Pro Football Focus ranks Kentucky in way-too-early top 25

The Kentucky Wildcats continue to improve every year. Yet no matter how they perform the year prior, the national media always predicts to Cats to struggle due to the loss of talent.

Going into the 2019 season, Kentucky was going to struggle because they couldn’t overcome losing Benny Snell and Josh Allen.

After proving them wrong once again, the media widely believes the Cats will struggle in 2020 because they can’t overcome losing Lynn Bowden.

The national outlets are starting to release their early top 25 rankings for the 2020 season, and the Cats have been absent in nearly every ranking, despite returning a wealth of starters on both sides of the ball.

However, Pro Football Focus doesn’t do it with the same bias. They look at the numbers and watch film in order to determine their rankings.

PFF used a system that considers recruiting rankings, returning players and market information. Using this system, they have created a “way-too-early” top 25 for the 2020 season.

In their system, the Cats have made the rankings as they came in at No. 20.

“After a really strange season in 2019, the Wildcats return a decent amount of talent in 2020 and should be competitive again in the SEC.”

The Cats are returning a decent amount of talent as they are returning PFF’s two highest graded returning tackles, as well as Boogie Watson who PFF ranked as the No. 3 returning edge rusher in the country.

On top of that, the Cats only lost one player from a secondary that was tied for first in fewest TD passes allowed only giving up 9 all season. They are tied with Ohio State in that category.

In the 2020 season, the Cats will face 5 of PFF’s top 25:

5. Georgia

6. Florida

10. Auburn

19. Tennessee

25. Mississippi State

This continues to show what Mark Stoops and his staff are building in Lexington. BBN should be excited about the direction of the Kentucky football program.