If you were hunting for order in college football this weekend, you came up empty. The sport went sideways in all the usual ways: ranked teams falling, overtime drama, and one upset after another. Kentucky, though, kept itself out of the mess by handling a feisty Vanderbilt team.
The biggest shock came with BYU. After last week’s huge win over Notre Dame, the Cougars climbed to No. 2 and then promptly ran into a .500 UCF team in double overtime. BYU nearly escaped before the extra periods even began, as UCF lined up for a game-winning field goal only to have it blocked.
Once overtime arrived, the game turned on a questionable roughing-the-kicker penalty that gave UCF another shot. This time, the Knights cashed it in. BYU could not answer and fell 39-31.
There was chaos elsewhere, too. No.
6 Indiana needed overtime to survive Michigan, which benched Bryce Underwood, and squeaked out a 13-6 win. No.
8 Texas Tech, still unbeaten going in, got stunned by 4-2 Cincinnati after the Bearcats dropped 21 points in the second quarter on the way to a 37-24 upset.
The SEC had its own shakeup. South Carolina knocked off No.
11 Tennessee 27-24, while No. 19 Texas held off Ole Miss 34-27 after the Rebels’ late push, including an onside kick that made the final minute tense.
Texas had led 24-3 before things got tight.
In the middle of all that, Kentucky came away looking pretty good. The Wildcats are now alone at the top of the SEC. Kentucky and Tennessee both have a bye week before their huge matchup in Knoxville, and if the Cats win that one, they’ll be in strong position to reach the SEC Championship Game with just two conference games left.
The upsets didn’t stop there. No.
15 Iowa lost to unranked Minnesota 13-10, unranked Wisconsin rolled over No. 16 USC 24-7, and No.
10 Utah narrowly escaped No. 14 Houston in a game the Cougars controlled for much of the afternoon.
All told, four teams ranked ahead of Kentucky took losses. That leaves the Wildcats set for a move into the top 10. The only real question now is how high they’ll rise.
In Other News...
Nick Saban Sees Something Real In Kentuckys Fast Start
Kentuckys early surge has started to draw attention beyond Lexington, and Nick Saban added another voice to the growing chorus on College GameDay. Sitting at 6-1 and ranked No. 12 under first-year head coach Will Stein, the Wildcats have done more than just collect wins. They have played clean, steady football, leaned on a strong offensive line and found ways to hold on in tight games, which is exactly the kind of profile that tends to travel well in the SEC.
The numbers behind the start are hard to ignore, especially with Kentucky leading the conference in turnover margin and entering Week 8 tied with Georgia atop the SEC standings. The question now is whether the Wildcats can keep turning those close calls into something more lasting, because the margin for error only gets thinner from here and the league race is starting to tighten around them. [Read more 🡒]
Kentucky's Playoff Buzz Just Turned Into A Real SEC Debate
Kentuckys latest surge has pushed the conversation beyond simple momentum and into the kind of SEC debate that tends to follow a team that keeps stacking wins. After beating Oklahoma, the Wildcats climbed to ninth in ESPN analyst Heather Dinichs College Football Playoff rankings, a rise that reflects a run that now includes five straight victories and three SEC road wins. The defense has been a major part of that push, forcing four turnovers against Oklahoma while the rest of the team has continued to look increasingly settled.
Will Stein has pointed to toughness and connection as the traits driving Kentuckys recent stretch, and thats the kind of profile that gets attention in November. The rankings jump does not settle anything, but it does put Kentucky in a position few expected earlier in the season, with the playoff conversation now overlapping with the larger question of where the Wildcats fit in a crowded SEC race. [Read more 🡒]
Kentucky Keeps Everything Alive Before Massive Tennessee Showdown
Kentucky did not make things easy on itself against Vanderbilt, but it did exactly what it needed to do. After falling behind early, the Wildcats settled in on offense, found a rhythm and finished by scoring on their last six drives, while the defense came up with key turnovers late to help secure the comeback and keep the season moving in the right direction.
The win pushed Kentucky to 6-1 and left the Wildcats sitting alone atop the SEC heading into a bye week. It also keeps their playoff hopes very much alive as the attention now turns to Tennessee, a matchup that looms even larger after Kentucky handled business in a game that could have gone sideways early. [Read more 🡒]