Next season there will be 116 games between FBS schools and FCS schools. That may be a new record. I only have data back to 2011, but this year will see more than any of those years. The last full FBS season (2019) there were only 97 such games.

In all, 98 of the 128 FCS schools will play at least one FBS opponent. 16 FCS schools will play 2 FBS games and LIU will play 3. Of the 30 who won't play any, 18 are from either the Ivy League or the Pioneer Conference (non-scholarship leagues). The other 12 are:

Alabama A&M
Delaware State
Georgetown
James Madison
Lehigh
Merrimack
Mississippi Valley State
North Alabama
North Dakota State
Sacred Heart
Sam Houston State
Tarleton State

114 of the 130 FBS schools have scheduled at least one FCS game. UMass and UConn play two each. The FBS schools who will not play an FCS opponent are:

Ohio State
Michigan
Illinois
Purdue
Wisconsin
Nebraska
Minnesota
Iowa
Texas
Stanford
Southern Cal
UCLA
Notre Dame
Navy
Boise State
Georgia State

UMass's 2 are old regional rivals (Maine and URI). It's actually crazy how many "local" teams UMass will be hosting this coming season, with those two, BC, and UCONN all coming to town.

Looks like UCONN also has 2 local ones, with Holy Cross and Yale.


Any crazy distance ones out there, like cross country or multiple large states away?

(02-19-2021 01:24 PM)e-parade Wrote:  UMass's 2 are old regional rivals (Maine and URI). It's actually crazy how many "local" teams UMass will be hosting this coming season, with those two, BC, and UCONN all coming to town.

Looks like UCONN also has 2 local ones, with Holy Cross and Yale.


Any crazy distance ones out there, like cross country or multiple large states away?

Stony Brook is traveling to Oregon, while Idaho goes to Indiana. Also, UC Davis is playing at Tulsa, which isn't quite that extreme.

A program like WVU playing LIU is absolutely ridiculous. AD deserves every criticism he gets from that.

I'm proud half of the 16 teams not playing an FCS team are from the Big Ten and one of them is my Illini. I'm ashamed my Penn State isn't on the list although it is Villanova. I hope Penn State got a basketball game out of the deal. Villanova should use their men's basketball team to get football games.

And ZERO of the 16 are from the SEC.

(02-19-2021 03:57 PM)schmolik Wrote:  I'm proud half of the 16 teams not playing an FCS team are from the Big Ten and one of them is my Illini. I'm ashamed my Penn State isn't on the list although it is Villanova. I hope Penn State got a basketball game out of the deal. Villanova should use their men's basketball team to get football games.

And ZERO of the 16 are from the SEC.

Also zero from the ACC and one from the Big XII.

The PAC has OOC games against Michigan, Ohio State, Vandy, TCU, LSU, Texas A&M, BYU (5) and Notre Dame (2) out of their 36 available slots, which means they all have 10 P5(ish) opponents, so they aren't scheduling too many cupcakes.

The B1G takes advantage of having the MAC in its footprint, scheduling 11 games against them. The PAC doesn't really have anything comparable, and schedules a lot of Big Sky opponents as you might imagine in that region.

I believe the first fbs vs fcs game of the calender year is this Sunday with NMSU hosting Tarleton St in the Sun Bowl in El Paso.

As for long distance games, Betune-Cookman travels to UTEP in September.

The P5 need to step it up. They shouldn’t be scheduling any FCS programs.

In odd number years the Big Ten West teams are not supposed to schedule any FCS teams.

How did Northwestern get away with scheduling Indiana St? That can't possibly be a legacy contract. What's up with that?

(02-19-2021 07:31 PM)goofus Wrote:  In odd number years the Big Ten West teams are not supposed to schedule any FCS teams.

How did Northwestern get away with scheduling Indiana St? That can't possibly be a legacy contract. What's up with that?

Could that be a makeup for a cancelled 2020 game?

(02-19-2021 06:44 PM)MinerInWisconsin Wrote:  I believe the first fbs vs fcs game of the calender year is this Sunday with NMSU hosting Tarleton St in the Sun Bowl in El Paso.

As for long distance games, Betune-Cookman travels to UTEP in September.

Does that game for NMSU count as a 2020 game? Can they use players who may have joined the team or became eligible in the spring semester?

(02-19-2021 03:21 PM)IWokeUpLikeThis Wrote:  A program like WVU playing LIU is absolutely ridiculous. AD deserves every criticism he gets from that.

Totally agree. As big a head scratcher as Stony Brook traveling across the country to get walloped by Oregon.

Oregon plays at Ohio State and Fresno as other OOC games

West Virginia plays MD and VT as other OOC games

I don't know why you would schedule the likes of LIU or Stony Brook if you have aspirations of making the CFP.

(02-19-2021 07:31 PM)goofus Wrote:  In odd number years the Big Ten West teams are not supposed to schedule any FCS teams.

How did Northwestern get away with scheduling Indiana St? That can't possibly be a legacy contract. What's up with that?

B1G changed the rule on FCS schools. The years that you have only 4 home conference games you can schedule an FCS school.

(02-19-2021 10:14 PM)EKUSteve Wrote:  

(02-19-2021 07:31 PM)goofus Wrote:  In odd number years the Big Ten West teams are not supposed to schedule any FCS teams.

How did Northwestern get away with scheduling Indiana St? That can't possibly be a legacy contract. What's up with that?

B1G changed the rule on FCS schools. The years that you have only 4 home conference games you can schedule an FCS school.

Since odd numbered years are when Big Ten West schools have five home games, you are just using different words to tell goofus that he's right.

It's not a consequence of the 2020 OOC games cancellations, since the game was scheduled in the summer of 2019. Northwestern may have made an appeal for an exemption from the rule based on, "c'mon, guys, we can only afford one MAC buy game at current prices!"

(02-19-2021 07:31 PM)goofus Wrote:  In odd number years the Big Ten West teams are not supposed to schedule any FCS teams.

How did Northwestern get away with scheduling Indiana St? That can't possibly be a legacy contract. What's up with that?

The one rule Kevin Warren's Big 10 has is "rules are made to be broken."

(02-19-2021 07:06 PM)Fighting Muskie Wrote:  The P5 need to step it up. They shouldn’t be scheduling any FCS programs.

I like P5 occasionally scheduling FCS programs. FCS programs are Division I as well, and this helps FCS programs meet their budgets.

These are the OOC schedules for the "usual suspects" for CFP contention. (N) indicates neutral site game.

Clemson: (N) Georgia, South Carolina State, UConn, South Carolina
Miami: (N) Alabama, Appalachian St., Michigan St., Central Connecticut State
Oregon: Fresno State, @Ohio State, Stony Brook
Washington: Montana, @Michigan, Arkansas State
Southern Cal: San Jose State, @Notre Dame, BYU
Texas: Louisiana, @Arkansas, Rice
Oklahoma: @Tulane, Western Carolina, Nebraska
Penn State: Ball State, Auburn, Villanova
Ohio State: Oregon, Tulsa, Akron
Michigan: Western Michigan, Washington, Northern Illinois
Wisconsin: Eastern Michigan, (N) Notre Dame, Army
Georgia: (N) Clemson, UAB, Charleston Southern, @ Georgia Tech
Florida: Florida Atlantic, @ South Florida, Samford, Florida State
Alabama: (N) Miami, Mercer, Southern Miss, New Mexico State
Auburn: Akron, Alabama State, @Penn State, Georgia State
LSU: @ UCLA, McNeese State, Central Michigan, Louisiana Monroe

(02-19-2021 07:06 PM)Fighting Muskie Wrote:  The P5 need to step it up. They shouldn’t be scheduling any FCS programs.

SOS wise?
North Dakota State > South Carolina State

You get more points by playing NDSU than SCSU.

(02-19-2021 07:31 PM)goofus Wrote:  In odd number years the Big Ten West teams are not supposed to schedule any FCS teams.

How did Northwestern get away with scheduling Indiana St? That can't possibly be a legacy contract. What's up with that?

There are rules that P5 conferences can claim schools not in a P5 conference to count them as a P5. MVFC as a whole is very strong that can compete against the Big 10 to pad the SOS.

(02-20-2021 09:42 AM)DavidSt Wrote:  

(02-19-2021 07:06 PM)Fighting Muskie Wrote:  The P5 need to step it up. They shouldn’t be scheduling any FCS programs.

SOS wise?
North Dakota State > South Carolina State

You get more points by playing NDSU than SCSU.

Yet North Dakota State doesn't have an FBS opponent. I wonder if that's the Bison's choice or if no FBS team wants to play them. Sure seems like they would be a better FCS opponent for Nebraska than SE Louisiana State.