Danny Kanell didn’t play college football in the SEC, playing quarterback for Florida State in the early to mid-1990s. All these decades later, Kanell is a college football analyst for CBS Sports , and he’s seen his share of SEC dominance both during his playing years at FSU and now while covering sports.

But in his weekly rankings of the top 12 heading into 2024, Kanell gives no love to the conference that is so used to getting all the love, because his top 5 teams don’t even include one from the SEC. Kanell’s highest-ranked SEC team is Georgia at No. 6, after the Bulldogs enjoyed a bye week following their massive win at Texas in Week 8.

So, with no SEC teams in Kanell’s top 5, who is his top 5? He starts with Oregon, which is No. 1 in the AP poll and played the role Saturday, dismantling No. 20 Illinois, 38-9, in Eugene. Kanell joins Penn State at No. 2 after the Nittany Lions survived an injury to star quarterback Drew Allar and got the job done at Wisconsin on Saturday night.

Miami comes in at No. 3 after the Hurricanes remained undefeated by beating struggling rival Florida State on Saturday night. BYU is a bit of a shocker at No. 4, as the Cougars remained undefeated Saturday with a win at UCF but are only ranked 11th in the current AP poll. Then, at No. 5, Kanell has Indiana, the official darling of college football in 2024 (at least so far), which improved to 8-0 on Saturday with a solid home win over Washington.

After Georgia, Kanell follows with Clemson at No. 7, Pittsburgh (another 2024 darling) at No. 8, Iowa State at No. 9, before finishing with Ohio State up to No. 10, Texas A&M at No. °9. .11 and Texas up to #12. Keep in mind that the Longhorns were No. 1 in the AP poll a little over a week ago before falling at home to Georgia.

The only ranking that ignores brand bias….
Brand new #DKtop12 after week 9.

1. Oregon
2. Penn State
3.Miami
4. BYU
5. Indiana
6. Georgia
7. Clemson
8. Pitt
9. Iowa State
10. Ohio State
11. Texas A.M.
12.Texas

-Danny Kanell (@dannykanell) October 27, 2024