Auburn’s Jackson Arnold returns to Oklahoma in SEC clash

By Canadian Press on September 18, 2025.

What to watch this week in the Southeastern Conference:

Game of the week

No. 22 Auburn (3-0) at No. 11 Oklahoma (3-0), Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (ABC)

A chance for a statement game in the sole ranked SEC matchup of the week. The two teams last met in Sept. 2024, when Oklahoma earned its first win its new conference thanks to an impressive fourth-quarter comeback.

Auburn entered the AP Top 25 after wins over Baylor and Ball State and improved to No. 23 after beating South Alabama 31-15. A win over then-No. 15 Michigan helped Oklahoma’s steady rise to their highest ranking since 2023.

The Sooners’ John Mateer is second in the nation in total offense (368.3 yards per game). He has already thrown for 944 yards, completing 68% of his passes while pushing himself into the Heisman Trophy conversation. Auburn QB Jackson Arnold spent the last two years at Oklahoma, starting 10 games in 2024, and is coming off his own three-TD performance last weekend.

The undercard

South Carolina (2-1) at No. 23 Missouri (3-0), Saturday, 7 p.m. ET (ESPN)

South Carolina’s Week 3 matchup against Vanderbilt took a turn when quarterback LaNorris Sellers went down with a suspected concussion towards the end of the second quarter. Luke Doty subbed in at quarterback, but the Gamecocks failed to find the end zone and lost 31-7, falling out of the AP Top 25 the next day. Sellers’ Week 4 status was uncertain at midweek.

Beau Pribula has given Missouri’s offense new life, throwing for 791 yards and seven touchdowns.

Impact players

— QB Marcel Reed led Texas A&M to a 41-40 win at Notre Dame, completing 17 of 37 passes for 360 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Reed led an efficient 13-play, 74-yard drive in the final minutes of the game, hitting Nate Boerkircher for an 11-yard touchdown. The Aggies are off until next weekend against Auburn.

— Tennessee WR Chris Brazzell II is second in the SEC with 364 receiving yards and a league-best five TD catches. He is coming off his best game to date, catching five passes for 177 yards and three touchdowns in Tennessee’s 44-41 overtime loss to Georgia. The Vols face UAB this weekend.

Inside the numbers

SEC teams went 12-4 in Week 3. All four losses came against SEC opponents. A record-high 11 teams remain in the AP Top 25. … Missouri leads the conference with 1,761 yards on offense, averaging 587 per game. … Oklahoma’s defense has held opponents to the fewest yards (181 per game).

Get to know him

Missouri’s Ahmad Hardy comes off the best game of his young career, rushing for 250 yards and three touchdowns against Louisiana-Lafayette. Hardy is a sophomore from Oma, Mississippi, who transferred to Missouri after spending his freshman year at Louisiana-Monroe, where he earned a long list of accolades. Hardy leads the SEC in rushing yards with 462 through three games.

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Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

Maura Carey, The Associated Press

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