Kentucky inexplicably dropped out of the AP Poll. This is why voters should feel bad about themselves.

Kentucky was left out of the AP Top 25 after the road win at No. 9 Texas A&M, then correctly jumped in a week later after beating South Alabama by four scores. Factor in Alabama’s emergence as arguably the hottest team in college football—they beat Mississippi State, also a trendy College Football Playoff pick entering the week, by 33 points in Starkville—and the one-loss Wildcats’ resume was pretty freaking impressive. All they had to do was take care of business in Columbia, albeit against a guy coaching for his job with his seat blistering hot in Shane Beamer. South Carolina may be down and discombobulated, but it’s still a road game in the SEC. The Wildcats turned it into an electric 35-34 overtime win at Williams-Brice Stadium to move to 4-1. The AP’s response ahead of Kentucky’s must-watch Week 6 matchup against Lane Kiffin and the LSU Tigers? Move Will Stein’s out of the rankings entirely, of course. Because why wouldn’t they? It’s egregious and inexplicable, especially given who is now ahead of the blue and white in the Top 25, UK sitting at No. 26 overall as the first team out among those receiving votes. We’ll keep this short and sweet: 17. Mississippi State (4-1) Wins: LA-Monroe, at Minnesota, at South Carolina, No. 25 Mizzou Loss: No. 7 Alabama (56-23) 18. Oklahoma State (3-1) Wins: No. 6 Oregon, Murray State, at West Virginia Loss: at Tulsa (24-10) 19. USC (5-1) Wins: San Jose State, Fresno State, Louisiana, at Rutgers, Washington Loss: No. 20 Oregon (41-27) 20. Iowa (4-1) Wins: Northern Illinois, Iowa State, Northern Iowa, at No. 18 Michigan Loss: No. 5 Ohio State (31-14) 21. UCLA (4-0) Wins: at Cal, San Diego State, Purdue, at Maryland 22. Houston (4-1) Wins: Oregon State, Southern, at Georgia Southern, UCF Loss: at No. 13 Texas Tech (28-26) 23. Boise State (4-1) Wins: Memphis, South Dakota, at Western Michigan, Utah State Loss: at No. 2 Oregon (34-27) 24. SMU (4-1) Wins: at Florida State, UC Davis, Missouri State, Boston College Loss: at No. 23 Louisville (41-31) 25. Pittsburgh (5-0) Wins: Miami (OH), UCF, Syracuse, Bucknell, at Virginia Tech Kentucky’s resume? Wins: Youngstown State, at No. 9 Texas A&M, South Alabama, at South Carolina Loss: No. 12 Alabama (45-17) You’ll never convince me that many—or any—of those teams in potential Kentucky territory belong ahead of the Wildcats. SMU is probably the most insane, especially considering how pathetic Louisville has been in recent weeks and the Mustangs’ win quality/margin. Who has Boise State beaten, while we’re at it? Shoot, if we really wanna complain, how about BYU patty-caking its way to No. 8? The Cougars have beaten Utah Tech (63-7), Arizona (28-17), Colorado State (41-23) and TCU (17-10), yet voters believe they are the eighth-best team in college football? Angry. Frustrated. Concerned about the mental well-being of those making these stupid polls. Confident that Will Stein is gonna use this to toss aside the chip on the Wildcats’ shoulders and replace it with a boulder. They’re ranked in my heart, anyway.