Paul Finebaum reveals his pick for the top SEC football team in 2026

CFB-HQ On SI · Jul 21, 2026 19:09 · 3 min read

Paul Finebaum Reveals His Pick for the Top SEC Football Team in 2026 — IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The most promising team in the SEC just might come from the Lone Star State this year, according to the veteran college football watcher.

Georgia comes into this season as the reigning back-to-back champions of SEC football, but that streak could end in 2026, according to one veteran analyst.

Taking a general view over the SEC coming into this college football season, Paul Finebaum thinks one other program could get the better of the Bulldogs this time.

Who is the SEC’s best team right now?

That honor goes to Texas, which Finebaum revealed should be the thinking fan’s favored team to contend for the SEC Championship trophy this year.

“Texas is the team to beat. They have the goods in every department,” he said on Get Up.

Too few questions and more answers at key positions on the roster give the Longhorns what looks like a decisive advantage against their SEC counterparts.

Arch Manning suddenly looks like one of those answers.

Facing an avalanche of hype and pressure when Texas earned its first-ever No. 1 preseason ranking as a program last year, Manning slogged through some early jitters and looked like he might be a bust.

But his performance in the second half of the season flipped the script, helping lead the Longhorns to statement wins against ranked Oklahoma and Vanderbilt, and most importantly a regular season finale victory against undefeated rival Texas A&M.

Now, he’s surrounded by another cadre of elite skill players like No. 1 transfer wideout Cam Coleman, is working behind a solid line, and benefits from what should be another physical defensive rotation now under the management of Will Muschamp.

“They have one of the best rosters, if not the best, in all of college football. Certainly the best in the SEC. They have to get to the title game,” Finebaum said.

What about the Bulldogs?

You could certainly be forgiven for picking Georgia to win the SEC a third-straight time.

Gunner Stockton returns at quarterback, accompanied by a very promising run game, and flanked by some blue-chip blockers, alongside another stout Bulldog defense.

But some of that opinion might just be an impression fans get from the overall success Kirby Smart has had on the field – except when he gets to the postseason lately.

“I think there’s too much recency bias. Okay, Kirby Smart. The problem that Kirby Smart has had the last couple of years is he can’t win in the CFP,” Finebaum said.

What the analysts are saying

Right now, it does look like the SEC is the Longhorns’ conference to lose.

That’s also the opinion of the College Football Power Index, the ESPN predictive model that simulates every team’s season 20,000 times to predict their futures.

That model gives Texas a slight edge over Georgia, with a 29.7 percent chance to win the SEC championship, which would give them a ticket to the College Football Playoff.

Georgia is right behind with a 22.9 percent shot at another SEC title.

Preseason expectations don’t often pan out, but at this very early stage, the SEC could be shaping up to be a Bulldogs vs. Longhorns affair.