Kentucky hangs on to Top 25 AP Poll ranking despite loss to Georgia

Kentucky will head into Week 7 still ranked among the Associated Press Top 25, but just barely.

Following Saturday night’s embarrassing 51-13 loss to the Georgia Bulldogs in Athens, the Wildcats have been moved down four spots in the updated AP Poll, falling from No. 20 to No. 24. Of course, Georgia continues to hold down the top spot, which they’ve had since the preseason. Kentucky is one of six Southeastern Conference programs to make the latest AP Poll Top 25: Georgia (No. 1), Alabama (No. 11), Ole Miss (No. 13), Tennessee (No. 20), LSU (No. 22), and Kentucky (No. 24).

As for Missouri, UK’s opponent next weekend, the Tigers were dropped from the AP Poll, but sit just outside of the Top 25 at No. 26 overall while receiving 69 total points. Mizzou was bested at home by LSU 49-39 on Saturday. Kentucky and Missouri will kick off on Saturday, Oct. 14 at 7:30 p.m. EST in Lexington on the SEC Network.

The Week 7 Coaches Poll was released an hour prior to the AP Poll. Kentucky was bumped down three spots to No. 23 in the nation in the latest Coaches Poll update while Missouri checks in at No. 25.

You can view the entire Week 7 AP Poll below.

Associated Press Poll Week 7

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

Others Receiving Votes: Missouri 69, Wyoming 42, Air Force 41, Wisconsin 41, Tulane 27, West Virginia 26, Clemson 17, Maryland 9, Iowa 7, James Madison 7, Texas A&M 5.

ESPN’s updated rankings

After rising in ESPN’s Football Power Index (FPI) over the last few weeks, Saturday’s loss did Kentucky no favors when it comes to the analytics. The Wildcats dropped down seven spots in the Week 7 FPI, falling to No. 38 in the country. As a result, UK’s average win-loss projections have also been updated. Kentucky is now projected to finish with an average record of 7.3-5.7. Those numbers were at 7.9-4.2 going into the weekend.

Additionally, Kentucky’s season-long projections have also dropped. The FPI gives the Wildcats a 94.0 percent chance to win six games this season (97.2 percent last week) and, most notably, a low 0.6 percent chance to win the SEC East division (6.4 percent last week). Meanwhile, Georgia was bumped up three spots to No. 4 in the FPI after beating the ‘Cats. The Bulldogs now have a 90.0 percent chance to win the East.

As for ESPN’s updated SP+ rankings — a “predictive and forward-facing” analytics model — Kentucky also dropped. UK slipped eight spots from No. 21 to No. 29 following the loss to Georgia. The SP+ rankings now tab the Wildcats as having the nation’s 47th-best offense, 17th-best defense, and 16th-best special teams unit. Georgia is now ranked No. 2 in the updated SP+ rankings trailing only the Michigan Wolverines.

When it comes to Kentucky’s next opponent, the Missouri Tigers, they fell two places in the FPI and are now just one spot ahead of UK at No. 36. That being said, the FPI still gives Kentucky a 55.8 percent chance to win when Missouri comes to Kroger Field next weekend. The SP+ rankings slot Mizzou at No. 30, just one spot behind the ‘Cats. It should be an even battle between the two SEC East teams next weekend.

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