SEC Week 11: No. 8 Texas heads into Death Valley as No. 24 LSU fights to snap a 3-loss slide

SEC Week 11: No. 8 Texas heads into Death Valley as No. 24 LSU fights to snap a 3-loss slideBy MAURA CAREY Thu, November 12, 2026 at 11:10 AM UTC

Things to watch this week in the Southeastern Conference:

Game of the week

No. 8 Texas (7-2, 4-2 SEC, No. 6 CFP) at No. 24 LSU (6-3, 3-3, No. 21 CFP), Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET (ABC)

An LSU team desperate for a win hosts a Texas team with momentum.

LSU is coming off a 31-13 home loss to Alabama. A three-loss playoff team isn’t out of the question, but a win over a top-10 team would certainly help.

Texas is comfortably in the playoff picture in the College Football Playoff committee’s most recent rankings following a 34-20 win over Missouri. Arch Manning had one of his best games on Saturday, throwing for 297 yards and three touchdowns. But the pressure goes up this weekend for Manning, who will need to be on the run from an LSU pass rush that ranks third nationally in sacks (36) this season.

LSU, looking to avoid back-to-back home losses for the first time since 2016, is a 4-point favorite.

The undercard

Missouri (6-3, 3-3, No. 22 CFP) at No. 1 Georgia (8-1, 6-1, No. 1 CFP), Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (ABC, Disney+)

Georgia used its 42-7 Week 10 rout of Ole Miss to jump to No. 1 status in the AP Top 25 and CFP rankings, and looks like the most complete team in the country right now.

Things tend to go well for Mizzou when it can get a rushing attack with Jamal Roberts going, but that’s been easier said than done in losses to Ole Miss and Texas — two of the three times he was held under 70 rushing yards this season. Ahmad Hardy is also back for the Tigers after recovering from a gunshot wound, though the 2025 standout has seen limited snaps since returning.

Georgia has been efficient in stopping the run, holding opponents to the fewest rushing yards per game (83.8) in the conference.

The top-ranked Bulldogs are a 14-point favorite.

Impact players

— Georgia receiver Talyn Taylor comes off a breakout performance, catching four passes for 130 yards and three touchdowns in the win over Ole Miss.

— Tennessee linebacker Arion Carter made 13 tackles, 10 solo, and finished with two sacks and four tackles for loss in the 34-6 win over Kentucky.

— Alabama quarterback Keelon Russell fought through an ankle injury and threw for 206 yards and three second-half touchdowns to lead the Crimson Tide to a 31-13 win over LSU.

A look at the numbers

Nine SEC teams made the CFP rankings on Tuesday night, and five are currently in position to make the playoff: Georgia (1), Alabama (3), Texas (6), Tennessee (8) and Kentucky (11). ... The Bulldogs have the highest-scoring offense in the conference (41.1 ppg) and fifth-highest nationally. ... Missouri has the conference's leading rusher (Jamal Roberts, 119 ypg) and leading receiver (Cayden Lee, 92.78 ypg). ... Florida's Jaden Baugh remains atop the conference with 9.33 points scored per game.

So long, SEC championship

The SEC was quick to announce that this year would seee the 35th and final conference championship game following the 24-team CFP expansion announcement. Georgia and Alabama could be on a collision course to meet again, though there are other two-loss SEC teams in Texas, Kentucky and Tennessee (which beat Alabama).

Alabama has 11 SEC titles, seven belong to Florida and Georgia has the third-most with six. Eleven of the past 12 championships have belonged to Alabama or Georgia, with LSU in 2019 as the outlier.

Source: Sports