LSU, Ole Miss climb in SEC power rankings after Week 1 – Sooners Wire

The SEC went 16-0 in Week 1 of the 2026 season. It’s the first time the conference has gone undefeated on the opening weekend of the season since the 90s. Over the weekend, SEC teams outscored their opponents by 602 points or an average of 37.6 points per game.
There were impressive Power Four wins from LSU and Ole Miss, while Auburn survived Baylor. Most of the conference played Group of Six opponents and simply took care of business along the way.
As we dive into our first power rankings of the season, we’re taking into account the level of competition and giving credit to those teams that played someone in Week 1.
So, here’s our first SEC power rankings of the season.
Vanderbilt was one of the best stories over the last couple of seasons, but without Diego Pavia, I have concerns about what they look like moving forward. In their first game of the post-Pavia era, they struggled to move the ball against Austin Peay. The Commodores were just 4 of 12 on third down and had nine penalties for 73 yards in a 28-9 win.
Arkansas quarterback K.J. Jackson had a strong opener with 294 total yards and three touchdowns. Arkansas won comfortably, getting out to a 21-0 lead, but had three turnovers against North Alabama.
It was a strong debut for Will Stein and quarterback Kenny Minchey. Against Youngstown State, Minchey threw for 300 yards and four touchdowns.
Led by quarterback Kamario Taylor’s 413 yards of total offense and five touchdowns, the Mississippi State Bulldogs put 762 total yards on the board, including 345 rushing yards in their 62-13 win over Louisiana Monroe. The Bulldogs will put up number on offense. If they can get some stops on defense, they’ll be a problem.
The Missouri Tigers kicked off the 2026 SEC season on Thursday night with a dominant win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Austin Simmons was 17 of 19 for 252 yards and four touchdowns, and the Tigers only allowed 198 total yards in the win.
Jaden Baugh ran for 166 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Florida Gators past Florida Atlantic for a 66-21 win. The Gators’ defense allowed 25 first downs and nearly 400 yards of total offense, though.
South Carolina looked the part in their 57-0 win over Kent State. LaNorris Sellers was 19 of 23 for 270 yards and three touchdowns, and running back Jabree Coleman averaged 19.3 yards per carry with a pair of scores on just four carries.
Auburn held on to beat the Baylor Bears by one when Baylor head coach Dave Aranda elected to go for two instead of a game-tying extra point. D.J. Durkin’s defense is still really good. Alex Golesh’s offense may need some time to get going. Quarterback Byrum Brown threw three interceptions in his debut.
In his first career start, Faizon Brandon had 294 combined passing and rushing yards and five total touchdowns for the Tennessee Volunteers in their 59-6 win over Furman. If there’s some cause for concern, Furman ran for 179 yards on 4.9 yards per carry.
First-year starting quarterback Keelon Russell totaled 342 combined passing and rushing yards and had a rushing touchdown in his first career start as Alabama jumped out to a 38-7 halftime lead over East Carolina.
Texas A&M got off to a slow start in their win over Missouri State, scoring just nine points in the first quarter and 10 in the second. But they put together a much better second half with 31 to pull away for the dominant Week 1 win.
Oklahoma showed off an efficient and versatile attack in their win over UTEP. Three different pass catchers caught touchdowns (two more were wiped off the board due to penalties), and Oklahoma averaged 4.4 yards per carry. They’ll get a much different challenge next week when they take on the Michigan Wolverines.
Arch Manning threw for 305 yards and four touchdowns as the Longhorns beat Texas State 59-7. Will that offensive explosion translate next week against the Ohio State Buckeyes?
The defending SEC champions and our preseason No. 1 got off to a great start in their 63-3 win over Tennessee State. Gunner Stockton had one incompletion and running back Nate Frazier averaged 18 yards per carry with three touchdowns.
In Ole Miss’ regular season opener, the first under Pete Golding, they battled in an instant classic against the ACC’s Louisville. The two sides went back and forth in the fourth quarter, but Trinidad Chambliss and the Rebels got the last laugh with a game-winning field goal as time expired by kicker Lucas Carneiro.
LSU may be a controversial team right now, but you can’t diminish what they did to Clemson on Saturday night. That’s a dangerous team. Lane Kiffin’s Tigers had the most impressive win this weekend, beating Dabo Swinney and the Tigers 51-10 in a game that was over long before halftime.
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X (formerly known as Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow John on X@john9williams.

source