SEC football TV times, channels: Lane Kiffin goes off on 9-game schedule

The pressure is already on two of the SEC’s favorites to make the College Football Playoff field after LSU and Texas A&M suffered upset losses.

Lane Kiffin was still upset over circumstances surrounding the No. 10-ranked Tigers’ 32-24 defeat, while Mike Elko seemed to attribute some of the 23rd-ranked Aggies’ loss to league parity, even as his team was favored by 17.

LSU and Texas A&M have a 7:30 p.m. kickoff in a game that likely carries College Football Playoff implications.

While most coaches apply a 24-hour rule to losses, Kiffin did not hold back Wednesday from voicing his displeasure over the fact LSU had just played in Oxford for a second consecutive season as a result of the league moving to a nine-game schedule.

It’s also the second year in a row the Aggies are playing in Tiger Stadium — not that it bothered them last season, as they scored a 49-25 win over LSU on Oct. 25, 2025, that led to former coach Brian Kelly being fired less than 24 hours later.

But it was Kiffin who pointed out the unique nature of the SEC schedule because of the league adding another conference game despite public objections from him and others at the 2025 SEC spring meetings.

“Never in that LSU-Ole Miss series had it ever been played two times in a row (in Oxford), so that game was supposed to be here and this one was supposed to be there,” Kiffin said. “So these are the scheduling parts that come with our awesome move to nine games that has sure looked so great here lately.”

Kiffin also voiced displeasure with the Ole Miss scoreboard operator, who he claimed was playing music while LSU’s quarterback was ready for the snap — which, if true, should have resulted in a dead-ball foul resulting in a 15-yard penalty.

Kiffin said on the SEC coaches teleconference there was “music being played all the way through the snap, when the center’s hand’s on the ball, again and again, so, those (things) will help you struggle at quarterback and false start.”

LSU had multiple presnap penalties in its 32-24 loss to the Rebels but must now quickly turn its attention to a Texas A&M team that suffered a 31-21 home loss to an unheralded Kentucky team led by first-year coach Will Stein.

Elko is in his third season in College Station, coming off an 11-2 campaign that saw him guide Texas A&M to its first College Football Playoff appearance.

Elko agreed with a question Wednesday that likened the SEC’s parity to that of the NFL.

“I didn’t want to be part of that and didn’t want to speak my way into that, but I think as parity has shifted a little bit in this NIL transfer era,” Elko said. “I think the level of balance has really increased and so I think, to me, you’re playing these games week in and week out that can go either way.”

“To me, that’s what the NFL is — it’s seasons where 10-7 gets you in the playoffs and 11-6 gets you in the playoffs and gets you a chance,” he said. “I think it’s just a change from college football, where, for so long, 11-1 and 12-0 defined success. I’m not sure that’s going to be the reality for a lot of teams moving forward.”

The College Football Playoff is in its third season with a 12-team field, though there has been speculation it could increase to a 16- or 24-team field as soon as next season if the SEC and Big Ten can come to an agreement on the format.

Here’s a look at all of the games Saturday featuring SEC teams, with the scheduled start times, TV stations, betting lines and local prediction:

Saturday’s games

Lines from FanDuel Sportsbook

Texas -4½ at Tennessee, (ABC), noon

Pick: Texas 34, Tennessee 24

South Alabama at Kentucky -20½, (SEC Network), 12:45 p.m.

Pick: Kentucky 40, South Alabama 20

Oklahoma at Georgia -13½, (ESPN) 3:30 p.m.

Pick: Georgia 24, Oklahoma 10

Ole Miss at Florida -3½, (ABC) 3:30 p.m.

Pick: Florida 34, Ole Miss 33

Vanderbilt at Auburn -9½, (SEC Network) 4:15 p.m.

Pick: Auburn 37, Vanderbilt 24

South Carolina at Alabama -12½, (ESPN) 7 p.m.

Pick: Alabama 33, South Carolina 21

Texas A&M at LSU -8½, (ABC) 7:30 p.m.

Pick: LSU 37, Texas A&M 28

Missouri at Mississippi State -5½, (SEC Network) 7:45 p.m.

Pick: Missouri 30, Mississippi State 27

Tulsa at Arkansas -7½, (SEC Network Plus) 8 p.m.

Pick: Arkansas 34, Tulsa 26