing Pribula, but he also started the season as the Tigers' No. 3 QB. Can you count on a true freshman leading you to a 4-0 campaign in November in the midst of a playoff push? Mizzou is about to find out.
Oklahoma (6-2, 2-2)
Remaining games: at Tennessee, at Alabama, vs. Missouri, vs. LSU
The Sooners have to be hoping that John Mateer gets back to his early-season self sooner rather than later. Mateer hasn't been the same since returning from hand surgery and the Sooners have the toughest remaining schedule of any playoff hopeful in the SEC. Oklahoma has the defense to get to the playoff. But the offense has to get out of neutral.
Tennessee (6-2, 3-2)
Remaining games: vs. Oklahoma, vs. New Mexico State, at Florida, vs. Vanderbilt
The Volunteers are the opposite case. Tennessee has a playoff-caliber offense. The defense couldn't stop a boulder rolling up a hill. With losses to Georgia and Alabama, Tennessee would look awfully intriguing to the playoff committee at 10-2 if it won out and had the head-to-head tiebreaker with Vanderbilt.
Texas (6-2, 3-1)
Remaining games: vs. Vanderbilt, at Georgia, vs. Arkansas, vs. Texas A&M
Texas has been living on the edge the last two weeks as it fights for its playoff life. Even if Texas finishes the season at 9-3 with losses to Ohio State and Georgia (or Texas A&M), can the committee really view the Longhorns favorably with overtime wins over Kentucky and Mississippi State? We don't think so. Texas needs to win out.
The playoff is an afterthought
LSU (5-3, 2-3)
Remaining games: at Alabama, vs. Arkansas, vs. Western Kentucky, at Oklahoma
Even if the Tigers were to win out and finish 9-3, it's hard to see the playoff committee giving this LSU team much consideration. That Week 1 win over Clemson doesn't look nearly as good as we approach November and three losses to ranked SEC opponents would have to outweigh two wins against ranked teams. And besides, do you really trust this LSU team to win on the road at Alabama and Oklahoma? We sure don't.
Winners
Memphis: The Tigers scored a 34-31 win over No. 18 South Florida to bounce back from an upset loss at UAB. Brendon Lewis started against the Bulls after leaving the USF game because of a lower-leg injury and threw for 307 yards and two touchdowns. His second TD came with 1:07 to go when he found Cortez Braham Jr. for the go-ahead TD.
WHAT A CATCH TO TAKE THE LEAD 😱Memphis has No. 18 USF on the ropes, watch the final seconds on ESPN2 and the ESPN App 👀 https://t.co/Nz7AG4DFyf pic.twitter.com/Ju8Y33350M
— ESPN (@espn) October 25, 2025
The Tigers are 7-1 and in a four-way tie for third place behind Navy and Tulane in the American. The Tigers play at Rice in Week 10 before hosting the Green Wave in Week 11.
North Texas QB Drew Mestemaker: The Mean Green QB became just the 22nd QB in FBS history to throw for over 600 yards when he threw for 608 yards in North Texas' 54-20 win over Charlotte on Friday night. Mestemaker was 37 of 49 and threw four touchdowns with just one interception. The Mean Green led 27-20 entering the fourth quarter before scoring 27 straight to end the game. North Texas is now 7-1 and can get back into the thick of the American Conference title race with a win against Navy in Week 10.
Auburn: Hugh Freeze can breathe a little easier about his job status after the Tigers' comeback win against Arkansas. After trailing 21-10 at halftime, the Tigers outscored Arkansas 23-3 in the second half on the way to a 33-24 win for their first SEC victory of the season. Auburn ran the ball 50 times for 230 yards as QBs Jackson Arnold and Ashton Daniels combined to throw just 20 passes. Daniels replaced Arnold after Arnold threw a pick-six in the second quarter, but Freeze wouldn't commit to his Week 10 starting quarterback immediately after the game.
Wake Forest: The Demon Deacons ensured that SMU would not go undefeated in ACC play for a second straight season. Connor Calvert snuck in a 50-yard field goal as time expired for a 13-12 Wake Forest win.
AND A HAPPY HOMECOMING TO ALL 🎩 pic.twitter.com/x8mWm81Qsn
— Wake Forest Football (@WakeFB) October 25, 2025
The Demon Deacons improbably won the game after committing five turnovers. QB Deshawn Purdie threw two interceptions and fumbled once. Wake also fumbled a punt and fumbled with less than two minutes to go at the SMU 6-yard line.
SMU turned the ball over three times and was just 4-of-17 on third downs. Wake Forest wasn't much better at 6-of-18. But hey, a win's a win, and now the Demon Deacons are a victory away from bowl eligibility in coach Jake Dickert's first season.
Delaware and Missouri State: The two FBS newcomers are proving not to be pushovers in Conference USA. Delaware beat Middle Tennessee 31-28 on Wednesday night while Missouri State got a 24-17 overtime win at New Mexico State. Both teams sit at 4-3 overall and are in position to make a bowl game with just two more victories over the final five weeks of the season.
Losers
North Carolina: The Tar Heels are getting very good at finding new ways to come up short at the goal line. Saturday, Kobe Paysour fumbled before he got to the end zone and then Benjamin Hall was stopped less than a foot short of the goal line on a 2-point conversion in UNC's 17-16 overtime loss to Virginia.
North Carolina is now 2-5 overall and 0-3 in the ACC. Their remaining five opponents have each lost at least two games, so there's a chance for Bill Belichick's squad to sneak out a win or two. But the Tar Heels are going to have to stop making self-inflicted mistakes first.
Kansas: The Jayhawks are in a rut against Kansas State. KU was favored at home against their in-state rival and promptly got blown out 42-17 even though KSU fumbled the opening kickoff. The victory was Kansas State's 17th straight over Kansas as QB Avery Johnson had 231 passing yards and four total touchdowns. Both teams are now 4-4 overall and Kansas State is 3-2 in conference play. Don't rule the Wildcats out of the Big 12 race just yet.
Purdue: Did the Boilermakers just lose their best chance at a Big Ten win? Rutgers got two field goals in the final 70 seconds to get a 27-24 win at Purdue on Saturday. After Jai Patel hit a 20-yard field goal with 1:06 to go, Purdue QB Ryan Browne caught his own pass of a deflection and promptly fumbled to set up Patel for the game-winning kick.
Rutgers tips the pass and then forces the fumble, giving them the ball in Purdue territory! 👉 https://t.co/15or2lo0Z8 pic.twitter.com/EhhXjXf9iG
— Rutgers Scarlet Knights | The Knight Report (@RutgersOn3) October 25, 2025
Purdue is now 2-6 overall and 0-5 in the Big Ten. Their remaining four games are against Michigan, Ohio State, Washington and Indiana. The odds are very, very good that Purdue will go 0-9 in conference play for a second straight season.
Minnesota: The Golden Gophers were absolutely blitzed by Iowa. The Hawkeyes scored 31 points in the first half on the way to a 41-3 win in quite the variety of ways. Iowa scored on a 34-yard pick-six by Zach Luther, a 29-yard pass from Mark Gronowski to Reece Vander Zee — yes, Iowa had a long TD pass — and Kaden Wetjen returned a punt 50 yards for a touchdown.
Oh, all of that happened in the first 20 minutes of the game, too.
Minnesota finished with just 133 yards of offense and 24 rushing yards on 25 carries as QB Drake Lindsey threw three interceptions. He had thrown three picks total through the first six games of the season.
Source: "AOL Sports"
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