Kentucky football makes AP Poll Top 25 debut in Week 6 update

When Kentucky football heads to Athens next weekend, they’ll do so with a number next to their name.

On Sunday afternoon, the Week 6 Associated Press Poll was updated to reflect this weekend’s results. Following Saturday’s 33-14 beatdown of the Florida Gators in Lexington, Kentucky has made its season debut in the AP Poll, moving up seven spots from No. 27 to No. 20 in the country. Meanwhile, Florida went from No. 23 to unranked while unbeaten Louisville (5-0) snuck into the rankings at No. 25.

Georgia, Kentucky’s next opponent, continues to hold down the No. 1 spot in the AP Poll after narrowly beating Auburn 27-20 on the road Saturday. The SEC Nation crew will be covering the ‘Cats for the second straight week when they head to Athens on Saturday, Oct. 7th.

A total of seven Southeastern Conference programs cracked the Top 25, led by No. 1 Georgia. Behind the Bulldogs are No. 11 Alabama, No. 16 Ole Miss, No. 20 Kentucky, No. 21 Missouri, No. 22 Tennesse, and No. 23 LSU.

The Week 6 Coaches Poll was released an hour prior to the AP Poll. Kentucky was bumped up seven spots to No. 20 in the nation in the latest Coaches Poll update. You can view the entire Week 6 AP Poll below.

Associated Press Poll Week 6

1. Georgia
2. Michigan
3. Texas
4. Ohio State
5. Florida State
6. Penn State
7. Washington
8. Oregon (+1)
9. Southern California (-1)
10. Notre Dame (+1)
11. Alabama (+1)
12. Oklahoma (+2)
13. Washington State (+3)
14. North Carolina (+1)
15. Oregon State (+4)
16. Ole Miss (+4)
17. Miami [FL] (+1)
18. Utah (-8)
19. Duke (-2)
20. Kentucky (NR)
21. Missouri (+2)
22. Tennessee (-1)
23. LSU (-10)
24. Fresno State (+1)
25. Louisville (NR)

Others Receiving Votes: Maryland 81, Kansas St. 44, Texas A&M 31, UCLA 19, Tulane 8, Air Force 7, Wisconsin 6, Clemson 5, West Virginia 5, Kansas 3, James Madison 3, Colorado 1.

ESPN’s updated rankings

Kentucky continues to rise in ESPN’s Football Power Index (FPI) rankings, as well. The Wildcats jumped up five spots from No. 36 to No. 31 following Saturday’s win. As a result, the Wildcats’ projected average win-loss record also improved from 7.0-5.0 this time last week to 7.9-4.2 as of Sunday morning.

The FPI numbers that were once down on Kentucky through the first few weeks of the season have now changed tunes. UK has a 97.2 percent chance to win six games this season (up from 85.7 percent last week) and a 6.4 percent chance to win the SEC East (up from just 3.0 percent last week). Meanwhile, Florida dropped six spots in the FPI down to No. 37 as a result of the 19-point loss.

As for ESPN’s updated SP+ rankings — a “predictive and forward-facing” analytics model — Kentucky once again moved up. The Wildcats are now No. 21 in the SP+ rankings, a two-spot increase from last week. UK grades out having the nation’s 53rd-ranked offense, 10th-ranked defense, and fifth-ranked special teams unit.

Georgia, Kentucky’s next opponent, will host the Wildcats on Saturday with a perfect 5-0 record and the top-ranked spot in the national polls, but the FPI isn’t buying the Bulldogs as the best team in the country. After narrowly beating Auburn, UGA dropped two spots in the FPI to No. 7 overall. Georgia checks in at No. 4 in the latest SP+ rankings.