With 7 games to play, what is Auburnâs path to winning the SEC?
It’s the morning after the Super Bowl, and as more eyes turn to college basketball, they will find Auburn in the midst of the top contenders in the 2023-24 SEC regular season title race.
Here’s a look at the top of the current SEC standings as of Monday morning.
– South Carolina (9-2, 21-3)
– Alabama (9-2, 17-7)
– Auburn (8-3, 19-5)
– Tennessee (7-3, 17-6)
– Kentucky (6-4, 16-7)
– Florida (6-4, 16-7)
– Texas A&M (6-4, 15-8)
As of Sunday, FanDuel gives Auburn the second-best odds to finish as the SEC champion. FanDuel listed the following odds to win the SEC regular season championship with four weeks to go.
- Alabama +130
- Auburn +250
- Tennessee +250
- South Carolina +900
- Florida +4200
- Kentucky +5000
- Texas A&M +9000
Of the top four teams in the standings, three have seven games to play and one open date in the SEC’s general Wednesday-Saturday schedule. Tennessee has already had its so-called bye and has eight games remaining.
Below are the remaining schedules for the top contenders.
| South Carolina | Alabama | Auburn | Tennessee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb. 14, at Auburn | BYE | Feb. 14, vs. South Carolina | Feb. 14, at Arkansas |
| Feb. 17, vs. LSU | Feb. 17, vs. Texas A&M | Feb. 17, vs. Kentucky | Feb. 17, vs. Vanderbilt |
| BYE | Feb. 21, vs. Florida | BYE | Feb. 20, at Missouri |
| Feb. 24, at Ole Miss | Feb. 24, at Kentucky | Feb. 24, at Georgia | Feb. 24, vs. Texas A&M |
| Feb. 28, at Texas A&M | Feb. 28, at Ole Miss | Feb. 28, at Tennessee | Feb. 28, vs. Auburn |
| March 2, vs. Florida | March 2, vs. Tennessee | March 2, vs. Mississippi State | March. 2, at Alabama |
| March 6, vs. Tennessee | March 5, at Florida | March 5, at Missouri | March 6, at South Carolina |
| March 9, at Mississippi State | March 9, vs. Arkansas | March 9, vs. Georgia | March 9, vs Kentucky |
One thing is immediately clear from the schedules: Tennessee’s is the most difficult. The five-game stretch to close the season is brutal. The final four games of that path will likely all be against ranked teams.
Tennessee is arguably the best overall team in the SEC, but needing to make up a game with a close to the season like that will be difficult.
There is no such thing as an easy schedule in the SEC, but of the top four teams, Auburn certainly has the most favorable end to the regular season. It closes the year with two home games against teams in the bottom half of the conference standings and a trip to Missouri, which is yet to win an SEC game.
Auburn’s loss to Florida on Saturday gave it far less room for error. Auburn had found itself tied for first place after it beat Alabama last week, but dropped a game back again with the loss in Gainesville.
That means Auburn will likely need to win at least two of its three games against South Carolina, Kentucky and Tennessee to have a shot at a share of the SEC title.
KenPom currently projects Alabama to win the SEC with a conference record of 14-4. Auburn is projected to finish at 13-5. KenPom has Auburn as a favorite in all of its remaining games except the trip to Tennessee.
Auburn is currently the highest-rated SEC team in KenPom at No. 5 overall. Alabama is right behind at No. 6 and Tennessee at No. 7. Tennessee and Auburn are the only SEC teams with top-20-rated offensive and defensive efficiency ratings.
Matt Cohen covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on X at @Matt_Cohen_ or email him at [email protected]