These are the college football weekends we live for. We had the big conference matchups that captured our imagination around the Power Four, and most of those games lived up to the hype. While Red River was a one-sided affair in Dallas and Texas won over Oklahoma, Magnolia went all the way to the end in Baton Rouge when LSU prevailed in overtime against the favored Ole Miss team.

Other College Football Playoff contenders in the SEC also had challenges with their conference opponents. Alabama almost blew it against South Carolina. Georgia played with its food all day against Mississippi State. Tennessee needed overtime to get past Florida at home. At the same time, more and more teams appear to be serious playoff contenders, while even more teams look like complete frauds.

Like every week, I'll break down where all 16 teams in the SEC stand when it comes to making the 12-team College Football Playoff. There are a few locks, some teams firmly in the bubble, some on the verge of bursting, a few good but not great teams that are really fun to watch, and of course teams that are pretty much already playing for next year. Where is your favorite SEC team today?

Let's begin by revealing my 12 teams in the College Football Playoff field after Week 7.

1. Texas Longhorns (6-0) (Projected SEC Champion)
2. Oregon Ducks (6-0) (Projected Big Ten Champion)
3. Cyclones in the state of Iowa (6-0) (Projected Big 12 Champion)
4. Clemson Tigers (5-1) (Projected ACC Champion)
5. Ohio State Buckeyes (5-1) (Projected Big Ten runner-up)
6. Georgia Bulldogs (5-1) (Projected SEC runner-up)
7. Penn State Nittany Lions (6-0) (Predicted Big Ten overall)
8. Alabama Crimson Tide (5-1) (Predicted SEC Overall)
9. Miami Hurricanes (6-0) (Projected ACC runner-up)
10. Notre Dame fights against Irish (5-1) (Total projected national independence)
11. LSU Tigers (5-1) (Predicted SEC Overall)
12. Boise State Broncos (5-1) (Projected Mountain West/Group of Five Champion)

Now let's break down where each SEC team stands in terms of playoff situation after Week 7.

Texas Longhorns (6-0)

Texas is currently the team to beat in college football. The Longhorns defeated arch-rival Oklahoma in Red River. If Quinn Ewers is healthy, this must be the pick to win the national championship. Of course, Texas hosts Georgia next week and has a season-ending date with its little brother, Texas A&M. While the Longhorns could remain undefeated, they should come to Atlanta with a record of 11-1.

Georgia Bulldogs (5-1)

My beloved Georgia Bulldogs frustrate me. They were my choice to win the national championship. Although I'm confident they'll accomplish enough with their brutal regular season schedule to make the expanded playoffs. I don't know if they're good enough to get past the quarterfinals this year. This feels like a top 8 team in the sport, but I wouldn't consider them a serious title contender right now.

Alabama Crimson Tide (5-1)

It must be beyond frustrating to be an Alabama football fan right now. When the Crimson Tide are firing on all cylinders, they look like the best team in the country. Unfortunately, they often get stuck when switching gears. It's obvious that this is Kalen DeBoer's team now, not Nick Saban's. Alabama is the type of team that can beat Georgia but lose to Vanderbilt. They almost fell to South Carolina…

LSU Tigers (5-1)

I'm as shocked as you are that the LSU Tigers are firmly in the College Football Playoff bubble at halftime. They are effectively my last team at No. 11 after Week 7. After losing to USC in a neutral site affair in Las Vegas, the Bayou Bengals have won five straight games. I was looking for a special win, and maybe they got it with a home win over Ole Miss in overtime.

Texas A&M Aggies (5-1)

I can't wait to graduate from LSU at Texas A&M in a few weeks. This has become one of the best rivalries to emerge from a previous wave of conference realignment. These teams are evenly matched and absolutely hate each other. Right now I think the Aggies are cooking with napalm across the board. Mike Elko is the perfect head coach for them. I'm just wondering if Conner Weigman can be trusted for the duration…

Tennessee Volunteers (5-1)

I'm pretty much all about Tennessee. The Volunteers looked like paper tigers since they got their bye after beating a mediocre Oklahoma team in Norman. A road loss to Arkansas followed by a narrow home overtime win against Florida is not what Vol Nation was hoping for. Nico Iamaleava has hit a wall with his development. I don't know if this team beats Alabama, Georgia or Vanderbilt.

Ole Miss Rebels (5-2)

Even though it doesn't feel good overall, I feel justified in doubting Ole Miss' playoff chances just before the season begins. This was the year when everything was supposed to go well for them. Instead, they are 5-2 on the year, but at halftime they are a tough 1-2 in SEC play. Losing to Kentucky was bad, but losing to LSU made it much worse. Ole Miss is on life support.

Missouri Tigers (5-1)

Missouri wiped out UMass last weekend. That's exactly what Eliah Drinkwitz's team needed to do to make it to the playoffs. However, since the Tigers' schedule is still so soft, they absolutely need to beat Alabama in a few weeks to have a realistic chance of making it. Another loss may mean the end for all intents and purposes, but they won. I don't come in at 9:30.

Oklahoma Sooners (4-2)

This is not a playoff team. Not even close. However, there is one thing Oklahoma has to offer the rest of the way. If they somehow won five of their final six games in the regular season, OU would have a legitimate chance of coming into the game as a 9-3 team. The Sooners may have the toughest remaining schedule in the country. The problem is that they haven't shown that they can beat any good opponent.

Vanderbilt Commodores (4-2)

I want to say that Vanderbilt is so much the College Football Playoff bubble, but I can't quite get there. At 4-2, it feels very much like a bowl team. They should be coming off a 5-2 win over Ball State next week. On the other hand, this team lost to Georgia State earlier in the season. While I don't think they will beat Texas, Vanderbilt has an extreme chance of getting in with a record of 9-3. Crazy!

Arkansas Razorbacks (4-2)

Arkansas already has a big SEC win, beating Tennessee at home two weeks ago. Like Vanderbilt, it feels very much like a bowl team, but will need almost every bit of luck it can get to make the playoffs this year. Arkansas will get in if the Hogs win. While Texas A&M's loss doesn't look bad at all, Oklahoma State's loss looks much worse from week to week.

South Carolina Gamecocks (3-3)

There's a chance that South Carolina is the best non-bowl game team I've seen in my decades-long college football playing career. This team features a menacing defense that plays with tremendous fire and passion at all three levels. South Carolina can control the football but has a tendency to run out of energy on offense in big moments, like in its potential upsets against LSU and Alabama last week.

Florida Gators (3-3)

Even after a loss, I think it's far too early for Florida to fire Billy Napier. The Gators nearly upset a struggling Tennessee Volunteers team in Neyland on Saturday, but fell in overtime. Their brutal schedule shows no sign of slowing down with games against Georgia, Texas, LSU and Ole Miss on the horizon. If this team even gets close to a bowl game, I would hire Napier to coach in 2025. It all starts with a win over Kentucky.

Kentucky Wildcats (3-3)

I'm starting to wonder if Kentucky has enough firepower offensively to win six games this year. They may have pulled off a big upset win over Ole Miss in Oxford a few weeks ago, but were no match for regional rival Vanderbilt this past weekend. Mark Stoops knows his way around defense, but the inherent limitations on offense will keep this team playing behind the eight ball in most games going forward.

Auburn Tigers (2-4)

Auburn is not a good football team. It may be a little premature to fire Hugh Freeze, but his coaching tactics aren't working yet. Auburn didn't prioritize getting better in the transfer portal last season and it clearly shows. Next year Freeze will be in the hot seat. My biggest concern is whether he has enough time to keep the picky fanbase and rabid boosters in check.

Mississippi State Bulldogs (1-5)

Jeff Lebby and his staff should consider Saturday's road trip to Athens a moral victory. Did Georgia miss her? Absolutely, but his Bulldogs came to the game with a surprise bid in mind. It was very brief, but there were moments where I saw what Mississippi State looked like under Mike Leach and Dan Mullen. Give it time and it might work out for Lebby. Right now, this team could win three games.

It will be interesting to see how the bubble dissipates after the numerous games next weekend.