Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images
By Chris Marler
A day after highlighting the three nonconference games the SEC can least afford to lose in 2025, it’s time to shift the focus to opportunity.
South Carolina’s opener vs. Virginia Tech, Missouri’s renewed rivalry with Kansas and Alabama’s midday matchup with Florida State were pegged as the potential landmines.
Now, here are three wins that would do the most to boost the national perception of the SEC.
-
LSU beating Clemson
The SEC will headline Week 1 with two marquee matchups, including a top-five showdown on the road as Texas travels to Ohio State. The No. 1 versus No. 2 game between the Longhorns and Buckeyes is another obvious choice. However, Texas is favored in that game and the higher ranked seed.
From a conference confidence boost standpoint, the SEC needs LSU to go into fake Death Valley and leave with a win. The only group that needs to win more than the conference is LSU. The Tigers have lost five straight season openers, and this will be a tougher test than any of those five games. Clemson is loaded, especially on defense. The Tigers are also 52-4 at home since 2017.
The good news for LSU? They’re loaded too, and half of those home losses have come to an SEC team.
-
Auburn beating Baylor
Neither Auburn nor Baylor is expected to contend for much this season, neither team appeared in the initial coaches poll released earlier this week. The significance of this game lies solely in its timing.
Auburn will travel to Baylor Friday night of the opening weekend of the season. They’ll be in primetime on Fox with Colorado playing Georgia Tech on ESPN at the same time. Without as many storylines, not to mention the absence of Travis Hunter and Shedeur Sanders, a lot of eyes will be on Waco. And, finally for good reason.
This is year three of the Hugh Freeze era on The Plains, and he needs to win now. He definitely has the roster to do so and should have very few excuses being given out for him as opposed to the last two years. Beating Baylor feels like a must for Freeze and Auburn to keep the fanbase happy, but it would also be a great start to the season for the SEC as a whole.
-
Anyone beating Notre Dame
Notre Dame is playing not one, but two SEC teams this season. That is exciting for a number of reasons if you’re an SEC fan or just not a fan of the Irish. Last season, Notre Dame didn’t play a true road game between Week 2 and Week 13. This year, Notre Dame hosts Texas A&M on Sept. 13 before traveling to Arkansas on Sept. 27.
Only one of those teams is really being given a chance against the Irish. However, we’ve seen Sam Pittman’s bunch shock the world a few times during his tenure in Fayetteville. The 2021 domination of Texas shouldn’t be forgotten, nor should their massive upset against top-five Tennessee a season ago.
Either team knocking off a preseason top-five Notre Dame squad that reached the national title game last season would be a major boost. A sweep by both would be monumental.
More SEC News
