SEC title game spots up for grabs, with No. 3 Texas A&M and No. 10 Alabama having clear paths

Things to watch this week in the Southeastern Conference:

Game of the week

No. 3 Texas A&M (11-0, 7-0 SEC) at No. 17 Texas (8-3, 5-2), Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET (ABC)

The Aggies are the only undefeated SEC team remaining and can secure a spot in the league’s title game with a victory in Austin, where the Longhorns are 5-0 this season and have won eight in a row.

Texas, which has won five of its last six, needs another win to have any chance of sneaking into the College Football Playoff. Texas A&M appears to be a lock and should be able to wrap up a first-round bye by beating the Longhorns.

Texas A&M is a 2 1/2-point favorite, according to BetMGM.

The undercard

No. 4 Georgia (10-1, 7-1 SEC) at No. 23 Georgia Tech (9-2, 6-2 ACC), Friday, 3:30 p.m. ET (ABC)

The Bulldogs would reach the SEC title game if either No. 10 Alabama or Texas A&M lose. Although facing the Yellow Jackets has little impact on their season, the ’Dawgs surely are looking to avenge last year’s 44-42 loss to Tech in Athens and look for a first-round bye in the CFP.

Georgia is a 13 1/2-point favorite, according to BetMGM.

No. 12 Vanderbilt (9-2, 5-2 SEC) at No. 18 Tennessee (8-3, 5-2 SEC), Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)

The Commodores and Volunteers don’t have CFP implications at stake, but in-state bragging rights are real and the winner improves its chances of making the Citrus Bowl in Orlando on Dec. 31.

Tennessee is a 2 1/2-point favorite, according to BetMGM.

Impact players

— Vanderbilt’s Diego Pavia accounted for 532 yards and six touchdowns in a 45-17 victory against Kentucky. He completed 33 of 39 passes for a school-record 484 yards and five TDs. He added 48 yards rushing and a score. It was the most total yards by a Commodores player since at least 1996.

— Auburn freshman quarterback Deuce Knight accounted for six touchdowns in his first career start against Mercer. With four rushing scores and two more passing, he joined Cam Newton (2010 vs South Carolina) and Carnell Williams (2003 vs Mississippi State) as the only players in school history to account for six TDs in a game.

Inside the numbers

Missouri RB Ahmad Hardy leads the SEC in rushing, averaging 127.55 a game. … Tennessee’s Joey Aguilar tops the league in passing, averaging 285.9 yards a game. He ranks third in TD passes (23), three behind Pavia and two back of Texas A&M’s Marcel Reed. … Ole Miss RB Kewan Lacy is tied for the most rushing TDs in the FBS with 19. … Auburn LB Xavier Atkins and LSU S A.J. Haulcy lead the SEC with 81 tackles. … Oklahoma leads the country with 41 sacks, just ahead of Texas A&M (39) and Texas (37). … No team in the country has been better than Tennessee on fourth down. The Vols have converted 11 of 13 tries (84.6%).

Kiffin watch

All eyes will be on Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin this weekend. Kiffin is expected to announce his future plans after the team’s rivalry game against Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl. Kiffin has been courted by Florida, LSU and Ole Miss in recent weeks. He has declined to sign a lucrative contract extension sitting on his desk, raising speculation that he’s leaving Oxford after six years and three consecutive seasons with double-digit wins. Wherever he lands, it will start a domino effect of coaching change and could involve Auburn, Vanderbilt, Tulane and others as well as Florida, LSU and Ole Miss.

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