With one month remaining until the Kentucky Wildcats kick off the 2024 college football season against Southern Miss at Kroger Field (7:45 p.m. ET, SEC Network), CBS Sports released their strength of schedule rankings for every Power Four conference Wednesday.
In the SEC, Kentucky ranks as having the eighth-toughest schedule — one spot below Vanderbilt and one ahead of Alabama. Earlier this summer, ESPN’s College Football Power Index (FPI) ranked the Wildcats as having the fourth-toughest schedule in the nation.
Per CBS Sports’ Will Backus:
“Kentucky and new quarterback Brock Vandagriff won’t have much time to adjust this season. The Wildcats play their first four games at home, but two of those are against Georgia and South Carolina, and the fourth is against an Ohio team that has 20 wins over the past two years. UK also has to play on the road against Tennessee and Texas in its last four games. That’s not an enviable stretch.”
Florida was ranked the toughest schedule in the SEC. Eleven of the Gators’ 12 games are against Power Four schools, including their annual matchups with Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky and LSU. Florida also travels to Texas and Florida State while hosting Ole Miss.