Kentucky leads nation in FPI’s strength-of-record metric after Week 8
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Kentucky continued its impressive season on Saturday with a win over Vanderbilt. The Wildcats didn’t need overtime, but they trailed 10-0 in the second quarter before scoring 21 unanswered points to take a 21-10 lead, then pulled away after leading 24-17 at the end of the third.
The latest AP Poll, released on Sunday, ranked the Wildcats No. 9. That’s the highest they’ve been since 2022, when they reached No. 7.
But Kentucky leads the country in one metric: strength of record. According to ESPN, strength of record “reflects (the) chance that an average Top 25 team would have (the) team’s record or better, given the schedule.”
Kentucky ended Week 8 atop the SEC standings with a 5-1 record. Georgia, which was idle, is 4-1.
The Wildcats will be looking to ride this wave as far as they can. They have four games remaining: at No. 16 Tennessee, home against No. 17 Florida, at No. 23 Mizzou, and home against Louisville. A first-ever SEC Championship berth may be coming into focus for Will Stein’s team, but beyond that could be the program’s first College Football Playoff appearance. Kentucky could also finish with its first double-digit win season since 2021.
These days, neither of those options seem far-fetched at all.
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
