We’re four weeks into the 2024 SEC football season, and there are six teams still undefeated in the league.

That number was seven entering last week, but we lost one in Norman, Okla. We very nearly lost another in Columbia, Mo.

We’ll lose at least one more undefeated team this weekend, thanks to an epic late-September matchup in Tuscaloosa. The other unbeatens will either be heavy favorites to remain that way, or are taking the week off.

So how do the teams in the SEC stack up after four weeks of action? Here’s the Week 5 edition of AL.com’s SEC football power rankings for 2024 (all times Central and all games Saturday):

16. Mississippi State (1-3, 0-1)

Last week’s ranking: 15

Last week’s game: Lost to Florida, 45-28

This week’s game: at Texas, 3:15 p.m., SEC Network

A bad season for the Bulldogs took an even worse turn late Saturday, as it was revealed that starting quarterback Blake Shapen is out for the season with a shoulder injury. True freshman Michael Van Buren is now the man in Starkville, and he’ll be thrown right into the fire with a trip to meet the top-ranked Longhorns. Outside of an early November home game vs. UMass, it’s hard to find another victory on State’s schedule.

15. Florida (2-2, 1-1)

Last week’s ranking: 16

Last week’s game: Beat Mississippi State, 45-28

This week’s game: Open date

The Billy Napier firing watch likely goes dormant for another two weeks, as the Gators finally snapped their losing streak against FBS teams by pummeling hapless Mississippi State in Starkville. Quarterbacks Graham Mertz and DJ Lagway were both nearly perfect as passers. Florida gets a week off to prepare for a scrappy Central Florida team on Oct. 5, and the Gators will need to win that non-conference battle to keep the wolves away from their coach’s door.

14. Auburn (2-2, 0-1)

Last week’s ranking: 10

Last week’s game: Lost to Arkansas, 24-14

This week’s game: vs. Oklahoma, 2:30 p.m., ABC

Hank Brown’s excellent performance against New Mexico proved to be fool’s gold for the Tigers, who turned the ball over four times in the first half as part of a disastrous day against Arkansas. Hugh Freeze continues to throw his players under the bus, which at some point figures to cost him the locker room. Auburn hosts an Oklahoma team that is far better on defense than any it’s played this season, so it might get worse before it gets better.

13. Kentucky (2-2, 0-2)

Last week’s ranking: 14

Last week’s game: Beat Ohio, 41-6

This week’s game: at Ole Miss, 11 a.m., ABC

The Wildcats took care of business against a far less-talented opponent, but we’ve seen those kinds of games end up much closer for other SEC teams this year. Now it’s back to reality and back to SEC play for Kentucky, which travels to meet a machine-like Ole Miss team in Oxford. It’s hard to imagine the Wildcats will be able to score enough points to keep up and avoid an 0-3 start in-conference, though we didn’t expect them to stay within a point of Georgia two weeks ago, either.

12. Vanderbilt (2-2, 0-1)

Last week’s ranking: 12

Last week’s game: Lost to Missouri in 2OT, 30-27

This week’s game: Open date

Give the Commodores this, they play exciting games. Unfortunately, they’ve let victories get away each of the last two weeks. Against Georgia State, it was allowing a late scoring drive that killed Vandy’s hopes. Against Missouri, it was special teams miscues. Clark Lea’s team has an open date before hosting Alabama on Oct. 5, but with games remaining vs. Kentucky, Ball State, Auburn and South Carolina, six wins isn’t out of the question.

11. Arkansas (3-1, 1-0)

Last week’s ranking: 13

Last week’s game: Beat Auburn, 24-14

This week’s game: vs. Texas A&M (in Arlington, Texas), 2:30 p.m., ESPN

Like Napier this week, Head Hog Sam Pittman has managed to stay one step ahead of the posse two weeks in a row now. It’s not that the Razorbacks played well in wins vs. UAB and Auburn, it’s that their opponents played worse. Arkansas can at least run the ball, which could make for an interesting game vs. Texas A&M’s porous rushing defense in Jerry World. Arkansas has beaten the Aggies just once since they joined the SEC in 2012.

10. Texas A&M (3-1, 1-0)

Last week’s ranking: 9

Last week’s game: Beat Bowling Green, 26-20

This week’s game: vs. Arkansas (Arlington, Texas), 2:30 p.m., ESPN

The Aggies found themselves in a fight against a MAC team, but did just enough to win behind backup quarterback Marcel Reed. We’ll find out a lot about Mike Elko’s team in the next two weeks, with a neutral site (but really home) game vs. Arkansas and then a home date against an undefeated Missouri team coming off a bye week. The Aggies won’t leave the state of Texas again until Oct. 19 at Mississippi State.

9. South Carolina (3-1, 1-1)

Last week’s ranking: 11

Last week’s game: Beat Akron, 50-7

This week’s game: Open date

The Gamecocks didn’t have their starting quarterback or running back, but it didn’t matter against one of the worst teams in FBS football. The first third of the regular season has gone about as well as could have been expected for Shane Beamer’s team, all things considered. It’s a good thing South Carolina has banked some wins, because Ole Miss, Alabama and Oklahoma wait on the other side of the open date.

8. LSU (3-1, 1-0)

Last week’s ranking: 8

Last week’s game: Beat UCLA, 34-17

This week’s game: vs. South Alabama, 6:45 p.m., SEC Network

It was a costly victory for the Tigers, who shut out UCLA in the second half to win going away but lost star linebacker Harold Perkins to an apparent season-ending knee injury in the process. Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier continues to shine in his first year as a starter, but LSU has been weaker than expected on both lines of scrimmage. The Tigers should be able to outscore an offensively potent South Alabama team, then get an open date before probably undefeated Ole Miss comes to town on Oct. 12.

7. Oklahoma (3-1, 0-1)

Last week’s ranking: 7

Last week’s game: Lost to Tennessee, 25-15

This week’s game: at Auburn, 2:30 p.m., ABC

The Sooners just weren’t quite ready to face a team the caliber of Tennessee, but didn’t embarrass themselves by any means. The defense did an outstanding job at least slowing down a Volunteers team that had been piling up points all season. However, there’s a quarterback controversy in Norman, as former 5-star recruit Jackson Arnold was benched for freshman Michael Hawkins during Saturday’s game. The Sooners head this weekend to face struggling Auburn, which will give them another game to sort things out before an open date followed by Texas in Dallas on Oct. 12.

6. Missouri (4-0, 1-0)

Last week’s ranking: 6

Last week’s game: Beat Vanderbilt in 2OT, 30-27

This week’s game: Open date

The Tigers pulled a great escape on Saturday vs. the Commodores, finally bottling up Diego Pavia at key moments in the fourth quarter and overtime. Missouri is loaded at the skill positions, with Appalachian State transfer Nate Noel emerging as one of the top running backs in the conference to complement an already proven passing game. Eli Drinkwitz’s team has an open date this week, then plays three of its next four on the road beginning with Texas A&M on Oct. 5.

5. Ole Miss (4-0)

Last week’s ranking: 5

Last week’s game: Beat Georgia Southern, 52-13

This week’s game: vs. Kentucky, 11 a.m., ABC

The Rebels continue to steamroll teams with a relentless offensive attack, though they’ve played one of the weaker schedules in the league thus far (if not the weakest). Lane Kiffin’s team finally plays an SEC game this week, though it’s not likely to be tested all that much by the offensively challenged Wildcats. A visit to scrappy South Carolina follows on Oct. 5, but there’s no reason to believe to the Rebels won’t remain unbeaten heading to Baton Rouge the second week of October.

4. Georgia (3-0, 1-0)

Last week’s ranking: 4

Last week’s game: Open date

This week’s game: at Alabama, 6:30 p.m., ABC

The Bulldogs had their first open date last week, strategically placed leading into the biggest game on the SEC schedule thus far (and maybe the biggest of the year prior to the SEC championship game). Georgia remains the only FBS team in the country not to have allowed a touchdown this year, something that will be severely tested vs. Alabama. Kirby Smart has a lot of ghosts to exorcise vs. the Crimson Tide, the only team to beat the Bulldogs since 2020.

3. Tennessee (4-0, 1-0)

Last week’s ranking: 3

Last week’s game: Beat Oklahoma, 25-15

This week’s game: Open date

The Volunteers made a statement against Josh Heupel’s alma mater in Norman, winning on the road against a fellow ranked team for the first time in recent memory. Nico Iamaleava and the offense are getting all the headlines, but it’s Tennessee’s defense — which is best in the SEC, statistically — that has led the way this season. Tennessee has an open date before games with Arkansas and Florida, and should be 6-0 when it hosts Alabama on Oct. 19.

2. Alabama (3-0)

Last week’s ranking: 2

Last week’s game: Open date

This week’s game: vs. Georgia, 6:30 p.m., ABC

Kalen DeBoer’s team also was off last week, giving it time to recover following a physical win over Wisconsin two weeks ago. Now comes the first real headliner game on the 2024 SEC schedule, with College GameDay, Joe Namath and Donald Trump — among others — headed to Tuscaloosa for Alabama’s showdown with Georgia. The Crimson Tide is a slight underdog at home against the Bulldogs, something that hasn’t happened since it faced eventual national champion LSU during Nick Saban’s debut season of 2007.

1. Texas (4-0)

Last week’s ranking: 1

Last week’s game: Beat Louisiana-Monroe, 51-3

This week’s game: vs. Mississippi State, 3:15 p.m., SEC Network

The Arch Manning Show debuted to mostly positive reviews in Austin, as the Longhorns battered an overmatched opponent despite not playing an especially clean game. Quinn Ewers is likely out until the Red River Rivalry game vs. Oklahoma on Oct. 12, though the Longhorns aren’t likely to be challenged by what is likely to worst team in the SEC. Texas then has an open date before heading to Dallas.

Creg Stephenson has worked for AL.com since 2010 and covered college football for a variety of publications since 1994. Contact him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter at @CregStephenson.