Phil's new list:

1) Alabama
2) USC
3) Arkansas
4) California
5) Washington
6) Auburn
7) Texas
8) Utah
9) Stanford

The Pac is loaded.

I'm not sure how anybody with 8 home games can be considered as having the toughest schedule in the country.

(05-14-2015 11:49 AM)blunderbuss Wrote:  I'm not sure how anybody with 8 home games can be considered as having the toughest schedule in the country.

Alabama has 7 home games, 1 neutral site (Wisconsin) and 4 road games (@Georgia, @Texas A&M, @Miss. State @Auburn).

(05-14-2015 11:49 AM)blunderbuss Wrote:  I'm not sure how anybody with 8 home games can be considered as having the toughest schedule in the country.

You could, if the home games are sufficiently difficult. Playing a home game against a strong opponent is obviously more difficult than playing on the road against a team you should beat 99 times out of 100.

Look at ECU's 2015 schedule as an example: First game at home vs. FCS Towson, second game at Florida. Even if those game sites were reversed, i.e. at Towson and then at home vs. Florida, the Florida game would still be the more difficult one to win by far.

(05-14-2015 12:04 PM)Hokie4Skins Wrote:  

(05-14-2015 11:49 AM)blunderbuss Wrote:  I'm not sure how anybody with 8 home games can be considered as having the toughest schedule in the country.

Alabama has 7 home games, 1 neutral site (Wisconsin) and 4 road games (@Georgia, @Texas A&M, @Miss. State @Auburn).

Splitting hairs....

(05-14-2015 12:33 PM)Wedge Wrote:  

(05-14-2015 11:49 AM)blunderbuss Wrote:  I'm not sure how anybody with 8 home games can be considered as having the toughest schedule in the country.

You could, if the home games are sufficiently difficult. Playing a home game against a strong opponent is obviously more difficult than playing on the road against a team you should beat 99 times out of 100.

Yeah, I'd say that's pretty much common sense but that's not how P5 powerhouses schedule their home games.

Middle Tennessee State
Ole Miss
ULM
Arkansas
Tennessee
LSU
Charleston Southern

4, maybe even 5 of those are walkovers for Bama IMO.

(05-14-2015 12:49 PM)blunderbuss Wrote:  

(05-14-2015 12:33 PM)Wedge Wrote:  

(05-14-2015 11:49 AM)blunderbuss Wrote:  I'm not sure how anybody with 8 home games can be considered as having the toughest schedule in the country.

You could, if the home games are sufficiently difficult. Playing a home game against a strong opponent is obviously more difficult than playing on the road against a team you should beat 99 times out of 100.

Yeah, I'd say that's pretty much common sense but that's not how P5 powerhouses schedule their home games.

Middle Tennessee State
Ole Miss
ULM
Arkansas
Tennessee
LSU
Charleston Southern

4, maybe even 5 of those are walkovers for Bama IMO.

True. It probably comes down to how many "difficulty points" you assign to each game. If we say that Middle Tennessee is worth 2 points and LSU is worth 4, then this schedule won't get an impressive number of points. If we say that Middle Tennessee is worth 2 points and LSU is worth 40 points, then we'll reach a different conclusion. I'd guess that Phil Steele's methodology is much closer to the latter than the former.

And we could give "extra points" for road games. But for the easier games, it wouldn't matter that much. Bama should beat Middle Tennessee 99 times out of 100 no matter where the game is played. But where they play Georgia or LSU might make a great deal of difference.

It's no coincidence that the teams on Steele's expanded list come primarily from the PAC 12 and the SEC West. Those have clearly been the strongest conferences/divisions in the recent past. And, in the case of the PAC 12, their schedules are further boosted because they play 9 conference games (as does Texas).

Cal gets the added benefit of not having to play Cal (just like Arkansas doesn't have to play Arkansas). If you are the weak link in your conference or division, you get to play just the strongest. That's just the way it goes. The amazing thing is that Alabama makes the list even though they have been the strongest team in the country over the past five years. That's hard to do.

Now, if you are just looking at OOC schedules, my money is on Virginia. They have UCLA, Notre Dame and Boise State this year.

Why is Alabama playing Wisconsin in Texas?

(05-14-2015 12:49 PM)blunderbuss Wrote:  

(05-14-2015 12:33 PM)Wedge Wrote:  

(05-14-2015 11:49 AM)blunderbuss Wrote:  I'm not sure how anybody with 8 home games can be considered as having the toughest schedule in the country.

You could, if the home games are sufficiently difficult. Playing a home game against a strong opponent is obviously more difficult than playing on the road against a team you should beat 99 times out of 100.

Yeah, I'd say that's pretty much common sense but that's not how P5 powerhouses schedule their home games.

Middle Tennessee State
Ole Miss
ULM
Arkansas
Tennessee
LSU
Charleston Southern

4, maybe even 5 of those are walkovers for Bama IMO.

You do know that Arkansas is supposed to be a top 25 team this year. All 4 home conference games are tough- maybe not Ole Miss, but that's it. No way in hell 5 of those are supposed to be walkovers....

And not many teams are playing Georgia, Texas A&M, Miss St, Auburn, and Wisconsin away from home at all.

(05-14-2015 02:41 PM)NIU007 Wrote:  Why is Alabama playing Wisconsin in Texas?

Big time games at neutral sites like Jerry World have become an opening college football weekend staple, as has Alabama's appearances in said games.

How about South Carolina? Crossover games are Texas A&M and LSU. Nonconference is Clemson, North Carolina, UCF, and the Citadel.

Or how about Texas? 9 conference games plus Notre Dame, Cal, and Rice.

(05-15-2015 11:49 AM)Captain Bearcat Wrote:  How about South Carolina? Crossover games are Texas A&M and LSU. Nonconference is Clemson, North Carolina, UCF, and the Citadel.

Or how about Texas? 9 conference games plus Notre Dame, Cal, and Rice.

Texas is #7 on Steele's list.

(05-12-2015 10:34 PM)stever20 Wrote:  

(05-12-2015 08:19 PM)goofus Wrote:  

(05-12-2015 01:59 PM)Hokie4Skins Wrote:  

(05-12-2015 01:57 PM)goofus Wrote:  Interesting that USC now plays Idaho and Arky St in OOC. they have always been famous for usually playing 10 P5 teams, ND and 1 MWC level team.

I wonder why they have changed to playing 2 Sun belt level teams.

This is an anomaly. They play Alabama at Jerry World next year and pick up Texas OOC after that.

Fair enough, but that just makes me wonder even more why they did not fill out their schedule with anybody big in 2015. Did somebody back out with short notice? Do they expect the team to be awful in 2015?

I should not care but I always like to use USC as an example whenever somebody tries to argue that nobody schedules 11 P5 teams a year. Something I believe that all P5 teams should do.

I think it probably had something to do with the crossover games. Like last year they had Oregon St and Washington St. This year it's Oregon and Washington. Pretty big difference there. Also while they did have 11 p5 teams- the 11th one was BC.

And your point re: BC?