THE WORD

Week 2 brings the first multi-game conference slate of the 2026 SoCon season, headlined by Furman’s trip to two-time defending champion Mercer. We break down every matchup, key player and prediction across the Southern Conference.

Blowouts, an FBS upset, lightning and a nonconference game between league foes highlight Week 1. Week 1 of Southern Conference football had nearly everything. It was indeed almost all here, even if the tagline of the former commissioner for the league is looking for new employment. Even though everyone had already played a game, the first full week of the season saw the league go 5-5 (including the nonconference game between Chattanooga and Tennessee Tech as 1-1), which would