The initial College Football Playoff rankings have released and the Kentucky Wildcats sit just outside the top five. Kentucky came in at #6 directly behind the Alabama Crimson Tide, who beat them in week two despite having one more loss than the Wildcats. It is interesting that the committee valued that head-to-head matchup, but Tennessee is at #13 despite defeating Alabama at home. The biggest takeaway is this committee is valuing strength of schedule and strength of record, ten SEC teams are in the top 25 and seven of them are in the top 15.

There is a lot of football still left to play, so it will sort itself out. However, this committee is valuing how difficult the SEC nine game schedule is, which is great for Kentucky moving forward. Kentucky has two wins against top 25 teams with wins over the #14 LSU Tigers and #21 South Carolina Gamecocks. The Wildcats get to play the #13 Tennessee Volunteers this weekend, then #24 Florida Gators and #18 Missouri Tigers on the road.

Kentucky has plenty of chances to improve their resume down the stretch. Here are the full initial College Football Playoff Rankings.

1. Miami (8-0)

2. Georgia (7-1)

3. Utah (8-0)

4. Indiana (8-1)

5. Alabama (6-2)

6. Kentucky (7-1)

7. Texas (6-2)

8. UCLA (8-0)

9. BYU (7-1)

10. Ole Miss (6-2)

11. Notre Dame (7-1)

12. Ohio State (6-2)

13. Tennessee (6-2)

14. LSU (6-2)

15. Texas Tech (7-1)

16. Wake Forest (7-1)

17. Houston (6-2)

18. Missouri (6-2)

19. Iowa (6-2)

20. USC (7-2)

21. South Carolina (5-3)

22. Arizona (6-2)

23. Oregon (5-3)

24. Florida (5-3)

25. Boise State (7-1)