Last week at MrSEC we gave each SEC school’s 2011 non-conference schedule the eyeball test. Today we check out each school’s entire 2011 schedule… and we even get mathematical about it.
First things first, this is just a simple exercise. It’s not intended to serve as an entrance thesis to MIT. We didn’t use a slide rule, pi, or the Pythagorean theorem. Instead we simply used each team’s 2010 performance — which of course presents its own set of problems. Based on 2010′s results, Auburn would be the toughest game on anyone’s schedule in 2011. But in reality, the Tigers figure to take a step back next season. Still, last year’s accomplishments are the best figures we have to work with at this time.
Our “formula” is an easy one. Here’s what each SEC squad received for each opponent on its 2011 docket:
* 1 point for every opponent’s 2010 wins
* 1 point for every 2011 game played away from home
* 5 points for every bowl appearance by an opponent in 2010
* 5 points for every final Top 20 ranking by an opponent in 2010
* 0 points of any kind for FCS-level opponents on 2011 schedule
When the numbers were tallied, the SEC’s 2011 schedules ranked as follows from most difficult to easiest:
SEC 2011 Schedule Difficulty
| Rank |
School |
Points |
Games Away From Home |
Why So Tough, So Easy? |
| 1 | LSU |
166 |
6 |
Oregon and WVU away from home + SEC schedule |
| 2 |
Ole Miss |
163 |
5 |
BYU, Fresno St. solid non-conf games |
| 3 |
Arkansas |
158 |
5 |
SC, UT, MSU, at LSU to close season |
| 4 |
S. Carolina |
152 |
5 |
3-game stretch at MSU, at UT, at Ark |
| 5t |
Auburn |
151 |
5 |
4-game stretch of at SC, at Ark, UF, at LSU |
| 5t |
Florida |
151 |
5 |
4-game stretch of Ala, at LSU, at Aub, UGA (Jax) |
| 7 |
Miss. State |
146 |
6 |
Memphis, La. Tech, UAB, UT-Martin non-conf games |
| 8 |
Georgia |
144 |
6 |
Boise St., SC to open the season |
| 9 |
Vanderbilt |
142 |
5 |
Finish at UT, at W. Forest |
| 10 |
Alabama |
139 |
5 |
Kent St., N. Texas, Ga. Southern bad non-conf games |
| 11 |
Tennessee |
138 |
4 |
7 of first 9 games at home |
| 12 |
Kentucky |
122 |
5 |
W. Ky, C. Mich, L’ville, Jax. St. bad non-conf games |
[...] Read the rankings of “Grading the 2011 SEC football schedules” on MrSEC.com 1.18.11 [...]
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