In the penultimate week of the college football season, this week’s Southeastern Conference schedule is always a dud.
However, there are a few games that have the potential to shape the national picture down the road.
The biggest game is in Norman between two ranked teams, while the other conference-on-conference games are teams fighting for pride and bowl eligibility.
Here are the things to watch in the SEC this week:
Game of the Week:
No. 22 Missouri (7-3, 3-3 SEC) at No. 8 Oklahoma (8-2, 4-2 SEC), Saturday, Noon ET/11 a.m. CT, ABC
The Tigers and the Sooners are featured in the biggest game of the SEC schedule this week, with the Sooners looking to keep their bid for a playoff spot intact.
The Sooners have a simple task down the stretch of the season — win the last two games and they’re the CFP — but it’s not that simple, with the ranked Tigers coming to town with the best running back in America and a top-20 defense.
Missouri’s Ahmad Hardy leads the nation in rushing yards with 1,346. He also has 15 rushing touchdowns and a 6.83 yards-per-carry average.
He’s been dominant, but will run into an Oklahoma rush defense that ranks fourth in the country in allowed rush yards per game with 82.2.
The Sooners have struggled offensively recently, despite beating Alabama and Tennessee on the road the past two weeks. Oklahoma beat Alabama with 212 yards last week — its fewest in a win since 2001.
The Sooners will look to get back on track offensively against Missouri’s defense that allows the 10th-fewest total yards in the country.
The Tigers will look to spoil the Sooners’ playoff chances with an upset this weekend.
What is Lane Kiffin going to do?
The drama behind Lane Kiffin’s coaching career has been well documented, but nothing could prepare you for what’s about to happen in the coming weeks with Kiffin’s future at Ole Miss.
Kiffin is the biggest coaching candidate for the vacant Florida and LSU jobs this cycle, and both are pursuing him heavily.
Kiffin’s family reportedly took visits to Gainesville, Florida, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, this week. He’s certainly not denying the interest to coach at those schools, but will he leave?
It’s unclear, and will be for some time as the Rebels are in the midst of an historic season, one that will be finished in the College Football Playoff, if they can beat Mississippi State next week in the Egg Bowl.
Could the conference get six teams in?
The possibility for the conference to get six teams in the CFP is dwindling, but it’s not out of the question with two weeks remaining in the regular season.
For right now, the SEC has five teams in the CFP — No. 3 Texas A&M, No. 4 Georgia, No. 6 Ole Miss, No. 8 Oklahoma and No. 10 Alabama.
The best possible way the SEC gets six teams in the CFP is through No. 17 Texas.
The Longhorns lost at Georgia last week and fell out of the top 12 in the playoff rankings, but have a chance to be the first three-team at-large CFP team if they can beat Texas A&M, who they play next week in Austin.
Another scenario involves complete chaos with No. 9 Notre Dame and a few other teams losing, which would allow No. 14 Vanderbilt to sneak in the playoffs, especially with a game against No. 20 Tennessee to end the season next week.
Both scenarios are unlikely, but it’s still an opportunity for the conference to establish dominance in college football.
