Where Kentucky Wildcats are ranked in 'way too early' 2022 college football polls

LEXINGTON - The 2021 college football season only finished last night, and the hype for the 2022 Kentucky football team is already starting to grow.

Just hours after Georgia took down Alabama to win the national championship, national outlets began releasing their "way too early" 2022 top 25 rankings, and Mark Stoops' Kentucky Wildcats are included in most of them.

A number of key transfer and NFL draft decisions remain in flux, adding uncertainty about what 2022 teams will look like, but it is easy to see why Kentucky is being mentioned a top 25 team.

The Wildcats recently competed their second 10-win season in the last four years with a Citrus Bowl victory over a ranked Iowa squad. Key starters Will Levis, Chris Rodriguez, DeAndre Square, Jacquez Jones and Jordan Wright have all announced they are returning for next season. A handful of the top signees from the program's highest-ranked recruiting class in the recruiting website era enrolled in classes this week for the spring semester.

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There are questions too.

Replacing Wan'Dale Robinson, who broke the UK single-season records for receiving yards and catches in his one season as a Wildcat, will be a Herculean task. The offensive line is in flux with All-SEC center Luke Fortner and All-American right tackle Darian Kinnard moving on and junior left tackle Dare Rosenthal still considering entering the NFL draft. Multiple starters need to be replaced on the defensive line and in the defensive secondary.

But Stoops' greatest success has come from building the type of depth needed to sustain success, not just make 2021 a one-season fluke.

National media are taking notice.

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Where Kentucky football is ranked in early 2022 top 25s

• The Sporting News: No. 12

• Bleacher Report: No. 18

• 247Sports: No. 20

• The Athletic: No. 21

• ESPN: No. 21

• Fox Sports: No. 21

• Sports Illustrated: No. 21

• Athlon: No. 22

• USA TODAY: No. 24

Email Jon Hale at jahale@courier-journal.com; Follow him on Twitter at @JonHale_CJ.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky football: Wildcats ranked in 'too early' 2022 polls