The NFL is a week-to-week league. So is the SEC. It didn't used to be that way. Fifteen years ago, the league had clear heavyweights at the top and the lightweights at the bottom. Sure, there were occasional upsets, but predicting week-to-week results was somewhat easy.
If the last few weeks of SEC play have taught us anything, it's don't overreact. After LSU beat Clemson in Week 1, some analysts proclaimed LSU the national champion. Then LSU lost to Ole Miss in Week 3, and suddenly Rebels QB Trinidad Chambliss was running away with the Heisman.
That same Ole Miss team lost to Florida in Week 4, and the attention shifted to Jadan Baugh and the Gators. On Saturday, Florida took a trip to Missouri and got throttled by Eli Drinkwitz's Tigers. Point
being, nobody knows anything.
We know Texas, Georgia, and Alabama are good. Good enough to win a national championship? I don't know yet. Alabama and Georgia meet in Week 6 -- that will tell us something.
The transfer portal has leveled the playing field. Every team in this league has a baseline of talent that can upset an SEC favorite on any given Saturday. Gleaning takeaways from that is hard. We'll try to do it anyway. Here are 6 things we learned about the SEC in Week 5.
Alabama is really, really good
Alabama wasn't happy with how its 2025 season ended. The Crimson Tide were blown out by Indiana in the Rose Bowl. The Hoosiers outplayed Kalen DeBoer's squad in every facet of the game. Alabama entered the offseason with questions.
Five weeks into 2026, Alabama is 5-0. Many of those questions have been answered. Alabama looks like a national title contender—a team capable of going blow for blow with anyone in the country.
Alabama QB Keelon Russell is living up to his five-star recruiting rating. He's a redshirt freshman in his first year as a starter, but he looks like a seasoned veteran. His pocket awareness is high-level; he steps up in the pocket rather than drifting back, and he knows exactly when to scramble vs. extending the play behind the line of scrimmage.
On defense, Alabama looks strong at all three levels. Alabama's front seven fit the run on Saturday, giving Mississippi State no space. Mississippi State's EPA/rush was -0.19, which was 16th percentile. True freshman linebacker Xavier Griffin looks like a budding star and registered six stops, per PFF.
Mississippi State isn't ready to make noise in the SEC
Mississippi State had a chance to make a statement vs. Alabama. Jeff Lebby's squad was 4-0, QB Kamario Taylor had taken the sport by storm, and Mississippi State was only a 5.5-point underdog at home. Even if the Bulldogs kept it close, the sport would have taken notice. That's not how it played out. Alabama jumped out to a 14-0 lead, and it was all Crimson Tide.
Taylor is a good quarterback, but he's not Superman, at least not yet. Taylor threw two picks and took five sacks. He wasn't accurate, missing a few easy completions.
In the trenches, Mississippi State didn't look close to being on Alabama's level. Alabama just has better players. Mississippi State is a good story, and Taylor is a fun watch, but this team isn't ready to scare the top of the SEC yet.
Florida isn't consistent enough to make the College Football Playoff
Florida was the talk of the sport after upsetting Ole Miss in Week 4. Head coach Jon Sumrall looked ready to lead the Gators to the playoff in year one, but Florida's loss to Missouri revealed some holes in this Gators team.
Florida allowed 560 total yards. Missouri's passing success rate was 61.3%. Both were the highest marks surrendered by SEC defenses in conference play this year. Down to down, Florida's run defense was fine, but the dam broke, and the Tigers hit a couple of big ones in the second half.
Florida's defense didn't look ready for primetime. Florida's roster is good, but it's hard for a year-one coach to build a flawless roster capable of week-to-week consistency.
Florida's playoff odds took a hit with this loss. Georgia and Texas both remain on the schedule, and I'm not sure Florida makes it at 9-3, especially with a crowded SEC field.
Eli Drinkwitz continues to raise the floor at Missouri
Missouri's upset of Florida was big, but the Tigers' College Football Playoff odds remain at just +700.
Missouri may not be a contender, and even if meaningful postseason football remains a long shot, this was a signature win for Eli Drinkwitz and Co. Missouri has become reliably consistent under Drinkwitz, beating up on lesser teams while typically losing to ranked SEC squads. There's something to be said for always winning the games you're supposed to win, but Drinkwitz raised the floor again on Saturday.
Fan bases remember wins like this; players do, too. A top-10-ranked team walked into Missouri, and Missouri beat them 45-17. Going 9-3, with a chance at 10 wins in the postseason, and a win like this on the resume leaves a much better taste than a run-of-the-mill 8-4.
LSU is finding depth
LSU faced an FCS opponent in Week 5 and beat McNeese 63-14. There was never any doubt that LSU would win the game, so LSU's primary goals were to stay healthy and find depth. LSU continued to see young players emerge. True freshman wideout Corey Barber led the team as the top receiver and caught two touchdowns. On defense, defensive tackle Deuce Geralds continued his freshman breakout while players like Jhase Thomas, Lamar Brown, and young linebackers got valuable reps.
LSU is dealing with several significant injuries, and the Tigers will need depth players to contribute as SEC play progresses.
Good year for QBs in the SEC
It's a good year for quarterbacks in this conference. We talked about what Russell did, but how about Missouri's Austin Simmons? Simmons is No. 3 in the SEC with 1,290 passing yards. He's thrown 13 touchdowns and hasn't thrown an interception.
In Athens, Gunner Stockton has been ole reliable and more. Stockton's 92.5 PFF offensive grade leads all SEC quarterbacks.
Say what you want about LSU QB Sam Leavitt, but he looks to be settling in and poised for a big second half. And of course, there's Arch Manning, the potential No. 1 overall pick in the 2027 NFL Draft.
This article originally appeared on LSU Wire: SEC Week Five Takeaways: Alabama is for real, Florida CFP hopes slip
