For those wondering whether Tennessee was a legitimate threat to Alabama, Saturday's 49-10 whitewashing in Knoxville gave you an emphatic "no" as the answer to that question.
In Week 9 it's going to be Texas A&M's turn to try and knock off the champs, and the Aggies must do so as 16.5-point underdogs in Tuscaloosa. Alabama appears to be back to juggernaut status in the SEC, which means the intrigue for the top spot in our power rankings remains pretty low.
However, the rest of the rankings got shuffled up thanks to some big wins by teams like Auburn and Arkansas, and more confusion at the bottom of the conference.
Here are the Week 9 SEC Power Rankings:
| Rank | Team | Reason | Last Week |
| 1 | Alabama | Jalen Hurts is figuring out how good he is and is building confidence each week. The defense is outscoring some offenses. Lane Kiffin's tossing his visor to Vols fans. It's just another season of Alabama football in T-Town. | 1 |
| 2 | Texas A&M | The bye week gave the Aggies extra time to prepare for the Tide. We'll see if that pays dividends on Saturday. The good news: they have a rare quarterback with great memories of playing Alabama in Trevor Knight. | 2 |
| 3 | Arkansas | A week after taking a loss at the hands of Alabama -- no shame there -- the Hogs turned around to beat Ole Miss in thrilling fashion for the second straight year. This is a resilient Arkansas bunch and, while the defense has some holes, the offense is clipping along despite having replaced so much from last year. I've been impressed by the Razorbacks so far this season. | 5 |
| 4 | Auburn | *whispers* Auburn might be good, y'all. The defense appears to be nasty and the offense is starting to play well. I need to see the offense do it against someone other than Mississippi State and ULM before I'm fully on board, but I have one foot on the Tigers' bandwagon. First test: Arkansas this week. | 6 |
| 5 | Ole Miss | I have a feeling Hugh Freeze is about tired of playing Arkansas after the way the last two games have gone. The Rebels fell to 3-3 with the loss Saturday, but they're probably the nation's best 3-3 team for whatever that's worth. Things don't get easier this week as they must head down to Baton Rouge for a night game with LSU. | 3 |
| 6 | Florida | Somehow, the Gators are now your SEC East leaders. This appears to be happening again. The defense in Gainesville is filthy. The offense can do things against mediocre-to-bad defenses, and, lucky for them, that's what the entire SEC East is made up of outside of Knoxville. The LSU makeup game in Baton Rouge looms very large for the SEC East title race. | 8 |
| 7 | LSU | Like Auburn, LSU has seen a resurgence since their loss on the Plains. Coach O has the boys in Baton Rouge playing inspired football and a win on Saturday against Ole Miss would have them right back in the conversation for the SEC West race with only one conference loss. | 7 |
| 8 | Tennessee | This might be a harsh drop for the Vols, but that wasn't just a loss to Alabama -- it was a crushing defeat. Tennessee got outplayed in all three phases of the game by the Tide and looked to clearly be the inferior team. That said, the Vols should make a steady climb back up these rankings as they will be heavy favorites in each of their final five games to close the season. | 4 |
| 9 | Kentucky | A bye week after a victory is a good thing for Kentucky. Another winnable game is coming the 'Cats way this week in the form of Mississippi State. Bowl eligibility is not out of the question for Kentucky, which is an amazing thing to think about after the start to the season. | 10 |
| 10 | Vanderbilt | I don't understand this Vanderbilt team, but I can't help but love them. Zach Cunningham is a monster at middle linebacker and when the defense is right they're nasty. The offense is still miserable to watch, but every once in a while the running game gets rolling. The road win over Georgia is a huge moment for Derek Mason's bunch, so enjoy this one 'Dores. | 14 |
| 11 | Mississippi State | Take pride in Dak Prescott being one of the NFL's best quarterbacks so far this season, Bulldog fans. That will help take the sting out of this season in Starkville. | 11 |
| 12 | Georgia | I was wondering if Georgia could find new lows this season. Losing to Vanderbilt at home for the first time since 2006 seems to qualify. | 9 |
| 13 | Missouri | The Tigers took it on the chin in Gainesville on Saturday. The somewhat promising offense of the early season has turned back into a pumpkin. | 12 |
| 14 | South Carolina | Alright, Gamecocks. You're nearly three touchdown favorites this week over UMass. You can do this. Get yourselves a convincing win this week. | 13 |
