Kentucky football rises in Coaches Poll following Miss State win

After beating Mississippi State in Starkville for the first time since 2008, Kentucky football is (very) slowly making its way back up the national rankings.

Although the Wildcats did not receive any votes in the Associated Press Poll for the second consecutive week, they did gain a small amount of ground in the updated Coaches Poll. Kentucky entered Saturday’s game receiving just one point in the Week 10 Coaches Poll, good enough for 38th in the country. In the Week 11 Coaches Poll released on Sunday, the ‘Cats are now receiving four points, which puts them at 37th overall.

As for Kentucky’s next opponent, the Alabama Crimson Tide, Nick Saban’s squad is coming off a 42-28 victory over then-No. 14 LSU. In spite of that — due to the teams ahead of them all winning, as well — Alabama remained at No. 8 in both the Coaches and AP polls. SEC Nation will be in Lexington for the second time this season to showcase the matchup.

You can check out the entirety of the updated Week 11 polls below.

Coaches Poll Week 11

1. Georgia
2. Michigan
3. Ohio State
4. Florida State
5. Washington
6. Oregon (+1)
7. Texas (-1)
8. Alabama
9. Penn State
10. Ole Miss
11. Louisville (+4)
12. Tennessee (+4)
13. Oregon State (+6)
14. Utah (+4)
15. Missouri (-1)
16. Oklahoma (-5)
17. Oklahoma State (+10)
18. Kansas (+5)
19. LSU (-6)
20. Tulane (+1)
21. James Madison (+3)
22. Notre Dame (-10)
23. North Carolina (+2)
24. Arizona (+8)
25. Fresno State (+3)

Others Receiving Votes: Air Force 78; Iowa 57; USC 56; Kansas State 52; Liberty 50; Duke 24; UCLA 22; SMU 20; UNLV 10; Toledo 8; North Carolina State 4; Kentucky 4; Troy 2; West Virginia 1

Associated Press Poll Week 11

1. Georgia
2. Michigan
3. Ohio State
4. Florida State
5. Washington
6. Oregon
7. Texas
8. Alabama
9. Penn State
10. Ole Miss (+1)
11. Louisville (+4)
12. Oregon State (+4)
13. Utah (+5)
14. Tennessee (+5)
15. Oklahoma State (NR)
16. Missouri (-2)
17. Oklahoma (-7)
18. LSU (-5)
19. Kansas (+3)
20. Tulane (+1)
21. James Madison (+2)
22. Notre Dame (-10)
23. Arizona
24. North Carolina
25. Liberty

Others Receiving Votes: Fresno St. 73, Kansas St. 73, Southern Cal 46, Air Force 26, Toledo 25, UCLA 11, Iowa 6, SMU 5, Duke 4, West Virginia 3, Texas A&M 1, NC State 1, Clemson 1.

Updated ESPN rankings/analytics

With updated national polls come fresh analytical projections. Following this weekend’s action, ESPN updated both its Football Power Index (FPI) and SP+ rankings.

In the Week 11 FPI, Kentucky (6-3; 3-3 SEC) moved up three spots from No. 41 to No. 38 following Saturday’s win. As a result, the Wildcats’ season-long projections also saw a slight boost. UK’s projected win-loss record now sits at 6.9-5.1 (up from 6.3-5.7 last week) with a 2.2 percent chance to win the last three games of the season against Alabama (home), South Carolina (away), and Louisville (away). The FPI ranks that stretch as the 13th-toughest remaining schedule in the country.

As for the SP+ rankings, Kentucky remained at No. 25 for the third consecutive week. The Wildcats are rated as having the nation’s 43rd-best offense, 19th-best defense, and 25th-best special teams unit.

Looking ahead to next weekend’s matchup at Kroger Field against Alabama (8-1; 6-0 SEC), the Crimson Tide check in at No. 7 in the latest FPI update and No. 11 in the SP+ rankings. Kickoff between Kentucky and ‘Bama is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 11 at noon EST on ESPN.