Kentucky just outside Top 25 of CBS Sports' Preseason Rankings

Each week during college football season, CBS Sports ranks all 133 teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). With the 2023 season just around the corner, the panel of experts shared their preseason rankings today and Kentucky was one of the biggest movers. The Cats are up 19 spots from the final poll of the 2022 season, coming in at No. 28. I bet you can guess why Kentucky made such a significant jump.

“The two notable changes here are Mark Stoops bringing back Liam Coen from the Los Angeles Rams as offensive coordinator and signing former NC State QB Devin Leary out of the transfer portal,” Chip Patterson writes. “Will Levis played some of his best ball with Coen as a Kentucky assistant, and the hope for Leary — and Kentucky fans everywhere — is that the offense will deliver results closer to that 2021 season than a year ago.”

Amen. The Cats are just ahead of one of their opponents, the South Carolina Gamecocks (No. 29). Because the SEC just means more, three of Kentucky’s SEC foes are in the top 15, two in the top five (Georgia and Alabama). In total, nine SEC teams are in the top 30.

Here’s where each team on Kentucky’s schedule ranks (Eastern Kentucky is in the FCS).

• 1. Georgia (Oct. 7)
• 5. Alabama (Nov. 11)
• 13. Tennessee (Oct. 28)
• 29. South Carolina (Nov. 18)
• 34. Louisville (Nov. 25)
• 41. Florida (Sept. 30)
• 44. Mississippi State (Nov. 4)
• 49. Missouri (Oct. 14)
• 72. Vanderbilt (Sept. 23)
• 115. Ball State (Sept. 2)
• 129. Akron (Sept. 16)

The AP Preseason Poll will be announced on August 15, the week before Week Zero action begins. It’s almost here, folks.

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