In Week 5, the SEC took part in some of Saturday’s most notable games. Florida fell for the first time in 2026 in a rout at Missouri, Alabama demolished Mississippi State on the road and Kentucky won an overtime thriller at South Carolina. Now, the Alligator’s Florida football beat reporters, Ava DiCecca, Max Bernstein, Curan Ahern and Riley Orovitz, are back to make picks for this week’s seven-game slate.
Each reporter earns a point for a correct pick and three bonus points if they predict the score accurately.
Here’s a look at the current standings from Weeks 1-5.
1: Curan Ahern - 61
T2: Ava DiCecca - 52
T2: Max Bernstein - 52
4: Riley Orovitz - 50
Now, here are the picks for all Week 6 SEC bouts, including multiple rivalry matchups and arguably the biggest conference battle thus far between two national championship contenders.
Texas A&M (3-2) at No. 14 Missouri (4-1)
Both Texas A&M and Missouri bounced back from Week 4 losses with massive Week 5 conference victories. The Aggies snapped their two-game skid with a 34-7 blowout win against Arkansas, while Missouri leaped up the top 25 rankings with a statement 45-17 win over then-No. 8 Florida. The Tigers dominated this series with a 7-2 record from 2002-14; Texas A&M has won the last three games by 21-plus points and has not trailed in any of those meetings.
DiCecca: Texas A&M 30, Missouri 27
Bernstein: Missouri 30, Texas A&M 23
Ahern: Missouri 27, Texas A&M 24
Orovitz: Missouri 28, Texas A&M 24
South Carolina (2-3) at No. 16 Florida (4-1)
While this game features two programs moving in opposite directions, Jon Sumrall’s Florida team will look to respond after its first loss during his tenure. The Gators were dominated in every aspect of the game in their 45-17 loss to then-No. 25 Missouri; South Carolina is on a three-game SEC skid and fell at home in a 35-34 overtime thriller to then-No. 24 Kentucky. Since 2016, Florida has a 6-2 record against the Gamecocks and has won four straight home meetings; SC hasn’t won in Gainesville since 2014.
DiCecca: Florida 48, South Carolina 24
Bernstein: Florida 41, South Carolina 21
Ahern: Florida 45, South Carolina 27
Orovitz: Florida 48, South Carolina 28
No. 1 Texas (4-0) vs. Oklahoma (2-2) — Dallas, Texas
Another chapter in one of college football’s most storied matchups will be written on Saturday in the 122nd Red River Rivalry game. Texas enters this game as the top-ranked team in the country with a feared defense led by Colin Simmons. Oklahoma, meanwhile, has limped through its last three games, losing to Michigan and Georgia and narrowly defeating New Mexico. Texas has won three of the last four games in this contest and has held OU to nine total points in those victories. Before that, the Sooners had won four straight.
DiCecca: Texas 31, Oklahoma 17
Bernstein: Texas 27, Oklahoma 13
Ahern: Texas 24, Oklahoma 14
Orovitz: Texas 28, Oklahoma 13
No. 9 Ole Miss (3-1) at Vanderbilt (3-2)
Both the Rebels and Commodores will look to bounce back off of losses when they battle in Nashville. Then-No. 4 Ole Miss was blown out 52-28 in The Swamp, but the Rebels remain a top-10-ranked team nationally thanks to their strong start to 2026. Vanderbilt, meanwhile, was defeated 38-14 at Georgia without starting QB Jared Curtis. Ole Miss has won five straight games in this series; Vanderbilt’s last win over the Rebels was in a 36-29 overtime bout at home in 2018.
DiCecca: Ole Miss 41, Vanderbilt 17
Bernstein: Ole Miss 35, Vanderbilt 23
Ahern: Ole Miss 38, Vanderbilt 20
Orovitz: Ole Miss 42, Vanderbilt 21
No. 15 Tennessee (4-1) at Arkansas (2-3)
Tennessee, fresh off a close loss at home to No. 1 Texas in Week 4, defeated Auburn 24-14 at home in Week 5. In that game, true freshman quarterback Faizon Brandon finished with zero passing yards and was benched for George MacIntyre. Arkansas, meanwhile, was crushed 34-7 by Texas A&M in College Station. However, UT has struggled in this series, losing four of the last five, including three upset defeats. Last year, the Vols narrowly defeated the Razorbacks 34-31 in Knoxville.
DiCecca: Tennessee 34, Arkansas 10
Bernstein: Tennessee 30, Arkansas 16
Ahern: Tennessee 35, Arkansas 17
Orovitz: Tennessee 28, Arkansas 7
No. 10 LSU (4-1) at Kentucky (4-1)
Both LSU and Kentucky have had strong starts to the 2026 season and both enter Saturday’s game on winning streaks. LSU has bounced back from its emotional loss to Ole Miss with back-to-back blowout wins over Texas A&M and McNeese. Kentucky, meanwhile, has won three consecutive games, including a road overtime win in South Carolina. The home team has won the last five games in this series. The last time the programs met, Kentucky defeated LSU 42-21 in 2021.
DiCecca: LSU 38, Kentucky 21
Bernstein: LSU 31, Kentucky 24
Ahern: LSU 35, Kentucky 27
Orovitz: LSU 35, Kentucky 31
No. 2 Georgia (5-0) at No. 6 Alabama (5-0)
To say this game is a massive one might be an understatement. Over the past three years, these sides have played four times, with ‘Bama holding a 3-1 advantage. UGA, however, bested the Tide 28-7 in the 2025 SEC Championship game. In the past 11 games between these teams since 2012, Alabama has a 9-2 record. Both teams enter Saturday’s matchup at Bryant-Denny Stadium red-hot; Georgia’s smallest margin of victory this season was 24 points, while Alabama hasn’t been held under 45 points once this season.
DiCecca: Georgia 35, Alabama 30
Bernstein: Alabama 30, Georgia 27
Ahern: Georgia 38, Alabama 35
Orovitz: Georgia 35, Alabama 32
Contact Ava DiCecca at adicecca@alligator.org. Follow her on X at @avadicecca24.
Contact Max Bernstein at mbernstein@alligator.org. Follow him on X at @maxbernstein23.
Contact Curan Ahern at cahern@alligator.org. Follow him on X at @CuranAhern.
Contact Riley Orovitz at rorovitz@alligator.org. Follow her on X at @rileyorovitz.
Ava DiCecca is a senior sports and media journalism student and a Fall 2026 sports editor and football beat reporter. Now in her fifth semester with The Alligator, she previously served as the Summer 2026 assistant sports editor, Spring 2026 sports editor, Gators volleyball beat reporter and an enterprise writer. In her free time, she watches Boston sports (Brad Marchand we still love you).
Max Bernstein is a fourth-year sports and media journalism major and sports management minor. This Fall, he is a Sports Editor and a Florida Gators and Jacksonville Jaguars reporter at The Alligator. Now in his ninth semester with The Alligator, Max previously served in roles including Digital Managing Editor, Sports Editor, Assistant Sports Editor and Football Reporter. He has also made appearances on the Paul Finebaum Show. In the rare moments Max isn't working, he's usually with his girlfriend Reese, watching sports with his fraternity brothers or missing his family and his two cats.
Curan is a senior sports journalism student in his sixth semester at The Alligator. He is currently a sports editor and football beat reporter for the Gators and the Jaguars. He previously served as a men's tennis and sports enterprise reporter, and he is pursuing a public relations minor.
Riley is a junior sports journalism student and a Fall 2026 sports editor and Gators football beat reporter. Currently in her third semester with The Alligator, she has previously covered Gators swim & dive and Gators gymnastics. She is an avid South Florida sports fan and enjoys playing/following all sports in her free time.
