There’s a scene from a “Simpsons” episode where an elephant approaches a peanut factory, and at the factory a manager suddenly feels validated: “This is the moment we feared, folks.” Many of you thought this would never happen. But I insisted that we train for it for two hours every morning. Many of you thought I was crazy; Many of you have requested to be transferred to another peanut factory. But now…’

Then the elephant bursts through the door.

Here’s how those who continued to wonder about the SEC’s tiebreaker procedures might be feeling this morning as they survey the conference landscape. In a world of mega-conferences, without divisions and where half the teams didn’t play each other, there was always the chance of a confusing mess at the top of the standings, requiring an aviation degree to explain who would make the championship . game.

And right now, the elephant could indeed be on its way to the peanut factory.

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Only two teams remain undefeated in conference play: Texas A&M and LSU, and they play each other on Saturday, so that’s good. But five other teams have suffered just one conference loss, and of those seven teams, most won’t have played each other. Georgia, LSU and Texas play only two of the other six teams with one loss or less. Texas A&M and Tennessee play only three of the other six.

And in the event – ​​not unlikely – that a two-loss team comes into play, Alabama and Ole Miss are right there, capable of taking the lead for the rest of the game.

Georgia’s Trevor Etienne had three rushing touchdowns in the Bulldogs’ win over Texas on Saturday. (Tim Warner/Getty Images)

So yeah, come back to those tiebreaker procedures, which probably don’t come down to a random draw, but a “capped relative scoring margin,” a metric given to the SEC by SportsSourceAnalytics.

That’s not a big deal, you might say, thanks to the expanded College Football Playoff. Maybe. But the SEC champion getting a bye is a big deal, and the greater the chaos at the top of the standings, the greater the potential for chaos: a Playoff bubble team squeezing into the championship game and stealing a bid, for example.

Perhaps a better tiebreaker: if your student section throws debris on the field to change a call, you get eliminated. If your coach shoves the opposing team’s quarterback even if you didn’t mean to, you’re out. Easy fixes and surprising that the SEC wasn’t so farsighted.

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So the atmosphere in the SEC office – preparing for tense headaches, dealing with unprecedented official decisions – is tense. As for the teams, we’ve got another week of wildly mixed vibes, with a new cellar dweller – hello, Oklahoma – another top program heading in the wrong direction, and a few others skyrocketing after feel-good wins.

This is a reminder that this is not a pure ranking of how good teams are, but the sentiments surrounding the programs, both within the team and the fanbase, and the perception outside of it, taking into account records, expectations, momentum and just the overall mood:

1. Georgia (6-1, 4-1 SEC)

Won in Texas, 30-15

Last week: 8

For once, the vibes match the real rankings. Everything changed overnight as the program that fans were ready to wrap up this season can now see the league title back on the table.

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2. Tennessee (6-1, 3-1)

Beat Alabama 24-17

Last week: 6

Last week: Well, Nico Iamaleava isn’t that good, it seems like other teams have seen through Josh Heupel’s offense, and Heupel peaked too early in Tennessee. This week: Hey, we’re back baby! Maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but other than a trip to Georgia – which is winnable – the Vols’ only other game against a team with a winning record is the season finale at Vanderbilt. There is a good path to 10-2 and a likely Playoff bid.

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3. LSU (6-1, 3-0)

Won at Arkansas, 34-10

Last week: 4

Since Brian Kelly’s table-slam following the team’s opening loss, this team has gradually improved. That includes the defense, which still ranks second in the SEC but just held Arkansas to a season-low 10 points. The big test for the Bayou Bengals comes in the next two weeks: at Texas A&M and at home against Alabama.

4. Texas A&M (6-1, 4-0)

Won at Mississippi State, 34-24

Last week: 3

It was a pretty nice Saturday for the Aggies: They got an SEC road win — not a blowout, but whatever — and then got home in time to see their rival humiliate their welcome to the SEC. The schadenfreude seeped out of College Station.

5. Vanderbilt (5-2, 2-1)

Defeated Ball State, 24-14

Last week: 2

Save the points for SEC games, like this week when Texas visits. It’s a smart move for a smart school, whose program is now one win away from making the bowl for the first time since 2018, but that’s almost an afterthought at this point.

Won at Oklahoma, 35-9

Last week: 11

The offense and overall team results are bizarre, but South Carolina’s defense is legit: the Gamecocks held Alabama, Ole Miss, and LSU below their season averages per yard, including Alabama more than 2 points below average.

7. Texas (6-1, 2-1)

Lost to Georgia, 30-15

Last week: 1

The Longhorns’ only concern was that their dominance was a product of their scheme, and now that’s a major concern the size of a Stetson hat. The next four games – at Vanderbilt, Florida, Arkansas and Kentucky – could all be interesting. Then of course there is the trip to College Station, which will be much more than interesting. Could this team still win a national championship? Certainly. But national title teams don’t usually get beaten at home like Texas did on Saturday.

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Beat Kentucky 48-20

Last week: 15

(Looking around.) So we’re doing this? Yes, we do this. The vibes cellar dweller at the beginning of the season, the team with the dead coach walking around, is still hanging around and improving. By holding out for so long, Billy Napier now has an awkward reunion with Jaden Rashada before or after the team’s game against Georgia in Jacksonville. Hug it out, guys.

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Billy Napier and Florida won a game they couldn’t lose, but a rough road ahead

Beat Auburn 21-17

Last week: 9

According to Adeen Rao of Rock M Nation, Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz saw a bowl representative after Saturday’s game and blurted out, “Uh, oh, Cheez-It Bowl.” According to the data, Drinkwitz has nothing to worry about. On the surface, though, this is easily the worst 6-1 team in the country: barely over in home games against Boston College, Vanderbilt and now Auburn, while getting clobbered at Texas A&M. Still alive for the Playoff? Certainly. It looks like this will remain the case for much longer. Ehhhh…

10. Ole Miss (5-2, 1-2)

Bye

Last week: 10

The Rebels had to be happy with how their bye week went, as their faint Playoff hopes rested on beating Georgia and this would be a win to build their resume. First, Oklahoma and Arkansas, which shouldn’t be a problem, but if a team can’t beat Kentucky at home, there’s a lot that could be a problem.

11. Mississippi State (1-6, 0-4)

Lost to Texas A&M, 34-24

Last week: 16

Is this too high? Maybe, but the atmosphere in Starkville continues to steadily improve even in the face of defeat. There have been three straight weeks where Jeff Lebby’s team has done well as heavy underdogs, to the point where it’s probably time to stop making the Bulldogs heavy underdogs every week. Arkansas, which heads to Starkville this week, needs to be on its toes.

12. Arkansas (4-3, 2-2)

Lost to LSU, 34-10

Last week: 5

Phew. Saturday was the worst defeat of the season, and it came at home, a big blow to the positive atmosphere. This week in Starkville should be a win, and that, along with a later game against Louisiana Tech, would at least mean bowl eligibility, with games against Texas, Ole Miss and Missouri offering more upset opportunities. But if the Razorbacks fumble and lose to that improving Bulldogs team, things get risky again.

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13. Alabama (5-2, 2-2)

Lost at Tennessee, 24-17

Last week: 7

Let’s not overreact. Kalen DeBoer’s two losses came by one possession each, and the team’s win over Georgia looks good. But… yes, there are two losses, and the win over Georgia was almost a catastrophic loss. DeBoer went to Tuscaloosa and embraced the pressure. Well, here it is.

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14. Chestnut brown (2-5, 0-4)

Lost at Missouri, 21-17

Last week: 13

At this point you’re almost wondering if Hugh Freeze is throwing games so Auburn doesn’t have to play a meaningless bowl game and can focus on the transfer portal in December. In fact, the perfect scenario might be a 5-7, but the fifth win is in the Iron Bowl, and that’s certainly on the table.

15. Kentucky (3-4, 1-4)

Lost at Florida, 48-20

Last week: 12

Your obligatory “Well, it’s almost basketball season” reference, this time with Mark Pope providing new coaching excitement. As for the other Mark, the Stoops coaching football, it’s returned to the early season, post-South Carolina feel. It’s not good, but it’s hard to say if it will lead anywhere.

Speaking of which…

16. Oklahoma (4-3, 1-3)

Lost to South Carolina, 35-9

Last week: 14

As a general rule, when people look up a coach’s buyout number, things aren’t great. Another general rule: If the reaction to seeing that buyout might involve profanity, things really aren’t great.

This summer, for reasons that were not entirely clear, Oklahoma gave coach Brent Venables a two-year contract extension, with a buyout that would cost the school about $44.8 million.

The contract extension might have been a stroke of genius by former athletic director Joe Castiglione, who is one of the most respected ADs in the country, and he might have looked at the 2024 schedule and decided to avoid any discussions. But did Castiglione foresee that this would be so? this bad?

Yes, Oklahoma is in the top five in receivers. And yes, the hope is that Venables can solve the quarterback situation this offseason and that could turn things around. But the way this team is losing, falling behind 21-0 against South Carolina a few minutes into the game and looking overmatched, doesn’t inspire confidence. Venables is trying to stop the bleeding by firing offensive coordinator Seth Littrell, whom he just hired this year.

It’s one thing to wrestle, and that’s Oklahoma. It’s another to feel stuck. That’s called purgatory.

(Top photo by Kirby Smart: Tim Warner/Getty Images)