The 2012 Southeastern Conference football season began on August 30 with South Carolina visiting Vanderbilt, and concluded with the BCS National Championship Game on January 7, 2013. It was also the first season of play for former Big 12 Conference members Texas A&M and Missouri. Texas A&M plays in the West Division, while Missouri plays in the East Division, although geographically, Missouri is one of the conference's westernmost teams.
Preseason Arkansas head coach Bobby Petrino was fired in early April for lying about his affair with an Arkansas employee after a motorcycle accident that he had on April 1st that left him with four broken ribs, a cracked vertebra in his neck and numerous abrasions on his face. In the press conference announcing the termination, Arkansas Athletic Director Jeff Long said, "(Petrino) made the decision to mislead the public, (and it) adversely affected the university and the football program." In Petrino's place, Assistant Coach Taver Johnson served as interim coach through the end of spring practice. After the firing of Bobby Petrino in April 2012, there was considerable media speculation that Smith would return to Arkansas. This was confirmed on April 23 when multiple media outlets reported that Smith had indeed agreed to succeed Petrino. He was introduced as Arkansas' 29th full-time head coach the next day. Smith signed a 10-month contract, leading to speculation that he was only taking the post on an interim basis for the 2012 season. The Razorbacks' formal announcement described him as "head coach", without any qualifiers; however, it also indicated that Smith's hiring would allow Arkansas to hire "a head coach for the future of the program" in a more appropriate timeframe following the 2012 season.
At the end of the 2011 season it was announced that Head Coach Houston Nutt resigned from the position of head coach at Ole Miss. His resignation became official once the season ended. In his place, Ole Miss hired Arkansas State Head Coach Hugh Freeze.
Preseason All-SEC 2012 Pre-season Coaches All-SEC
+ First team offense Position Player Class Team QB Sr. Arkansas RB Jr. South Carolina RB Jr. Arkansas WR Jr. Tennessee WR Sr. Arkansas WR Sr. Texas A&M TE Sr. Auburn OL Sr. LSU OL Sr. Alabama OL Jr. Texas A&M OL Sr. Kentucky C Sr. Alabama
+ First team defense Position Player Class Team DL So. South Carolina DL Jr. LSU DL Jr. Auburn DL Jr. LSU LB Sr. Texas A&M LB So. Alabama LB Sr. Georgia DB Sr. Mississippi State DB Sr. Georgia DB Jr. LSU DB Jr. LSU
+ First Team Special Teams Position Player Class Team K Sr. Florida P So. LSU RS Jr. LSU All-purpose back Jr. Arkansas
Rankings + Legend Increase in ranking Decrease in ranking Not ranked previous week RV Received votes
(Pre) Sept.3 Sept.10 Sept.17 Sept.24 Oct.1 Oct.8 Oct.15 Oct.22 Oct.29 Nov.5 Nov.12 Nov.19 Nov.26 Dec.3 FinalAlabama AP2111111111142221C2111111111152221 BCSNot released11114222Arkansas AP108RVNRC10921NR BCSNot releasedAuburn APRVRVNRC25RVNR BCSNot releasedFlorida AP2324181411104338776549C23231714121164387765410 BCSNot released22766443Georgia AP6775551413127553365C6776551212116543354 BCSNot released1110655337Kentucky APC BCSNot releasedLSU AP33323496659889914C13223386659876712 BCSNot released66577778Mississippi State APRVRVRV2321201915131722RV25RVNRCRVRVRV2319191816121523RV24RVRVNR BCSNot released12111821NRMissouri APRVRVNRRVNRCRVRVNR BCSNot releasedOle Miss APCRVNRRVNR BCSNot releasedSouth Carolina AP99876639171112121311118C9998663816811111210107 BCSNot released7131189121010Tennessee APRVRV23RVRVRVRVNRCRVRVRVRVRVNR BCSNot releasedTexas A&M APRVRVNRRVRVRV22202216159910105CRVRVRVRVRVRV21192116141010895 BCSNot released182016158999Vanderbilt APRVRVRV23CRVNRRVRVRV20 BCSNot released
Regular season Index to colors and formattingNon-conference matchup; SEC member wonNon-conference matchup; SEC member lostConference matchup All times Eastern time. SEC teams in bold.
Rankings reflect that of the AP poll for that week until week eight when the BCS rankings will be used.
Week One Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance Reference August 30 4:00 p.m. #9 South Carolina Vanderbilt Vanderbilt Stadium • Nashville, Tennessee ESPN SCAR 17–13 38,393 August 31 4:30 p.m. North Carolina State Tennessee Georgia Dome • Atlanta (Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game) ESPNU W 21–35 55,529 September 1 9:00 a.m. Buffalo #6 Georgia Sanford Stadium • Athens, Georgia SEC Network W 23–45 92,446 September 1 12:30 p.m. Bowling Green #23 Florida Ben Hill Griffin Stadium • Gainesville, Florida ESPN W 14–27 84,704 September 1 4:00 p.m. Jacksonville State # 10 Arkansas Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium • Fayetteville, Arkansas PPV W 24-49 71,062 September 1 4:00 p.m. #14 Clemson Auburn Georgia Dome • Atlanta (Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game) ESPN L 26–19 75,211 September 1 4:00 p.m. North Texas #3 LSU Tiger Stadium • Baton Rouge, Louisiana ESPNU W 14-41 92,059 September 1 4:00 p.m. Jackson State Mississippi State Davis Wade Stadium • Starkville, Mississippi FSN W 9–56 55,082 September 1 4:00 p.m. Southeastern Louisiana Missouri Faurot Field • Columbia, Missouri PPV W 10–62 62,173 September 1 4:00 p.m. Central Arkansas Ole Miss Vaught–Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, Mississippi CSS W 27–49 50,544 September 1 5:00 p.m. #8 Michigan #2 Alabama Cowboys Stadium • Arlington, Texas ABC W 14–41 90,413 September 2 12:30 p.m. Kentucky #25 Louisville Papa John's Cardinal Stadium • Louisville, Kentucky ESPN L 14–32 55,386
Texas A&M's matchup with Louisiana Tech University was rescheduled to October 13 by agreement of the schools due to the potential impact of Hurricane Isaac on Shreveport, Louisiana, where the game was to be held.
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Reference:
Week Two Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance Reference September 8 9:00 a.m. Auburn Mississippi State Davis Wade Stadium • Starkville, Mississippi ESPN MSU 10–28 56,111 September 8 9:21 a.m. East Carolina South Carolina Williams-Brice Stadium • Columbia, South Carolina SEC Network W 10–48 77,006 September 8 12:30 p.m. #24 Florida Texas A&M Kyle Field • College Station, Texas ESPN UF 20–17 87,114 September 8 12:30 p.m. Western Kentucky Alabama Bryant–Denny Stadium • Tuscaloosa, Alabama SEC Network W 0–35 101,821 September 8 1:00 p.m. Georgia State Tennessee Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, Tennessee PPV W 13–51 87,821 September 8 4:00 p.m. Washington #3 LSU Tiger Stadium • Baton Rouge, Louisiana ESPN W 3–41 92,804 September 8 4:00 p.m. UTEP Ole Miss Vaught–Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, Mississippi FSN W 10–28 53,133 September 8 4:00 p.m. Louisiana–Monroe #8 Arkansas War Memorial Stadium • Little Rock, Arkansas ESPNU L 34–31 OT 53,089 September 8 4:30 p.m. Kent State Kentucky Commonwealth Stadium • Lexington, Kentucky CSS W 14–47 48,346 September 8 4:45 p.m. #7 Georgia Missouri Faurot Field • Columbia, Missouri ESPN2 UGA 41–20 71,004 September 8 5:00 p.m. Vanderbilt Northwestern Ryan Field • Evanston, Illinois Big Ten Network L 13–23 31,644
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Reference:
Week Three Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance Reference September 15 9:21 a.m. Louisiana–Monroe Auburn Jordan–Hare Stadium • Auburn, Alabama SEC Network W 28–31 OT 85,214 September 15 9:30 a.m. Presbyterian Vanderbilt Vanderbilt Stadium • Vanderbilt, Tennessee CSS W 0–58 35,491 September 15 12:30 p.m. #1 Alabama Arkansas Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium • Fayetteville, Arkansas CBS ALA 52–0 74,617 September 15 12:30 p.m. Texas A&M SMU Gerald J. Ford Stadium • University Park, Texas FSN W 48–3 32,016 September 15 3:00 p.m. #18 Florida #23 Tennessee Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, Tennessee ESPN UF 37–20 102,455 September 15 4:00 p.m. Western Kentucky Kentucky Commonwealth Stadium • Lexington, Kentucky ESPNU L 32–31 OT 53,980 September 15 4:00 p.m. Arizona State Missouri Faurot Field • Columbia, Missouri ESPN2 W 20–24 71,004 September 15 4:00 p.m. UAB #8 South Carolina Williams-Brice Stadium • Columbia, South Carolina FSN W 6–49 77,963 September 15 4:00 p.m. Mississippi State Troy Veterans Memorial Stadium • Troy, Alabama ESPN3 W 30–24 29,013 September 15 4:30 p.m. Florida Atlantic #7 Georgia Sanford Stadium • Athens, Georgia CSS W 20–56 92,746 September 15 5:00 p.m. Idaho #3 LSU Tiger Stadium • Baton Rouge, Louisiana PPV W 14–63 92,177 September 15 6:26 p.m. #14 Texas Ole Miss Vaught–Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, Mississippi ESPN L 66–31 61,797
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Reference:
Week Four Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance Reference September 22 9:00 am Ole Miss Tulane Mercedes-Benz Superdome • New Orleans FSN W 39–0 28,913 September 22 9:00 a.m. Kentucky #14 Florida Ben Hill Griffin Stadium • Gainesville, Florida SEC Network UF 0–38 87,102 September 22 2:00 p.m. Florida Atlantic #1 Alabama Bryant–Denny Stadium • Tuscaloosa, Alabama PPV W 7–40 101,821 September 22 2:30 pm Missouri #7 South Carolina Williams-Brice Stadium • Columbia, South Carolina CBS SCAR 10–31 80,836 September 22 4:00 pm #2 LSU Auburn Jordan–Hare Stadium • Auburn, Alabama ESPN LSU 12–10 86,721 September 22 4:00 pm Rutgers Arkansas Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium • Fayetteville, Arkansas ESPNU L 35-26 72,543 September 22 4:00 pm South Carolina State Texas A&M Kyle Field • College Station, Texas FSN W 14–70 86,775 September 22 4:00 pm South Alabama #23 Mississippi State Davis Wade Stadium • Starkville, Mississippi PPV W 10–30 55,186 September 22 4:30 pm Akron Tennessee Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, Tennessee CSS W 26–47 81,719 September 22 4:45 pm Vanderbilt #5 Georgia Sanford Stadium • Athens, Georgia ESPN2 UGA 3–48 92,746
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Reference:
Week Five Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance Reference September 29 12:00 pm Missouri UCF Bright House Networks Stadium • Orlando, Florida FSN W 21–16 35,835 September 29 12:21 pm Arkansas Texas A&M Kyle Field • College Station, Texas SEC Network TAMU 58–10 86,442 September 29 3:30 pm Tennessee #5 Georgia Sanford Stadium • Athens, Georgia CBS UGA 51–44 92,746 September 29 7:00 pm #6 South Carolina Kentucky Commonwealth Stadium • Lexington, Kentucky ESPN2 SCAR 38–17 49,810 September 29 8:00 pm Towson #3 LSU Tiger Stadium • Baton Rouge, Louisiana ESPNU W 38–22 92,154 September 29 9:15 pm Ole Miss #1 Alabama Bryant–Denny Stadium • Tuscaloosa, Alabama ESPN ALA 33–14 101,821
Week off: Auburn, Florida, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt.
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Reference:
Week Six Date Time Visiting team Home team Site Broadcast Result Attendance Reference October 6 12:00 pm Arkansas Auburn Jordan–Hare Stadium • Auburn, Alabama ESPN2 ARK 24–7 85,813 October 6 12:21 pm #20 Mississippi State Kentucky Commonwealth Stadium • Lexington, Kentucky SEC Network MSU 27–14 49,498 October 6 3:30 pm #4 LSU #10 Florida Ben Hill Griffin Stadium • Gainesville, Florida CBS UF 14–6 90,824 October 6 7:00 pm Vanderbilt Missouri Faurot Field • Columbia, Missouri ESPN3 Vandy 19–15 66,250 October 6 7:00 pm Texas A&M Ole Miss Vaught–Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, Mississippi ESPNU TAMU 30–27 55,343 October 6 7:00 pm #5 Georgia #6 South Carolina Williams-Brice Stadium • Columbia, South Carolina ESPN SCAR 35–7 85,199
Week off: Alabama, Tennessee.
Players of the week: Offensive Defensive Special teams Player Team Player Team Player Team Reference:
Week Seven