Kentucky opens as massive underdog on the road vs. Texas

Kentucky is coming off a 42-point win over Murray State , but a big FCS win doesn't mean much when the next opponent is one of the three best teams in the country.

The Wildcats have opened as significant underdogs ahead of next Saturday's game on the road against No. 3 Texas. FanDuel has Kentucky sitting as a 20.5-point underdog with the over/under set at 46.5, predicting a final score of 33.5-13 in favor of the Longhorns. DraftKings is in a similar boat, opening the spread set at 21.

Texas is riding a three-game win streak after beating Arkansas on the road, 20-10, on Saturday. ESPN Analytics gives the Longhorns an outstanding 94.7 percent chance of beating Kentucky. ESPN's Football Power Index numbers still have the Wildcats holding onto a 1.7 percent chance of reaching the six-win threshold with only two games remaining on the regular season schedule.

Looking at some past trends, Texas is 4-1 this season when favored by 21 points or more. The only time this season (vs. Georgia) that Kentucky was viewed as a 21-point underdog or worse, the Wildcats covered the spread.

Kickoff against Texas on Saturday, Nov. 23 is set for 3:30 p.m. EST in Austin on ABC.