The 2017 Southeastern Conference football season was the 85th season of SEC football and took place during the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The season began on August 31 and will end with the 2017 SEC Championship Game on December 2. The SEC is a Power Five conference under the College Football Playoff format along with the Atlantic Coast Conference, the Big 12 Conference, the Big Ten Conference, and the Pac–12 Conference. For the 2017 season, the SEC has 14 teams divided into two divisions of seven each, named East and West.
Preseason
Recruiting classes + National Rankings Team ESPN Rivals Scout 24/7 Total SigneesAlabama #1 #1 #1 #1 29Arkansas #26 #24 #27 #27 27Auburn #9 #14 #11 #9 23Florida #13 #9 #10 #10 23Georgia #3 #3 #2 #3 25Kentucky #30 #26 #35 #31 24LSU #7 #8 #7 #7 23Ole Miss #36 #39 #29 #29 21Mississippi State #24 #27 #25 #24 24Missouri #54 #48 #40 #42 24South Carolina #19 #16 #21 #21 24Tennessee #15 #15 #16 #17 27Texas A&M #11 #10 #9 #12 27Vanderbilt #60 #57 #69 #65 20
SEC media days The SEC conducted its annual media days at the Hyatt Regency Birmingham – The Wynfrey Hotel in Hoover, Alabama between July 11 and July 14. The event commenced with a speech by commissioner Greg Sankey, and all 14 teams sent their head coaches and three selected players to speak with members of the media. The event along with all speakers and interviews were broadcast live on the SEC Network and streamed live on ESPN.com.
Preseason media polls The SEC Media Days concluded with its annual preseason media polls. Since 1992, the credentialed media has gotten the preseason champion correct just six times. Only nine times has the preseason pick even made it to the SEC title game. Below are the results of the media poll with total points received next to each school and first-place votes in parentheses.
SEC Champion Voting Alabama – 217 Auburn – 11 Georgia – 6 Florida – 3 LSU – 3 Texas A&M – 1 South Carolina – 1 Arkansas – 1 Vanderbilt – 1
West Division Alabama – 1,683 (225) Auburn – 1,329 (13) LSU – 1,262 (4) Arkansas – 796 (1) Texas A&M – 722 Mississippi State – 633 Ole Miss – 379
East Division Georgia – 1,572 (138) Florida – 1,526 (96) Tennessee – 998 (3) South Carolina – 897 (5) Kentucky – 869 Vanderbilt – 554 (1) Missouri - 388
References:
Preseason All-SEC Media + First Team Offense Position Player Class Team QB Jalen Hurts SO Alabama RB Derrius Guice JR LSU RB Nick Chubb SR Georgia WR Calvin Ridley JR Alabama WR Christian Kirk JR Texas A&M TE Isaac Nauta SO Georgia OL Braden Smith SR Auburn OL Martez Ivey JR Florida OL Jonah Williams SO Alabama OL Ross Pierschbacher JR Alabama C Frank Ragnow SR Arkansas
+ First Team Defense Position Player Class Team DL Daron Payne JR Alabama DL Da'Shawn Hand SR Alabama DL Trenton Thompson JR Georgia DL Marquis Haynes Sr Ole Miss LB Arden Key JR LSU LB Rashaan Evans SR Alabama LB Roquan Smith JR Georgia DB Minkah Fitzpatrick JR Alabama DB Ronnie Harrison JR Alabama DB Armani Watts JR Texas A&M DB Duke Dawson SR Florida
+ First Team Special Teams Position Player Class Team P J. K. Scott SR Alabama K Eddy Piñeiro JR Florida RS Evan Berry JR Tennessee AP Derrius Guice JR LSU
References:
Head coaches Note: All stats shown are before the beginning of the season. Team Head coach Years at school Overall record Record at school SEC recordAlabama Nick Saban 11 205–61–1 114–19 65–12Arkansas Bret Bielema 5 93–50 25–26 10–22Auburn Gus Malzahn 5 44–21 35–18 18–14Florida Jim McElwain 3 41–24 19–8 13–3Georgia Kirby Smart 2 8–5 8–5 4-4Kentucky Mark Stoops 5 19–30 19–30 8–24LSU Ed Orgeron 1 22–29 6–2 4–2Ole Miss Matt Luke 1 0–0 0–0 0–0Mississippi State Dan Mullen 9 61–42 61–42 29–35Missouri Barry Odom 2 4–8 4–8 2–6South Carolina Will Muschamp 2 34–28 6–7 3–5Tennessee Butch Jones 5 80–48 30–21 14–18Texas A&M Kevin Sumlin 6 79–38 44–21 21–19Vanderbilt Derek Mason 4 13–24 13–24 5–19
References:
Rankings + Legend Increase in ranking Decrease in ranking Not ranked previous week RV Received votes but were not ranked in Top 25 of poll
Pre Wk1 Wk2 Wk3 Wk4 Wk5 Wk6 Wk7 Wk8 Wk9 Wk10 Wk11 Wk12 Wk13 Wk14 FinalAlabama AP 1 (52) 1 (60) 1 (58) 1 (45) 1 (52) 1 (44) 1 (43) 1 (61) 1 (61) 1 (59) 1 (56) 1 (57) 1 (58) 5 4 C 1 (49) 1 (60) 1 (58) 1 (59) 1 (59) 1 (58) 1 (57) 1 (63) 1 (64) 1 (65) 1 (64) 1 (63) 1 (64) 5 4 CFP Not released 2 2 1 1 5 4 Arkansas AP C RV RV RV RV CFP Not released Auburn AP 12 13 15 15 13 12 10 21 19 16 10 6 6 4 7 C 13 13 17 16 15 13 11 21 19 15 10 6 6 4 (4) 8 CFP Not released 14 10 6 6 2 7 Florida AP 17 22 24 20 21 21 RV C 16 24 25 22 20 20 RV RV RV CFP Not released Georgia AP 15 15 13 11 7 5 4 3 3 2 (2) 2 (5) 7 7 6 3 C 15 15 13 12 8 6 5 3 3 2 2 (1) 7 7 6 3 (2) CFP Not released 1 1 7 7 6 3 Kentucky AP RV RV RV RV C RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV CFP Not released LSU AP 13 12 12 25 25 RV 24 23 19 RV 21 19 17 16 C 12 12 11 23 22 RV 25 23 20 25 21 18 16 14 CFP Not released 19 24 20 18 17 17 Mississippi State AP RV RV 17 24 RV RV 21 18 17 16 24 24 C RV RV RV 19 24 RV RV RV RV 22 18 19 17 24 23 CFP Not released 16 16 16 14 23 23 Missouri AP RV RV C CFP Not released Ole Miss AP C CFP Not released South Carolina AP RV RV RV RV RV RV RV C RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV RV CFP Not released 24 Tennessee AP 25 25 23 RV RV C 24 21 23 RV RV CFP Not released Texas A&M AP RV RV RV RV RV RV C RV RV RV RV RV 24 24 RV RV CFP Not released Vanderbilt AP RV RV RV C RV RV RV CFP Not released
Schedule
Regular season Index to colors and formattingNon-conference matchup; SEC member wonNon-conference matchup; SEC member lostConference matchup All times Eastern time. SEC teams in bold.
Rankings reflect those of the AP poll for that week until week 10 when CFP rankings are used.
Week One Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance Reference August 31 8:00 p.m. Florida A&M Arkansas War Memorial Stadium • Little Rock, AR SECN W 49–7 36,055 September 2 12:00 p.m. Missouri State Missouri Faurot Field • Columbia, MO SECN W 72–43 50,131 September 2 3:00 p.m. North Carolina State South Carolina Bank of America Stadium • Charlotte, NC ESPN W 35–28 50,367 September 2 3:30 p.m. #11 Michigan #17 Florida AT&T Stadium • Arlington, TX ABC L 17–33 75,802 September 2 4:00 p.m. Kentucky Southern Miss M. M. Roberts Stadium • Hattiesburg, MS CBSSN W 24–17 22,761 September 2 4:00 p.m. Charleston Southern Mississippi State Davis Wade Stadium • Starkville, MS SECN W 49–0 54,215 September 2 6:15 p.m. Appalachian State #15 Georgia Sanford Stadium • Athens, GA ESPN W 31–10 92,746 September 2 7:30 p.m. South Alabama Ole Miss Vaught–Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, MS ESPNU W 47–27 62,532 September 2 7:30 p.m. Georgia Southern #12 Auburn Jordan–Hare Stadium • Auburn, AL SECN W 41–7 87,451 September 2 8:00 p.m. Vanderbilt Middle Tennessee Floyd Stadium • Murfreesboro, TN CBSSN W 28–6 26,717 September 2 8:00 p.m. #1 Alabama #3 Florida State Mercedes-Benz Stadium • Atlanta, GA ABC W 24–7 76,330 September 2 9:30 p.m. BYU #13 LSU Mercedes-Benz Superdome • New Orleans, LA ESPN W 27–0 53,826 September 3 7:30 p.m. Texas A&M UCLA Rose Bowl • Pasadena, CA FOX L 44–45 64,635 September 4 8:00 p.m. #25 Tennessee Georgia Tech Mercedes-Benz Stadium • Atlanta, GA (rivalry) ESPN W 42–41 2OT 75,107
Week Two Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance Reference September 9 12:00 p.m. Northern Colorado #22 Florida Ben Hill Griffin Stadium • Gainesville, FL SECN Canceled September 9 12:00 p.m. Eastern Kentucky Kentucky Kroger Field • Lexington, KY SECN W 27–16 54,868 September 9 12:00 p.m. UT Martin Ole Miss Vaught–Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, MS SECN W 45–23 60,476 September 9 3:30 p.m. Fresno State #1 Alabama Bryant–Denny Stadium • Tuscaloosa, AL ESPN2 W 41–10 101,127 September 9 3:30 p.m. #23 TCU Arkansas Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium • Fayetteville, AR CBS L 7–28 73,668 September 9 4:00 p.m. Indiana State #25 Tennessee Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, TN SECN W 42–7 99,015 September 9 4:00 p.m. Alabama A&M Vanderbilt Vanderbilt Stadium • Nashville, TN SECN W 42–0 25,802 September 9 7:00 p.m. #13 Auburn #3 Clemson Memorial Stadium • Clemson, SC (rivalry) ESPN L 6–14 81,799 September 9 7:00 p.m. South Carolina Missouri Faurot Field • Columbia, MO ESPN2 SCAR 31–13 55,023 September 9 7:00 p.m. Nicholls State Texas A&M Kyle Field • College Station, TX ESPNU W 24–14 100,276 September 9 7:30 p.m. #15 Georgia #24 Notre Dame Notre Dame Stadium • South Bend, IN NBC W 20–19 77,622 September 9 7:30 p.m. Chattanooga #12 LSU Tiger Stadium • Baton Rouge, LA SECN W 45–10 97,289 September 9 7:30 p.m. Mississippi State Louisiana Tech Joe Aillet Stadium • Ruston, LA CBSSN W 57–21 28,100 The game between Florida and Northern Colorado was canceled due to Hurricane Irma. Both schools' athletic directors decided not to reschedule the game as the two teams do not share a common bye week.
Week Three
Week Four
Week Five
Week Six
Week Seven
Week Eight
Week Nine
Week Ten
Week Eleven
Week Twelve
Week Thirteen
Championship game
SEC vs other conferences SEC vs. Power 5 matchups This is a list of teams considered by the SEC as "Power Five" teams for purposes of meeting league requirements that each member play at least one "power" team in non-conference play. In addition to the SEC, the NCAA officially considers all football members of the ACC, Big 10, Big 12 and Pac-12, plus independent Notre Dame (a full but non-football ACC member), as "Power Five" teams. Although the NCAA does not consider BYU a "Power Five" school, the SEC considers games against BYU as satisfying its "Power Five" scheduling requirement.
All rankings are from the current AP Poll at the time of the game.
Date Visitor Home Site Significance Score September 2 NC State South Carolina Bank of America Stadium • Charlotte, NC Belk Kickoff Game W 35–28 September 2 #11 Michigan #17 Florida AT&T Stadium • Arlington, TX Advocare Classic L 17–33 September 2 #1 Alabama #3 Florida State Mercedes-Benz Stadium • Atlanta, GA Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game W 24–7 September 2 BYU #13 LSU Mercedes-Benz Superdome • New Orleans, LA Texas Kickoff W 27–0 September 3 Texas A&M UCLA Rose Bowl • Pasadena, CA L 44–45 September 4 #25 Tennessee Georgia Tech Mercedes-Benz Stadium • Atlanta, GA Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game / Georgia Tech–Tennessee football rivalry W 42–41 2OT September 9 #23 TCU Arkansas Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium • Fayetteville, AR L 7–28 September 9 #13 Auburn #3 Clemson Memorial Stadium • Clemson, SC Auburn–Clemson football rivalry L 6–14 September 9 #15 Georgia #24 Notre Dame Notre Dame Stadium • South Bend, IN W 20–19 September 16 Purdue Missouri Faurot Field • Columbia, MO L 3–35 September 16 #18 Kansas State Vanderbilt Vanderbilt Stadium • Nashville, TN W 14–7 September 16 Ole Miss California California Memorial Stadium • Berkeley, CA L 16–27 September 23 Syracuse #25 LSU Tiger Stadium • Baton Rouge, LA W 35–26 October 14 BYU Mississippi State Davis Wade Stadium • Starkville, MS W 35–10 November 25 #7 Georgia Georgia Tech Bobby Dodd Stadium • Atlanta, GA Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate W 38–7 November 25 Louisville Kentucky Kroger Field • Lexington, KY Governor's Cup L 17–44 November 25 #4 Clemson South Carolina Williams-Brice Stadium • Columbia, SC Battle of the Palmetto State L 10–34 November 25 Florida State Florida Ben Hill Griffin Stadium • Gainesville, FL Florida–Florida State football rivalry L 22–38
Records against other conferences
Regular Season
Power 5 ConferencesRecordACC5–4Big Ten0–2Big 121–1BYU/Notre Dame3–0Pac-120–2Power 5 Total9–9Other FBS ConferencesRecordAmerican1–0C-USA7–0Independents (Excluding BYU & Notre Dame)2–0MAC1–0Mountain West2–0Sun Belt10–1Other FBS Total23–1FCS OpponentsRecordFootball Championship Subdivision13–0Total Non-Conference Record45–10
Post Season
Power Conferences 5RecordACC2–1Big Ten1–1Big 121–1Notre Dame0–1Power 5 Total4–4Other FBS ConferencesRecordAmerican0–1Other FBS Total0–1Total Bowl Record4–5
Postseason Bowl games