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Both Alabama and LSU were able to pull off comfortable wins this week, but it’s the next group of SEC teams that are this week’s winners. Georgia, Florida and Auburn all avoided what would’ve been a disastrous second loss of their respective seasons, meaning the conference remains deep with contenders ready to leap upwards if either of the two favorites stumble.

No. 9 Florida was most at risk early on, as South Carolina looked poised to pull off an upset at home. But Gators quarterback Kyle Trask eventually settled in, and Florida’s defense took advantage of the fact Gamecocks QB Ryan Hilinski was playing on a balky knee. The Gamecocks couldn’t maintain their high level of execution for four quarters.

In the West division, No. 11 Auburn ripped through Arkansas with ease, demolishing the Razorbacks 51-10. Tigers signal-caller Bo Nix was efficient again, but his team really dominated this one on the ground. Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn’s crew had eight different ball-carriers tally at least two carries, totaling 298 yards in a dominant performance.

Finally, the No. 10 Georgia Bulldogs, who were seeking redemption for last week’s loss to South Carolina, took care of business in the pouring rain at home against Kentucky. Their recipe remained the same as always: relying on their rushing attack to do the dirty work and their defense to stay imposing. It would be nice to see them open this offense and allow quarterback Jake Fromm to develop outside of his current role, but head coach Kirby Smart seems dead-set against that based on play-calling.