Ad Disclosure
ESPN has just released an updated version of its 2021 Football Power Index rankings and one thing stands out following the update.
Mississippi State is no longer in the top 10, the Bulldogs were listed at No. 8 for some reason when ESPN first debuted the 2021 FPI rankings.
Not only are the Bulldogs not in the top 10, but Mike Leach’s team has been dropped all the way down to No. 24 without any explanation provided for the drop.
Another SEC team that had a big drop in the rankings was Missouri, which fell from No. 34 all the way down to No. 46.
If you are unfamiliar with this metric from ESPN, here is how the network explains the Football Power Index formula:
The Football Power Index (FPI) is a measure of team strength that is meant to be the best predictor of a team’s performance going forward for the rest of the season. FPI represents how many points above or below average a team is. Projected results are based on 20,000 simulations of the rest of the season using FPI, results to date, and the remaining schedule. Ratings and projections update daily. FPI data from seasons prior to 2019 may not be complete.
Aside from Mississippi State, Missouri and Vanderbilt, no other team moved more than three spots from their original FPI rankings.
Here are the updated FPI rankings for all 14 SEC teams:
#1 Alabama
#5 Georgia
#6 Texas A&M
#11 Florida
#15 Auburn
#18 LSU
#20 Ole Miss
#24 Mississippi State
#36 Arkansas
#40 Kentucky
#46 Missouri
#47 Tennessee
#65 South Carolina
#104 Vanderbilt
A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Michael Wayne Bratton oversees the news coverage for Saturday Down South. Michael previously worked for FOX Sports and NFL.com
