With less than three weeks to go until week one of the college football season, most team have already had their first scrimmages of fall camp. You have to take positive stories out of camp with a grain of salt because most coaches aren't going to reveal too much. At the same time, however, there are a few alarming stories from some programs that could ultimately prove to be true.
We're fast approaching the beginning of the season, and with that, it's time to get bold. And we're going to get actually bold with these predictions, not fake bold. You'll see plenty of people try to pass off "Ryan Williams leads the SEC in receiving" or "Texas wins the SEC" as bold takes. We're going way beyond that.
Let's dive in.
Bold Predictions for SEC Football in 2025
Qua Russaw leads the SEC in sacks
I told you we were getting bold. And before you try to say it's not - Qua Russaw enters his third year at Alabama with one career sack. His making the leap to leading the SEC in sacks absolutely qualifies as a bold take - and it's exactly the kind of leap that I expect out of him this year.
Russaw has had a strong offseason. DC Kane Wommack recently called him the "freakiest" guy in a room full of freaks. He's unbelievably strong, and if Deontae Lawson is to be believed, he's one of the fastest players on the team, too.
This feels like the year he puts everything together and has an All-American season for the Crimson Tide. Last season, South Carolina's Kyle Kennard led the league with 11.5 sacks. I'm going to say Russaw one-ups that total, finishing the year with 13 sacks to lead the SEC. Russaw's leap ultimately keys Alabama to a top-three defense in the country.
Jackson Arnold falters, Ashton Daniels takes over at QB for Auburn mid-season
Reports out of Auburn's first scrimmage of fall camp were unkind to Oklahoma transfer QB Jackson Arnold. It doesn't appear that, despite his leading the Sooners to a November win over Alabama, that Arnold is going to be the answer for Hugh Freeze.
After a rough start to the season that includes a season-opening loss to Baylor and a 2-4 record through six games, Freeze pulls the plug on the Arnold experiment and hands the ball to Stanford transfer Ashton Daniels.
Daniels leads Auburn to three straight wins to get to 5-4, but the Tigers still end up finishing 6-6 with a sixth consecutive loss to Alabama in the Iron Bowl.
Tennessee loses five games
Speaking of teams with shaky quarterback situations, the Volunteers are going to take a massive step back with Nico Iamaleava gone. He wasn't perfect last season, but he was demonstrably better than what the Vols figure to have this year.
Josh Heupel's team should still field a good defense, despite the loss of James Pearce Jr. up front, but the offense is going to be a struggle. A playoff team last year, Tennessee takes a significant step back this year, going 7-5 in the regular season.
Georgia misses the College Football Playoff
Another team with a questionable QB situation, Georgia is banking on demonstrable improvement from Gunner Stockton, who looked shaky in the College Football Playoff last year. The Bulldogs are still going to be a good team - and they'll be in contention for the playoff and SEC Championship all year long - but I think they come up a little short.
The Bulldogs don't have the same depth they had during their back-to-back National Championships in 2021 and 2022. In fairness, nobody really does in this era of college football.
I think Georgia finishes the regular season 9 - losing to Alabama (as usual), Florida, and then gets stunned by Georgia Tech in Atlanta to finish the regular season to keep them on the outside looking in.
Alabama beats Texas in Atlanta to capture the SEC Championship
I think Alabama and Texas are the two best teams in the SEC this season. Top-to-bottom, they have the best rosters, with Georgia close behind. Both teams have legitimate question marks at quarterback, even if Longhorns fans won't accept that with Arch Manning leading the charge.
I think Ty Simpson is going to have a good year - he's got the offensive talent around him to thrive. Alabama should run the ball better, has what should be a strong offensive line, and may have the best collection of wide receivers in the country.
Both teams make it to Atlanta at 11-1, already having secured their spots in the College Football Playoff. The Tide edges the Longhorns 27-24 to capture the SEC Championship and the No. 1 overall seed in the playoff.
Four SEC teams make the College Football Playoff
Alabama and Texas are joined in the College Football playoff by LSU and....Florida. The Gators have one of the nation's toughest schedules, and even at 9-3, it would be difficult for the committee to leave them out. The Gators edge out Georgia for the fourth and final spot for the SEC on the back of their head-to-head win over the Bulldogs in early November.
LSU goes 10-2 and makes the playoff, losing its season opener on the road against Clemson and later falling in Tuscaloosa to Alabama. 10-2 with road losses to two other playoff teams is good enough for the Tigers to host a playoff game as one of the top at-larges in the field.
Three SEC coaches are let go
In a rare occurrence, the SEC's head coaches in 2025 are exactly the same as they were in 2024. That won't happen for a second consecutive season.
Arkansas' Sam Pittman is the first coach who gets the ax, and he doesn't make it through the full season in Fayetteville. Bobby Petrino is promoted to interim head coach, showing enough promise down the stretch to get the full-time job.
Mark Stoops may not get "fired", but he will get forced out in Lexington. The Wildcats might be the worst team in the league in 2025, and he won't survive a second straight losing season.
The third should be obvious based on the above predictions: Hugh Freeze won't get a fourth season at Auburn if the Tigers go 6-6 in the regular season. A 2-4 start to the season might be too much for him to overcome, and Auburn could ultimately pull the trigger in the middle of the season, too.