SEC Playoff Picture Gets Murky After Week 10

By Brandon Daniel @Brandon_Rant on November 3, 2014

The new College Football Playoff is right around the corner, and the situation is far from settled for teams in the SEC. The season’s 10th week has made the playoff picture more cloudy and convoluted. The conference may only get one team into the playoff, and even that could be dicey depending on how the rest of the season shakes out.

The conference lost two of their one-loss teams this past week, one expectedly and the other not. The loser of the game between the Auburn Tigers and Ole Miss Rebels was a given, and the Rebels are the ones who took the L. The surprise of the weekend was watching the Georgia Bulldogs get manhandled by the Florida Gators and ending their control of the Eastern Division for the time being.

Now, there are very real scenarios where every SEC team ends up with at least a loss, and could very well have two losses by seasons’ end.

The Alabama Crimson Tide must still contend with the LSU Tigers this week, along with the undefeated Mississippi State Bulldogs and rival Auburn Tigers. Mississippi State, in addition to the Crimson Tide, must also travel to Oxford and face Ole Miss in the Egg Bowl. Auburn buried the Rebels for now, but they have the Texas A&M Aggies this week along with trips to Athens against the Bulldogs with Todd Gurley back, plus the Iron Bowl in Tuscaloosa against the Tide.

Things aren’t getting easier for the SEC, specifically in the West. It’s not out of the question that Mississippi State could drop its final two conference games and Auburn or Alabama both lose one more. This would become a nightmare for the Playoff Committee.

Do they, in their first year, put a two-loss SEC Champion into the final four? And if they do, can they withstand the inevitable tag of SEC bias that would come with that choice? Jeff Long could end up a wanted man across the nation. Or will they dare keep a two-loss champ out of the playoff, enduring the backlash that will come from the most passionate fanbase in the country?

If the Bulldogs of Mississippi State continue winning, this conversation becomes meaningless, but the scenarios are there on the table. In a season where nothing is as we expected, anything can happen — so be prepared for the unlikely as 2014 concludes.