October has finally reached the point where the SEC volleyball standings are beginning to tell us something.
Florida sits at the top after sweeping LSU on Friday night to improve to 7-1 in conference play, Kentucky is suddenly chasing after Tennessee pulled off one of the wildest comebacks of the SEC season, Missouri has quietly won four straight, Texas A&M appears to have steadied itself after a rough stretch, and Vanderbilt is still sitting there with a number beside its name in year two of resurrecting a volleyball program that disappeared for more than four decades.
And then there is Tennessee.
Kentucky walked into Knoxville Wednesday night, won the first two sets 25-17 and 25-18, hit better than .449 through those opening frames, and looked like Kentucky. Then the entire match turned upside down. Tennessee took the third, survived the fourth and finished off the reverse sweep in five, handing Kentucky its second SEC loss and knocking the Wildcats out of first place. It was Tennessee’s first win over Kentucky since 2023 and only the second time Kentucky has been reverse swept since 2017.
That is the kind of result that changes the tone of an entire conference race.
And Kentucky does not get much time to feel sorry for itself.
The defending national runner-up gets the defending national champion Sunday afternoon.
On ABC.
Yeah.
I think we found Theia’s Game of the Week.
SUNDAY — OCTOBER 25
No. 14 Texas at South Carolina
12:00 PM CT — SEC Network+
Texas has had one of the strangest seasons in the conference.
The Longhorns entered October carrying a ranking that looked increasingly disconnected from their record, then showed exactly why nobody wanted to dismiss them by taking Florida all the way to five sets last Sunday. Florida ultimately escaped Austin 3-2, but Texas once again demonstrated that the Longhorns are considerably more dangerous than the win-loss column sometimes suggests.
South Carolina enters from the opposite direction after getting swept at home by Missouri Friday night. The Gamecocks never found much of an answer for Paige Felder, who led Missouri to its fourth consecutive victory and third straight sweep.
Texas should win this match, but I have stopped looking at anything involving the Longhorns and expecting normal.
Why watch: Texas continues trying to turn a bizarre season into something dangerous before November arrives.
No. 22 Vanderbilt at No. 9 Tennessee
12:00 PM CT — SEC Network
Vanderbilt being ranked still makes me smile a little.
This program did not exist two seasons ago, and now the Commodores are walking into Knoxville with No. 22 beside their name to play a Tennessee team that just reverse swept Kentucky.
That is a pretty damn good advertisement for SEC volleyball.
Tennessee enters Sunday with all the momentum in the world after Wednesday night’s comeback. The Lady Vols were completely outplayed for two sets before flipping the match, hitting .429 across the fourth and fifth sets and never trailing in the deciding frame.
The biggest challenge now is emotional.
Beating Kentucky is one thing. Turning around four days later and treating Vanderbilt with the same level of seriousness is another.
The Commodores have already proven they are well beyond novelty status, and this is exactly the kind of match that punishes a team still celebrating Wednesday.
Why watch: Tennessee has the biggest win of its SEC season. Now we see whether the Lady Vols can handle success.
No. 19 Texas A&M at No. 4 Kentucky
12:00 PM CT — ABC
There really wasn’t another choice.
The defending national champion against the defending national runner-up.
On national television.
In Lexington.
And Kentucky is coming off a reverse-sweep loss to Tennessee.
This one practically wrote its own banner.
Texas A&M appeared to be wobbling a couple of weeks ago. The Aggies lost to Oklahoma, Arkansas and Florida during a difficult stretch that raised legitimate questions about whether the defending champions were starting to lose their footing.
They have responded.
A&M beat Auburn and then went into Athens Friday night and defeated Georgia 3-1, handing the Bulldogs just their fourth loss of the season. Kyndal Stowers recorded 14 kills and 16 digs, Natalie Ring added 13 kills while hitting .333, and Kaia Castle produced a season-high seven blocks as the Aggies improved to 12-8 overall and 5-3 in SEC play.
That is a much healthier Texas A&M team walking into Lexington than the one we were discussing two weeks ago.
Kentucky, meanwhile, has something to prove again.
The Wildcats looked completely in control Wednesday night at Tennessee. Kentucky hit .375 in the first set, .552 without a single hitting error in the second, and appeared headed toward another convincing conference win.
Then Tennessee dragged the Wildcats into deep water.
Kentucky committed ten hitting errors in the third set, never led in the fourth or fifth, and watched a two-set lead disappear. Brooklyn DeLeye still finished with 25 kills and hit .321, but Tennessee’s ability to disrupt Kentucky after halftime changed the entire match.
Now Kentucky gets one of the best possible tests of how quickly an elite team can reset.
There is also the history hanging over this match.
Texas A&M won the 2025 NCAA championship. Kentucky finished as the national runner-up.
You do not need to manufacture stakes for that.
The Aggies know they can beat anybody in the country when everything clicks. Kentucky knows exactly what Texas A&M represents because the Wildcats watched the Aggies end their season on the biggest stage possible.
And while October is not December, I would be shocked if that memory does not exist somewhere in the back of the Kentucky locker room.
The tactical matchup is fascinating too.
Texas A&M has regained some physicality at the net, while Kentucky remains one of the most efficient offensive teams in the country when its passing holds together. Tennessee showed that Kentucky can be pushed out of rhythm if the first contact deteriorates. A&M has the personnel to try the same thing.
Kentucky is at home.
Kentucky is angry.
Texas A&M is stabilizing.
And ABC decided the rest of us should get to watch.
Perfect.
Why watch: National champion against national runner-up, Kentucky coming off a painful loss, and Texas A&M beginning to look dangerous again.
Put this one on the big television.
Ole Miss at No. 5 Florida
12:00 PM CT — SEC Network+
Florida has quietly become the team everybody else is chasing.
The Gators swept LSU Friday night 25-18, 25-20, 25-14 and held the Tigers to a microscopic .043 hitting percentage. Kamryn Chaney led Florida with ten kills, while the Gators produced nine team blocks and improved to 16-2 overall and 7-1 in conference play.
That defensive performance might have been even more impressive than the score.
Florida is not merely outscoring teams right now. The Gators are making opposing offenses miserable.
Ole Miss has a difficult turnaround after getting swept by Auburn Friday night, and Gainesville is not exactly where you choose to rediscover your rhythm.
Florida should control this match if the Gators play anywhere near their current level.
Why watch: Florida has taken over first place, and every match now becomes part of the question of whether anybody can catch the Gators.
Missouri at Georgia
1:00 PM CT — SEC Network+
This one got much more interesting over the last two weeks.
Missouri has won four straight SEC matches and arrives in Athens after sweeping South Carolina Friday night. Even more impressive, that was Missouri’s third consecutive sweep. The Tigers have gone from a team hovering around the middle of the league to one of the hottest programs in the conference.
Georgia enters after losing 3-1 to Texas A&M, dropping the Bulldogs to 14-4 overall and 6-2 in SEC play. That record still tells you everything you need to know about how well Georgia has played, but Sunday now becomes an important response match.
This is where Missouri gets measured.
Winning four straight is impressive.
Winning in Athens against a 14-4 Georgia team would turn impressive into something much more serious.
Why watch: Missouri may be the hottest team nobody is talking about, and Georgia gets a chance to stop the streak.
LSU at Auburn
2:00 PM CT — SEC Network+
LSU had a miserable Friday night in Gainesville.
The Tigers were held to .043 hitting by Florida and swept in three, never really finding an offensive rhythm against the Gators’ block and floor defense.
Auburn had a much better evening.
The Tigers swept Ole Miss on Friday, giving them some positive momentum before returning to the floor Sunday afternoon.
This feels like one of those matches where the first set matters more than usual. LSU needs something good to happen early after Florida suffocated the offense, while Auburn has every reason to play loose after a clean sweep.
Why watch: LSU needs a reset. Auburn would love to make sure it does not happen on the Plains.
Arkansas at Mississippi State
2:00 PM CT — SEC Network+
Mississippi State finally found something Friday night.
The Bulldogs swept Oklahoma 3-0 after spending much of October trying to rediscover the confidence that powered that excellent start to the season.
Arkansas also enters with a win after surviving Alabama in five sets Friday night in Tuscaloosa. The Razorbacks had to work for every bit of it, but a road SEC victory is a road SEC victory.
That gives us two teams arriving with some momentum, and Mississippi State gets this one at home.
The Bulldogs needed Friday’s result badly.
Now we see whether it was the beginning of a turnaround or simply one good night.
Why watch: Mississippi State finally stopped the slide, while Arkansas comes in after stealing a five-setter on the road.
Oklahoma at Alabama
2:00 PM CT — SEC Network+
Alabama keeps getting close.
That may be the most frustrating sentence in Tuscaloosa right now.
The Tide pushed Vanderbilt to five last week and then took Arkansas to five Friday night, only to lose again. Alabama has shown repeatedly that it can compete with SEC opponents, but the standings do not award anything for making the fifth set interesting.
Oklahoma arrives after getting swept by Mississippi State, a result that continues the Sooners’ strange pattern this season. This is the same Oklahoma team that beat Texas A&M and Texas in Norman, yet it has also produced performances that look nothing like that team.
For Alabama, this needs to become one of those opportunities where “almost” finally disappears from the conversation.
Why watch: Alabama has been one set away too many times. Oklahoma gives the Tide another real chance to finish.
WEDNESDAY — OCTOBER 28
Georgia at No. 14 Texas
7:00 PM CT — SEC Network
This is an excellent standalone Wednesday match.
Georgia enters the week at 14-4 and firmly in the upper portion of the SEC standings, while Texas remains one of the most difficult teams in the league to evaluate.
The Longhorns have taken losses, but they also pushed Florida to five and have generally looked far more dangerous at home than their overall record suggests.
Georgia will also be coming off Sunday’s match with Missouri, meaning the Bulldogs could arrive in Austin either feeling very good about themselves or suddenly trying to stop a two-match skid.
Texas has spent most of the season living in matches like this.
Talented opponent. National ranking beside one of the names. Enough uncertainty to make everybody uncomfortable.
Sounds about right.
Why watch: Georgia gets a national measuring stick on the road, while Texas continues trying to turn flashes into consistency.
FRIDAY — OCTOBER 30
No. 22 Vanderbilt at South Carolina
6:00 PM CT — SEC Network+
Vanderbilt’s remarkable second season continues on the road in Columbia.
The Commodores will first have to survive Tennessee on Sunday, but regardless of that result, South Carolina is the sort of opponent a ranked Vanderbilt team now expects to beat.
That alone tells you how far this program has come.
South Carolina has struggled to establish any sustained momentum and enters the week after being swept by Missouri. Vanderbilt cannot afford to treat that as permission to coast, but the Commodores should enter as the better team.
Why watch: Vanderbilt’s story has moved beyond “isn’t this neat?” The Commodores are now expected to win matches like this.
Mississippi State at Ole Miss
6:00 PM CT — SEC Network+
This may not have the ranking power of some other Friday matches, but it has rivalry energy and two programs trying to build something before November.
Mississippi State enters the week feeling much better after sweeping Oklahoma. Ole Miss enters from the opposite direction after being swept by Auburn.
By Friday, both teams will have played again, but the basic stakes remain pretty straightforward.
Nobody wants to lose this one.
Especially not to the school from the other side of the state.
Why watch: Records are nice. Rivalry volleyball does not particularly care about them.
Missouri at No. 4 Kentucky
6:00 PM CT — SEC Network+
This could be sneaky excellent.
Missouri has won four straight entering the week, including three consecutive sweeps, and the Tigers have suddenly become one of the conference’s most interesting teams.
Kentucky, meanwhile, gets Texas A&M Sunday before turning around and hosting Missouri on Halloween weekend.
That is not a particularly friendly stretch.
The Wildcats remain one of the country’s best teams, but Tennessee exposed the fact that Kentucky can be rattled when opponents sustain pressure. Missouri arrives with enough confidence that I do not expect the Tigers to walk into Lexington merely happy to be there.
If Missouri’s streak survives Georgia on Sunday, this becomes one of the most fascinating matches of Friday night.
Why watch: Kentucky gets another hot opponent, and Missouri gets another chance to prove this run is real.
No. 5 Florida at Auburn
6:00 PM CT — SEC Network+
Florida goes on the road again.
The Gators have already won at Texas A&M and Texas during this stretch, swept LSU Friday and enter the week leading the conference.
So yes, Florida should be favored.
But Auburn is not harmless, especially at home.
The Tigers swept Ole Miss Friday and will have LSU on Sunday before Florida arrives. A good week could put Auburn in a very different position heading into November.
Florida’s job is simple: keep doing what it has been doing.
When the Gators serve aggressively, control the net and force opponents into low-percentage swings, they have looked like the most complete team in the conference.
Why watch: Florida carries the target now. Every road gym knows beating the Gators would change somebody’s season.
No. 9 Tennessee at No. 19 Texas A&M
6:30 PM CT — SEC Network+
This one deserves more attention than its streaming assignment might suggest.
Tennessee just reverse swept Kentucky.
Texas A&M is beginning to look like Texas A&M again.
And both teams will already have played ranked opponents Sunday before meeting Friday night in College Station.
That is a hell of a week.
Tennessee has found real confidence during this winning streak, and Wednesday’s comeback felt like the moment when the Lady Vols went from “good team recovering from an uneven start” to legitimate SEC title threat.
Texas A&M is still the defending national champion.
Nothing about going into College Station is easy.
Depending on what happens Sunday, this could have major implications near the top of the conference standings.
Why watch: Two teams trending upward collide in one of Friday’s best matches.
Oklahoma at Arkansas
6:00 PM CT — SEC Network
The SEC Network gets Oklahoma-Arkansas for the Friday showcase.
Oklahoma’s ceiling has been obvious all season. The Sooners have beaten ranked teams and created chaos in Norman, but consistency remains the problem.
Arkansas comes home after a five-set road win at Alabama and Sunday’s trip to Mississippi State.
This feels like a match that could go in almost any direction depending on which Oklahoma team arrives.
If the Sooners play like they did against Texas and Texas A&M, Arkansas has a fight.
If they play like they did in the sweep at Mississippi State, the Razorbacks should control it.
Why watch: Oklahoma remains the conference’s greatest weekly mystery.
The first thing on my clipboard this week is Kentucky’s response.
Wednesday’s loss at Tennessee was not just another conference defeat. Kentucky controlled the first two sets, hit at an absurd level and then watched the match completely disappear. Elite teams usually reveal something about themselves immediately after a loss like that. Unfortunately for Kentucky, the team waiting Sunday is the defending national champion.
That makes Texas A&M at Kentucky the perfect Game of the Week.
The second thing I’m watching is Florida sitting alone at the top.
The Gators have beaten Kentucky, won at Texas A&M, survived five sets at Texas and just held LSU to .043 hitting in a sweep. At some point the language has to change. Florida is no longer simply one of the teams capable of winning the SEC.
Right now, everybody else is chasing Florida.
Then there is Tennessee, which may have produced the conference’s defining comeback of October. Reverse sweeping Kentucky after getting blown out in the first two sets requires more than talent. It requires a team that believes the match is still there when nearly everybody watching thinks it is over.
And finally, do not overlook Missouri.
Four consecutive wins. Three straight sweeps. Georgia on Sunday and Kentucky on Friday.
That is either where the streak ends or where Missouri becomes impossible to ignore.
THIS WEEK’S WATCH LIST
Sunday, October 25
No. 14 Texas at South Carolina — 12 PM CT — SEC Network+
No. 22 Vanderbilt at No. 9 Tennessee — 12 PM CT — SEC Network
No. 19 Texas A&M at No. 4 Kentucky — 12 PM CT — ABC
Ole Miss at No. 5 Florida — 12 PM CT — SEC Network+
Missouri at Georgia — 1 PM CT — SEC Network+
LSU at Auburn — 2 PM CT — SEC Network+
Arkansas at Mississippi State — 2 PM CT — SEC Network+
Oklahoma at Alabama — 2 PM CT — SEC Network+
Wednesday, October 28
Georgia at No. 14 Texas — 7 PM CT — SEC Network
Friday, October 30
No. 22 Vanderbilt at South Carolina — 6 PM CT — SEC Network+
Mississippi State at Ole Miss — 6 PM CT — SEC Network+
Missouri at No. 4 Kentucky — 6 PM CT — SEC Network+
No. 5 Florida at Auburn — 6 PM CT — SEC Network+
Oklahoma at Arkansas — 6 PM CT — SEC Network
No. 9 Tennessee at No. 19 Texas A&M — 6:30 PM CT — SEC Network+
Fifteen matches.
A national championship rematch on ABC. Kentucky trying to recover from getting reverse swept. Tennessee suddenly looking like a serious problem. Florida sitting alone at the top. Missouri quietly tearing through people. Texas A&M starting to stabilize.
And somehow Vanderbilt is ranked in year two.
SEC volleyball has gotten weird.
I mean that as the highest compliment possible.
Theia’s Game of the Week: No. 19 Texas A&M at No. 4 Kentucky.
National champion.
National runner-up.
Lexington.
ABC.
There really wasn’t another choice.
See you on the court.
