Most Difficult Schedule

[Eric]

Who do you guys think has the most difficult schedule in 2012? I was thinking Texas A&M's will be very difficult to deal with. Louisiana Tech and SMU aren't pushovers and probably won't win, but they're not cupcakes. Add that to drawing Florida and Missouri from the East with Alabama, LSU, and Arkansas and that's quite the year they're going to experience.

8-30-12 Louisiana Tech @Shreveport, LA
9-8-12 FLORIDA
9-15-12 at SMU
9-22-12 SOUTH CAROLINA STATE
9-29-12 ARKANSAS
10-6-12 at Mississipppi
10-20-12 LOUISIANA STATE
10-27-12 at Auburn
11-3-12 at Mississippi State
11-10-12 at Alabama
11-17-12 SAM HOUSTON STATE
11-24-12 MISSOURI

Alabama also has a difficult task opening up against Michigan (not that I think Michigan won't lose by two scores though). They get Missouri and Tennessee, both on the road, from the East.

9-1-12 Michigan @Arlington, TX
9-8-12 WESTERN KENTUCKY
9-15-12 at Arkansas
9-22-12 FLORIDA ATLANTIC
9-29-12 MISSISSIPPI
10-13-12 at Missouri
10-20-12 at Tennessee
10-27-12 MISSISSIPPI STATE
11-3-12 at Louisiana State
11-10-12 TEXAS A&M
11-17-12 WESTERN CAROLINA
11-24-12 AUBURN

Here's my pick for most difficult though: Notre Dame. There is seriously no let up in this schedule when your easiest game will be against Wake Forest. That's 12 weeks of challenges, some obviously bigger than others, but still chalked full with opportunities to lose in a draw or get upset. I have no idea how the Irish finish anything better than 7-5 this year. Even their game against Navy, who they usually take care of business against, is in Week 1 where everyone is rusty AND it's being played across the pond in Ireland.

9-1-12 Navy @Dublin, Ireland
9-8-12 PURDUE
9-15-12 at Michigan State
9-22-12 MICHIGAN
10-6-12 Miami FL @Chicago, IL
10-13-12 STANFORD
10-20-12 BRIGHAM YOUNG
10-27-12 at Oklahoma
11-3-12 PITTSBURGH
11-10-12 at Boston College
11-17-12 WAKE FOREST
11-24-12 at Southern California

TCU's is going to have a lot issues this year. They're certainly not used to this type of schedule. It's not particularly awful, but the road dates are what seem punishing. Baylor, Oklahoma State, West Virginia, and Texas.

9-8-12 GRAMBLING STATE
9-15-12 at Kansas
9-22-12 VIRGINIA
9-29-12 at SMU
10-6-12 IOWA STATE
10-13-12 at Baylor
10-20-12 TEXAS TECH
10-27-12 at Oklahoma State
11-3-12 at West Virginia
11-10-12 KANSAS STATE
11-24-12 at Texas
12-1-12 OKLAHOMA

[Dossenator]

Ole Miss has a tough road this year: at Bama, at LSU, at Arkansas, at Georgia, Texas at home (that alone is insane). Central Arkansas is a good program, Vanderbilt is no longer such a puss over, Miss State big rivalry game, and throw in Texas A&M and Auburn. One service had Notre Dame #1 and Ole Miss #2 for toughest schedules (can't remember which service at this time).

Their full schedule (yes some not so tough ones but those road games are killers).
Central Arkansas
UTEP
Texas
at Tulane
at Bama
Texas A&M
Auburn
at Arkansas
at Georgia
Vanderbilt
at LSU
Miss State

[billybud]

Notre Dame's schedule is pretty tough:

@Michigan State
Michigan
Miami
Stanford
BYU
@Oklahoma
@USC

[CFP Admin]

Not saying that it's the most viable means of comparison, but if you take the wins from 2011 of each teams' opponents (FCS teams omitted), these would be the 4 toughest schedules:
Kansas 97
Notre Dame 97
Iowa State 93
Nebraska 92

Ole Miss and TCU are tied for 5th with 89 .

[armchairqb]

Notre Dame, certainly. TCU and A&M will have the greatest increase in competition in their sked as preferred to last year.

[Dossenator]

8 of Arkansas' opponents out of 12 do not have a game on the Saturday before they play Arkansas.

Just read where 6 of Arkansas opponents have off weeks the week before they play Arkansas and 2 more don't play on the Saturday before but on Thursday (so 9 days off before they play Arkansas).

You know Nick Saban cried and complained about this a couple years ago and the SEC made sure that Bama is happy now. Looks like Ark was the team that got it this year. I wonder if John L Smith cried to the SEC if they would listen? I doubt it.

Still not the toughest schedule but not easy...and facing all the teams with 2 weeks to prepare for you sure does make it a little bit tougher.

[Spence]

Notre Dame almost always has a bye before a top tier game.

[ktffan]

Notre Dame almost always has a bye before a top tier game.

Notre Dame has had a bye before playing a top 10 opponent 4 times over the last 10 years. That's slightly above average. Now, look at Texas A&M. Wow.

[Spence]

Notre Dame almost always has a bye before a top tier game.

Notre Dame has had a bye before playing a top 10 opponent 4 times over the last 10 years. That's slightly above average. Now, look at Texas A&M. Wow.

Maybe it just seems like everytime when you don't like Notre Dame.

[ktffan]

Check out a schedule breakdown of games played after coming off a bye:

http://www.cfbtrivia.com/cfbt_records.p ... =5&tbye=on


Note that the overall record is a losing one, so it can be disputed that it's an advantage.

[WoVeU]

8 of Arkansas' opponents out of 12 do not have a game on the Saturday before they play Arkansas.

Just read where 6 of Arkansas opponents have off weeks the week before they play Arkansas and 2 more don't play on the Saturday before but on Thursday (so 9 days off before they play Arkansas).

You know Nick Saban cried and complained about this a couple years ago and the SEC made sure that Bama is happy now. Looks like Ark was the team that got it this year. I wonder if John L Smith cried to the SEC if they would listen? I doubt it.

Still not the toughest schedule but not easy...and facing all the teams with 2 weeks to prepare for you sure does make it a little bit tougher.

I don't know why this is never in SOS criteria. This is a big deal to me, especially after week 3 or 4. There is no way somebody looks past Arkansas, so the prep will all be aimed at them...that makes things tough. Not to mention the physical recovery part of it.

[Spence]

Hey WoVeU are you voting in the top 25?

[ktffan]

8 of Arkansas' opponents out of 12 do not have a game on the Saturday before they play Arkansas.

Just read where 6 of Arkansas opponents have off weeks the week before they play Arkansas and 2 more don't play on the Saturday before but on Thursday (so 9 days off before they play Arkansas).

You know Nick Saban cried and complained about this a couple years ago and the SEC made sure that Bama is happy now. Looks like Ark was the team that got it this year. I wonder if John L Smith cried to the SEC if they would listen? I doubt it.

Still not the toughest schedule but not easy...and facing all the teams with 2 weeks to prepare for you sure does make it a little bit tougher.

I don't know why this is never in SOS criteria. This is a big deal to me, especially after week 3 or 4. There is no way somebody looks past Arkansas, so the prep will all be aimed at them...that makes things tough. Not to mention the physical recovery part of it.

Teams coming off bye weeks in recent years have a losing record. In terms of wins and losses, coming off a bye week is no advantage. Whatever advantage you get seems to be countered by disadvantages.