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It’s the year SEC fans have been waiting for. Oklahoma and Texas finally join the conference and add even more to an already existing power. The Longhorns made it to last year’s College Football Playoff, though they were eliminated by Washington in the national semifinals. The same happened to Alabama, a loser to eventual national champion Michigan.
A year later, the SEC is even more loaded and could have as many as four entrants in the new CFP 12-team field. The conference will have plenty of opportunities to play for a NCAA championship. Georgia, Texas, Ole Miss, and Alabama are all among the SEC favorites to make the playoffs. LSU, Tennessee, and Missouri are right on the fringe and could be right in the thick of the race near the end of the regular season.
One thing that will be missing from the SEC this season is Nick Saban. For the first time since 2006, Alabama will have a head coach not named Saban. Kalen DeBoer, who led Washington to last year’s national championship game, takes over in Tuscaloosa. DeBoer won’t be the only new coach in the SEC. Jeff Libbey brings the Air Raid back to Starkville and Mississippi State. Mike Elko takes over at Texas A&M and will attempt to help the Aggies forget the whole Jimbo Fisher fiasco.
SEC teams will play an eight-game regular season schedule. As is the trend, the SEC will no longer have divisions. The top two teams in the conference standings at the end of the season will play for the SEC title. Scores & Stats will bring you all of the NCAA football odds, including those in the SEC, all season long and through the College Football Playoff. You will also find the best college football picks in the industry right here from the top CFB betting experts in the industry.
SEC Conference Realignment
The big moves, of course, involved Texas and Oklahoma moving into the SEC from the Big 12. The two college football bluebloods had announced they were moving to the SEC back in July of 2021. With the moves now official, the SEC now has 16 teams. Expect at least 11 of those teams to play in bowl games this season. The conference also has a number of teams favored to make the new 12-team playoff.
With 16 teams in the conference now and eight regular season games, scheduling will play a role in a season’s outcome. Take Elko and Texas A&M as an example. The Aggies, who finished 7-6 (4-4 in SEC) last season, avoid playing Georgia, Alabama, Ole Miss, and Tennessee this season. Last year, six teams in the SEC finished with losing records. Texas A&M plays five of them this season.
2024 SEC Conference Odds
Check out the latest SEC conference odds, courtesy of the top sports betting sites:
| SEC Conference Teams | Conference Odds | Total Wins | Make Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Georgia Bulldogs | +180 | O/U 10.5 Wins | Y(-600)/N(-400) |
| Texas Longhorns | +300 | O/U 10.5 Wins | Y(-220)/N(+170) |
| Mississippi Rebels | +650 | O/U 9.5 Wins | Y(-130)/N(+100) |
| Alabama Crimson Tide | +750 | O/U 9.5 Wins | Y(+110)/N(-140) |
| LSU Tigers | +900 | O/U 9.5 Wins | Y(+120)/N(-150) |
| Tennessee Volunteers | +1100 | O/U 8.5 Wins | Y(+200)/N(-250) |
| Missouri Tigers | +1400 | O/U 9.5 Wins | Y(+175)/N(NA-225) |
| Texas A&M Aggies | +1500 | O/U 8.5 Wins | Y(+260)/N(-350) |
| Oklahoma Sooners | +3000 | O/U 7.5 Wins | Y(+500)/N(-800) |
| Auburn Tigers | +5000 | O/U 7.5 Wins | Y(+700)/N(-1200) |
| South Carolina Gamecocks | +8000 | O/U 5.5 Wins | Y(+1200)/N(-3000) |
| Kentucky Wildcats | +10000 | O/U 6.5 Wins | Y(+1000)/N(-2200) |
| Florida Gators | +12500 | O/U 4.5 Wins | Y(+1800)/N(-15000) |
| Arkansas Razorbacks | +15000 | O/U 4.5 Wins | Y(+2500)/N(-30000) |
| Mississippi State Bulldogs | +25000 | O/U 3.5 Wins | Y(+3300)/N(-50000) |
| Vanderbilt Commodores | +50000 | O/U 2.5 Wins | Y(+10000)/N(NA) |
Who Wins the 2024 SEC Football Championship?
Georgia or Alabama has played for an SEC championship in every season since 2014. The 2024 race should welcome a few new programs to the mix. Texas is fresh off a trip to the College Football Playoff and returns a number of key players, including QB Quinn Ewers. Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss continue to bash SEC defenses and this could be the year the Rebels turn the corner into the nation’s elite.
Georgia will once again be the favorite to capture this year’s SEC title. Texas, Alabama, Ole Miss, and LSU are all given better than +1000 odds to win it. It should be an exciting season in the SEC. Alabama will face LSU on Nov. 9, the same day Georgia is at Ole Miss. The following week, Tennessee plays between the hedges at Georgia. Alabama plays at Oklahoma on Nov. 23. All of those late season games will determine who plays for the conference title.
Georgia +180
- Head coach: Kirby Smart
- 2023 Record: 13-1 (8-0)
Georgia’s attempt at three straight national titles was derailed by Alabama in the SEC title game last season. Once again, head coach Kirby Smart will have a shot at the conference crown as well as a national championship. Smart will return nine starters on offense, including QB Carson Beck who threw for 3,941 yards and 24 touchdowns last season. The defense, always one of the best in the country, returns six starters.
The Bulldogs start the season against rival Clemson on Aug. 31 and then have one of the tougher SEC schedules. Georgia will play on the road against Alabama and Texas. With the Bulldogs experience and depth, they should be right in the thick of the conference race. Another solid season will almost assuredly put Georgia in the 12-team playoff come December.
Texas +300
- Head coach: Steve Sarkisian
- 2023 Record: 12-2 (8-1)
A mid-season four-point loss to Oklahoma was the only blemish on Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian’s 2023 regular season. Texas went on to capture the Big 12 title and a berth in the College Football Playoff. The Longhorns return five starters to one of the nation’s top offenses. Ewers is back to lead the offense along with four starters on the offensive line.
The defense welcomes back seven players from a unit that finished third in the country against the run. The Longhorns also added last year’s AAC Defensive Player of the Year, Trey Moore (third in the nation in sacks with 13), from the transfer portal. An Oct. 19 showdown with Georgia will go a long way in determining whether or not the Longhorns play for a conference championship.
Ole Miss +650
- Head coach: Lane Kiffin
- 2023 Record: 11-2 (6-2)
Kiffin has quietly put together a nice three-season run – 29-10 – including last year’s 11-2 mark. The only losses were to Alabama and Georgia. The offense averaged over 35 points a game and the defense was respectable. Kiffin will have seven returning starters on offense. That includes QB Jaxson Dart (3,364 passing yards, 24 TDs) and Mackey Award candidate TE Caden Prieskorn.
If Kiffin and defensive coordinator Pete Golding can retool the defense, Ole Miss has a great opportunity to play for an SEC title and make the playoffs. The Rebels don’t play Alabama, Tennessee, or Missouri and they get Georgia at home on Nov. 9. That could be the recipe for a season that puts Kiffin and Ole Miss into a conference title game as well as the CFP.
2024 SEC Football Championship Prediction
As loaded as the SEC is, the one thing that will help determine this year’s champion is the schedule. Georgia, of course, is the overall favorite, but the Bulldogs have one of the tougher schedules among teams favored to win the conference championship. The one favorite that gets a gift from the schedule gods is Texas. The Longhorns won’t play Alabama, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Missouri, or LSU and that gives Texas great value.
Bet: Texas +300Will Any SEC Football Teams Make the Playoffs?
A better question might be ‘how many SEC teams make the playoffs?’ The conference is loaded and the two teams that play for the conference title are likely in the CFP. If it plays out like it should, that could be Georgia and Texas. There will most likely be room for a third team. In last year’s final regular season rankings, three SEC teams were in the top 10 with Missouri at No. 11. That is to be expected again in 2024. The question is which team? We’ll give the edge to Ole Miss.
Bet: Ole Miss to Make the Playoffs (-130)The Best SEC Football Teams Overs
Head coach Eli Drinkwitz is using the powers of the force to turn the Missouri program around. The Tigers went 11-2 last season and won the Cotton Bowl. They’ll return QB Brady Cook and one of the best receivers in the country in Luther Burden (86-1,212-9). The defense returns five starters and the Tigers ranked in the top-50 in most defensive categories. Missouri also avoids Georgia and Texas and plays four of the SEC’s bottom feeders from a year ago.
Bet: Missouri Over 9.5 WinsAs mentioned earlier, there were six teams in the SEC that finished with losing records last season. In 2024, Texas A&M gets the benefit of playing five of those teams. The Aggies also have non-conference games against FCS McNeese, Bowling Green, and New Mexico State. A top-40 defense is only going to get better under Elko and that should take the Aggies Over their win total.
Bet: Texas A&M Over 8.5 WinsThe Best SEC Football Teams Unders
Welcome to the SEC! On the heels of a 10-3 finish in their final season in the Big 12, Oklahoma will be hard pressed to win eight games in 2024. They’ll get four – Temple, Houston, Tulane, and Maine – barring a major upset. The rest of the schedule? The Red River War (Texas) on Oct. 12. At Ole Miss, at Missouri, and at LSU and then a home date with Alabama on Nov. 23. The Sooners have no returning quarterback and not one starter returns on the offensive line.
Bet: Oklahoma Under 7.5 WinsSouth Carolina head coach Shane Beamer has had some moments with the Gamecocks. Unfortunately, too many of those moments have resulted in losses. After two winning seasons, South Carolina dropped to 5-7 last year. The Gamecocks must replace all of their skill position starters and the defense gave up 31 points a game through the first nine a year ago. Six starters are back, but the schedule is rough. Ole Miss, at Alabama, at Oklahoma, and Missouri at home in November.
Bet: South Carolina Under 5.5 WinsThe SEC Football Team Sleeper
The one program that really hasn’t been mentioned much is the one that could be the biggest surprise. LSU went 10-3 last season and led the nation in scoring (45.5 ppg) and total offense (543.5). They produced the Heisman Trophy winner – QB Jayden Daniels – and, if not for a suspect defense, the Tigers would have had a much better shot at playing for a conference title.
Head coach Brian Kelly addressed the defense in the offseason, firing most of the defensive staff. New coordinator Blake Baker will have six starters to work with. On offense, Garrett Nussmeier, who threw for 395 yards and three touchdowns in the bowl win over Wisconsin, takes over at quarterback. Four offensive line starters return and CJ Daniels, the No. 2 receiver in Conference USA last season, has transferred in.
SEC Heisman Watch
The conference has produced four of the last five Heisman Trophy winners. The SEC could make it two in a row and five of the last six. Looking at the latest Heisman Trophy odds, you’ll find five of the top six contenders on the board are all from SEC teams. Quarterbacks, of course, dominate the award and all five of the SEC’s top contenders play the position.
Georgia’s Beck and Ewers of Texas are the top contenders for the SEC. Dart at Ole Miss, Jalen Milroe of Alabama, and new starter Nico Iamaleava round out the top six. The only non-SEC player among the top six is Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel. The Heisman race is almost always affected by how well (or poorly) a team plays throughout the season. Look for the quarterbacks of the teams playing for the SEC title to be the favorites to win the award at season’s end.
