Vanderbilt, Kentucky and South Carolina are some of the first schools people think of as the bottom feeders in the SEC. These schools are consistently at the bottom of the conference standings and have combined for one appearance in the history of the SEC Championship game.
Georgia on the other hand has had the second-most appearances and third-most SEC Championship game wins. They have made it to Atlanta five years in a row as well, winning the previous two titles, and are on track to make it to the SEC Championship game again this year. Heading into this weekend it wasn’t clear who Georgia’s opponent would be, but a few upsets has left Kentucky of all teams as their projected opponent in this year’s SEC Championship game.
Kentucky could make their first SEC Championship game appearance
Kentucky is one of five programs to never make the SEC Championship game. Oklahoma and Texas A&M haven’t made it to Atlanta either, but they haven’t been in the conference for that long. Kentucky, Vanderbilt and Ole Miss have been in the SEC since the introduction of the title game in 1992 though, so the Wildcats are one of just three traditional SEC teams to never make it to Atlanta.
Kentucky has been close to making the championship game a few times. Their best regular season record since 1992 when the championship game began is 9-3 which they accomplished in 2018 and 2021. They finished second in the SEC East both of those years, so they just narrowly missed out on making their first appearance.
As it stands right now Georgia and Kentucky are the only one loss teams left in the SEC. If they both win out then they are guaranteed to play in the SEC Championship game. Kentucky only has three conference games left against Tennessee, Florida and Missouri who are all currently ranked, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see them win each of these games.
Georgia has a difficult path the rest of this season as they still have to play Florida, Ole Miss, Missouri and South Carolina. Georgia is projected to win all four games, but it isn’t a guarantee.
As it stands today though the most likely matchup in the SEC Championship game is Georgia and Kentucky because they are the only two teams who control their destiny.
Georgia’s most likely SEC Championship game opponents
Georgia is the overwhelming favorite to win the SEC with +105 odds, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. Kentucky on the other hand has the sixth-best odds at +1,300.
When it comes to making the championship game though Georgia has the best odds at -260 and Kentucky has the second-best odds at +240. This shows that Vegas believes Georgia and Kentucky will play in the SEC Championship game this year but Kentucky doesn’t stand much of a chance at winning.
Alabama (+310), LSU (+370) and Ole Miss (+380) are the most likely opponents for Georgia in the SEC title game after Kentucky. The Wildcats however are Georgia’s most likely opponent, and they would be quite a fun team to play because it would be their first ever appearance in the game.
Odds adjust periodically and are subject to change.
Add us as a preferred source on Google