One-loss Texas holds top spot amid two-loss conference chaos

ATHENS — Texas maintained its stronghold atop the AJC SEC Power Poll by virtue of being the only one-loss team amid relative chaos.

The Longhorns are still without a Top 25 win, but they added a semi-impressive 20-10 road win at Arkansas last Saturday.

The No. 2 spot is more contested, with Alabama edging Ole Miss, as those two teams gobbled up all the second- and third-place votes.

Georgia, on the heels of its impressive 31-17 win over Tennessee, was the unanimous pick of the nine AJC SEC Power Poll voters at No. 4.

The Vols, like Texas A&M sitting on the outside looking in of the most recent CFP field of 12 projections, took the No. 5 spot by mere votes over the Aggies.

In one sense, things are starting to shake out, and tiebreakers are becoming easier to figure.

Texas and Alabama are the most likely teams to play in the SEC Championship Game, with the Bulldogs and Texas A&M next in line should the Crimson Tide or Longhorns stumble.

The SEC schedule maker should be applauded in once sense for keeping plenty of fan bases engaged — six teams still have a shot at the league title game and CFP field with only two weeks left in the season.

But had Texas played Tennessee, Alabama or Ole Miss, things sure would have been easier to figure.

Games between Texas A&M and Georgia, Tennessee, Ole Miss or Alabama would have cleared more air.

Alas, there are winners and losers in every schedule model, and in this case the big loser was clarity.

Things could get even more confusing, and certainly frustrating, if a two-loss SEC team goes to the league championship game and losses.

What to do with a three-loss SEC Championship Game runner-up? Does a two-loss SEC team get bumped? If so, how to determine which one?

Head-to-head or schedule strength may or may not apply, depending on the latest whims of a CFP Selection committee that seems intent on valuing the loss column more than metrics or the “eye test.”

CFP committee chairman Warde Manuel is on record as saying that, putting teams in a side-by-side comparison for the sake of hypothesizing which would win is not within the groups “protocol.”

The AJC SEC Power Poll voters do not mind such hypotheticals, however, leading us to this week’s survey question:

Which SEC quarterback would you want leading your team down 7 with two minutes left?

Ryan Fowler, Tide 100.9 radio

“Jalen Milroe’s rushing ability is the reason I chose him, he creates a real dilemma for opposing defenses on which they are going to choose to defend him and this Crimson Tide offense. Plus his deep ball is one of the best in college football.”

Anwar Richardson, Texas Orange Bloods

“When Texas defeated Michigan on the road this season, it marked the eight-straight true road game victory for Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers dating back to 2022.

Ewers has thrown 15 TD passes with just one interception in those games. Three of the eight wins have come at top-15-ranked opponents’ stadiums and in those games, and he has completed 63 percent of his passes for 792 yards & eight TDs (0 INTs).

Here are the notable performances:

• at No. 10 Michigan (2024): 24-36-246-3/0

• at No. 3 Alabama (2023): 24-38-349/3/0

• at No. 13 Kansas State (2022): 18-31-197-2/0

• Total vs. Top-15 Teams: 66-105-792-8/0

For that reason, I will go with Ewers.

Josh Ward, Knoxville’s WNML-radio

“I would take Carson Beck because I trust his ability to make big throws down the field. Beck could be a prisoner-of-the-moment pick because of his performance against Tennessee, but Beck was my pick as the SEC’s top quarterback entering the season.

“It’s close for me between Beck and Jalen Milroe, who’s also proven to make clutch while possessing game-breaking speed.

“I’d be afraid of either guy if I had to stop one of them.”

Shehan Jeyarajah, CBS Sports

“In a year where the SEC’s quarterbacks aren’t quite covering themselves in glory, give me Vanderbilt’s Diego Pavia.

While Pavia may not possess the elite physical traits of other passers, his playmaking ability is off the charts. Vanderbilt hasn’t won all of them, but Pavia’s individual brilliance is the main reason why the Commodores have competed in all but one game this season, including masterful performances against Texas and Alabama.

Aaron Torres, Fox Sports Radio

“The answer seems easy – it’d be Quinn Ewers.

No the Texas signal-caller isn’t perfect. But he’s got experience (something the likes of DJ Lagway and Nico Iamaleava – who may be future answers to this question — don’t have right now. And Ewers isn’t reckless with the ball (cough, Carson Beck, cough).

Jaxson Dart, while talented, has been up and down all season and as we saw earlier this year, and if you can slow down Jalen Milroe on the ground, Alabama’s offense can be slowed.

Ewers isn’t perfect, but he’s the right QB in crunch time, in this league, in this moment.”

Kaylee Mansell, DawgNation

“With 2 minutes on the line I’ll take Jalen Milroe, because I saw with my own eyes what he did to Georgia with less than 2 minutes left in the Tide’s 41-34 win, producing the game-winning touchdown.

“You don’t ever want to face Milroe when he’s under pressure.”

Edgar Thompson, Orlando Sentinel

“Plenty of SEC QBs could get it done under the gun. Few if any have proven it.

“Carson Beck would have been my choice in September, but he has been too shaky. “I’ll go with big-play potential (Jalen Milroe) over steadiness and experience (Quinn Ewers).”

High rising team: How about those Florida Gators taking down LSU and chasing the Tigers out of SEC and CFP contention?

Florida took charge in the second half of their 27-16 win over LSU in The Swamp, creating anticipation of their showdown with Lane Kiffin and his Ole Miss Rebels this Saturday.

Taking a big fall: Georgia proved a rocky stop for the Tennessee players of Rocky Top, as they dropped a pivotal 31-17 decision.

The Vols tumbled from atop the SEC into the never-never land of the inexplicable CFP rankings, currently projected not to make the 12-team playoff despite a head-to-head win over the top-ranked two-loss team in the field, Alabama.

Here’s this week’s AJC SEC Power Poll

1. (1) Texas 144 points, Highest vote 1, Lowest vote 1

2. (4) Alabama 132 points, Highest vote 2, Lowest vote 3

3. (3) Ole Miss 129 points, Highest vote 2, Lowest vote 3

4. (5) Georgia 117 points, Highest vote 4, Lowest vote 4

5. (2) Tennessee 103 points, Highest vote 5, Lowest vote 7

6. (7) South Carolina 97 points, Highest vote 5, Lowest vote 7

7. (6) Texas A&M 96 points, Highest vote 5, Lowest vote 8

8. (12) Florida 69 points, Highest vote 8, Lowest vote 11

9. (9) Missouri 67 points, Highest vote 7, Lowest vote 12

10. (8) LSU 65 points, Highest vote 9, Lowest vote 11

11. (10) Vanderbilt 63 points, Highest vote 8, Lowest vote 12

12. (11) Arkansas 52 points, Highest vote 8, Lowest vote 12

13. (13) Oklahoma 32 points, Highest vote 13, Lowest vote 15

14. (14) Auburn 27 points, Highest vote 13, Lowest vote 15

15. (15) Kentucky 21 points, Highest vote 14, Lowest vote 16

16. (16) Mississippi State 10 points, Highest vote 15, Lowest vote 16

SEC Power poll voting panel

Chris Doering, SEC Network

Kaylee Mansell, DawgNation

Shehan Jeyarajah, CBS Sports

Edgar Thompson, Orlando Sentinel

Josh Ward, Knoxville WNML

Ryan Fowler, Tuscaloosa Tide-100.9

Anwar Richardson, Orange Bloods

Aaron Torres, Fox Sports Radio

Mike Griffith, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

This week’s SEC games

(Draft Kings Odds)

Ole Miss -10.5 at Florida, noon, ABC

UMass at Georgia -42, 12:45 p.m., SEC Network

UTEP at Tennessee -42, 1 p.m., SEC-Plus

Kentucky at Texas -21, 3:30 p.m., ABC

Louisiana Tech at Arkansas -22, 4 p.m., SEC-Plus

Wofford at South Carolina (no line), 4 p.m., SEC-Plus

Missouri -7.5 at Mississippi State, 4:15 p.m., SEC Network

Texas A&M -2.5 at Auburn, 7:30 p.m., ESPN

Alabama -13.5 at Oklahoma, 7:30 p.m., ABC

Vanderbilt at LSU -7.5, 7:45 p.m., SEC Network