Bet the Board College Football Week 9 Power Ratings

Written by Watt_05

Move over Alabama! There’s a new sheriff in town … at least in the #2 spot. Ohio State eviscerated Indiana over the weekend and now owns the FBS leading offense putting the rest of the top 10 on notice.  Former #6 Penn State has been removed from the Top 10 all together after a dreadful loss at home as 24-point favorites to Illinois.  Florida worked their way back up to #10 despite a bye last week and now has their hands full this Saturday in Jacksonville.

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SEC Overrated?

We head to the SEC to take a look at this week’s overrated team by our numbers compared to the popularity polls.  Our underrated team had lofty expectations heading into the 2021 season but an offensive resurgence has this ACC team climbing back into our good graces. 

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Away we go…

Bet the Board Top 10 Week 9:

1.) Georgia

2.) Ohio State

3.) Alabama

4.) Oklahoma

5.) Michigan

6.) Cincinnati

7.) Ole Miss

8.) Iowa State

9.) Auburn

10.) Florida

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Overrated:  Kentucky Wildcats

At 6-1 with the loss coming against Georgia (in a game they covered) we understand why pollsters love the Wildcats. Kentucky thrives on the ground, led by a strong 1-2 punch of Chris Rodriguez Jr (6.1 yards per carry) and Kavosiey Smoke and a defense that is 22nd in the nation in yards per play allowed. UK checks a number of boxes.  However the Wildcats still lack an explosive quarterback carrying big play potential. 

Make them throw

Easier said than done but if a defense can make Kentucky resort to throwing the ball, there are going to be issues for this Will Levis-led pass attack. The Wildcats are optimistic a return of WR Josh Ali is inevitable and his addition alongside Wandale Robinson could do wonders this weekend against Miss State.  There is no doubt Kentucky has exceeded expectations at this point. That being said we have Big Blue Nation closer to #30 than we do to #10.  Despite our premise that Kentucky is vastly overrated, there is a great path to finishing 10-2 or even 11-1 with a victory this weekend.

Underrated: North Carolina Tar Heels

Preseason expectations in Chapel Hill were sky-high. Despite all the losses on the offensive side to the NFL draft, prognosticators believed Sam Howell was the answer.  Saying UNC has failed to meet those expectations would be an understatement. Double digit losses to Georgia Tech on a neutral field and Florida State at home, (both coming as two touchdown favorites or more) is not the recipe for ACC glory. 

Finding the groove

All that said, the offense seems has finally found its groove. They’ll also catch a massive break this week as the best safety in college football (Kyle Hamilton) is going to be out for Notre Dame. Preseason Heisman candidate Sam Howell is averaging 8.8 yards per pass attempt with an 18:6 TD to INT ratio. Josh Downs has emerged as his primary target averaging 8.5 receptions per game and over 119 yards an outing.  

Defense Optional

Similar to the emerging NFL trend you don’t need a top tier defensive unit if your offense is bordering on “elite” status.  UNC is close to average across the board in the advanced efficiency metrics on defense. That could be good enough to rack up wins against talented opponents down the stretch.  Mack Brown has talked about his team approaching the last 6 games as a new “mini-season.” They’ve already started 1-0.  Gauging player comments this week it seems the fellas have bought into this thought process moving on from CFB playoff aspirations.  We’ve seen the Tar Heels take considerable professional money this week as they’ve dropped from +4.5 on the open to +3.5 and we might see this continue to fall.

Source: https://www.bettheboardpodcast.com/2021/10/28/bet-the-board-college-football-week-9-power-ratings/

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