ND Schedule vs UF's

[BGIF]

For those lamenting ND's cupcake schedule.

From Bob in the Bay Area: Fun little exercise for you. The most dominant team in the country is Florida, National Champs. Here is their schedule vs. the Irish's supposedly "cake" schedule. Be curious as to how many weeks Florida has an easier opponent than Notre Dame.

ND vs UF

Nevada = Charleston Southern
Washington St = Troy
Navy = Florida International
Connecticut = Mississippi State
Stanford = Vanderbilt
Washington = Arkansas
Purdue = Kentucky
Boston College = Tennessee
Michigan State = South Carolina
Pittsburgh = Florida State
Michigan = Georgia
USC = LSU


Now, who has the "easy" schedule again???

Also, the historical strength of most of these schools when the schedules were made (i.e. Washington), might give you a different viewpoint.

Feldman response:

Thanks for the note. You raise an interesting point, although I do think where Michigan is compared to Georgia is pretty far off at this point. I'd say the same for FSU and Pitt. Plus, UF also probably would have to beat another top 10 team in the SEC title. That's going through four top 25 teams and probably three in the top 15 (LSU, UGA and the SEC West champ). I doubt you'll see anyone other than USC in the top 25 on ND schedule. I'm not arguing against having traditional opponents who are now struggling like a Michigan or Washington. Like I argued that it shouldn't have been dismissed that Utah did go to Michigan and should get credit for winning a game that was scheduled at a time when the Wolverines were a powerhouse.

In ND's case, I'm making my point about why this team has a legit shot to win 10 games this season because I think it would be favored in 11 of them. (You should see some of the e-mails I've received from fans about this who keep trying to remind me that Charlie Weis is still the coach there and about the teams they lost to last year.) Anyhow, if they had Florida's schedule, I probably wouldn't expect more than nine.

Regardless of Michigan = UGA (which may not be so far fetched as RichRod's in Year 2 of Grand Plan will UGA replaces a franchise QB), Feldman makes Bob in the Bay Area's point. Feldman expects ND to win 10 games with their schedule but only 1 less with UF's.


Interesting point that Feldman slips in is:

Plus, UF also probably would have to beat another top 10 team in the SEC title.

Everyone knows that a post season league championship is not a regular season game but Feldman falls in the web SEC Commissioner Kramer (later BCS Founding Czar Kramer) planned when he initiated the SEC Championship. Pollsters will preceive it to be a regular season game and give the SEC Champ a boost for "tougher" scheduling at voting time.

They neglect that Kramer purposely split the SEC into 2 divisions so he could eliminate tough matchups like Bama vs Tennessee, AKA "The Third Saturday in October". From 1928 to 1992 the two teams played on that date. Since '92 the rivals have only met 5 times.

There used to be a rule of thumb that "You can't win the SEC with 2 losses". Kramer ended that with his two division scheme to minimize league games, soften the schedule with more cupcakes, and ensure the maximum number of bowl eligible SEC teams to fill their bowl contracted slots (Kramer also championed league/bowl tie-ins).

To head off "weak schedule" complaints he added the SEC Championship. Keep in mind only the top two SEC teams play so there's only 1 more loss for the league. In the one Division format like the PAC-10 the conference teams face each other more often resulting in more league losses and minimizing bowl eligible teams.

Hence JoePa cry this week for the Big 10 to go to 12 teams and a playoff. He sees how the SEC and Big 12 teams get more $$$ with a championship game but also have an easier road to the BCS.

 

[IHateMarkMay]

I wonder what JoePa would want to call the new big ten if another team was added?

 

[jason_h537]

I wonder what JoePa would want to call the new big ten if another team was added?

hmmm Big Midwest?

 

[Honey Nut Irish]

Michigan =/= Georgia
Washington =/= Arkansas

 

[jason_h537]

Georgia will have a down year though. Arkansas should be alot better with Ryan Mallett

 

[IrishAddiction]

Hmmmm.... who has the better schedule? In all honesty, Florida.

Michigan=no QB, line, everyone transferring (See Mallet, McGuffie, among others.)

Uconn, Pitt, and Michigan St all lost all world RBs.

BC lost two all american DTs, opening up the middle to vulnerability.

Stanford and USC i believe will give us problems if charlie doesnt get his shit together, but even USC is going to be having a downyear, so who knows.

Washington St, Washington, Nevada, Purdue, and Navy are obviously powerhouses of the college football world also. (sarcasm implied.)

i wouldnt be surprised if only one team we play in the regular season finishes in the top 25, two would be likely, three would astound me.

Florida will likely play a minimum of 4 teams that will be in the top 25 at the end of the season. (including SEC title game)

So yes, we have a weak schedule. I wont argue it a damn bit if it takes us to the NC and puts another title in South Bend though.

 

[BGIF]

Michigan =/= Georgia
Washington =/= Arkansas

"=/=" = ≠?

 

[IrishAddiction]

"=/=" = ≠?

yeah not going to lie honey nut that confused me too.

 

[jason_h537]

How did u get the not equals sign?

 

[BGIF]

How did u get the not equals sign?

Revealing my deepest secrets, I cut it and pasted it from a table of math signs I looked when I didn't find =/= in a cell phone abbreviation glossary.

 

[BGIF]

Hmmmm.... who has the better schedule?
...

Washington St, Washington, Nevada, Purdue, and Navy are obviously powerhouses of the college football world also. (sarcasm implied.)....

I can't believe you could post a crack about ND "powerhouse" opponents.

• UW - 15 Pac-10 Titles AND a National Championship
• WSU - 4 Pac 10 Titles. WSU has 1 less PAC 10 title than VU, UK, USC, AND ARK combined SEC titles.
• PU - 8 Big 10 Titles and their 26 wins against ND are the most except for MSU 27 and USC 33,
• Nevada - since going Div 1 30 years ago has 10 conference titles. This is a growing program. ND is playing Nevada because Dr. White negotiated a deal with Nevada, San Diego State, and BYU to get Tyrone an opening day gimme (ahem!) against the Cougs. ND didn't schedule them as chump games and none of them are cannon fodder programs. Their QB is as good as ours.
• ND hasn't played a Div AA caliber school in more than 70 years.

Spurrier softened UF's schedule in the early 90's with Div AA rollovers like The Citadel to improve his record over the predecessors. About the same time the SEC divided into two divisions to minimize tough conference games while maximizing "buy" games to pad records and gain Poll votes.

As to the "tougher" UF schedule, UF plays a Div AAA masquerading as a DIV AA school for the money,a couple of DIV AA masquerading as Div 1 schools only for the bucks, and the the usual SEC cannon fodder that takes their beatings and their $11 million in SEC revenue sharing. They play the NCAA version of the Washington Generals and the New Jersey Reds.

• Charleston Southern - They only became Div AA in '93 and are horrible there. They win about a third of their games mostly against Div AAA teams. Hofstra, that powerhouse from NY averages 50-3 over CS. UAB (Bama stepsister) is 6-0 against CS average score 44-14. They have a 2-14 record against Jerry Falwell's college!
• Troy - A Div AA powerhouse that wanted the Big Bucks so they play Div 1 since '02. I know the program. I've been on campus.
• FIU - Didn't have a football in 2001. Div AA '02 - '05. Three seasons in Div 1. Never won more than 5 games a year at any level. There are tougher Juco teams. 17,800 seat stadium
• Miss St - They've even lost to Div AA Maine. Da Bears! The Beasts of Orono! A career LOSING program. One SEC Championship about 70 yrs ago. One SEC DIVISION Championship. Two, 10 win seasons in 110 years.
• Vandy - A mighty 7 games over .500 out of over 1000 games. Never won even a division title in the SEC.
• UK - 8 games over .500 after playing over 1100 games. They still Praise the Lord for that rugged 23-1 Series record over Georgetown. No, not the Hoyas, Georgetown, KY as in the jelly. Then there's that impressive 19-1 Series against Maryville (WTFAT??). It's a Seminary. Solid bottom tier conference program right before they go on probation, again. How can you cheat and still be so bad. They've had as many double digit loss seasons as double digit win seasons (2 each). They miss Bear Bryant and the glory days. UK's lost more times to Tennessee than Navy has to ND!
• USC - That's USC East or USC Least. The Cocks are an impidant version of the Trojans. Yet another CAREER LOSING PROGRAM of the tough Gator schedule. One, 10 win season in 110 years. South Carolina, where Great Coaches Go To Play Golf. Spurrier, Holtz doesn't matter, even Hall of Fame coaches can't win a SEC Divisional title here. ZERO SEC titles, 1 ACC title with a 7-4 record in their history

And once again, the SEC Championship is NOT a scheduled game. It's a marketing ploy SEC Commissioner/BCS Founding Czar Roy Kramer cleverly crafted so gullible people would buy the SEC's "tough" scheduling policy.

 

[Honey Nut Irish]

haha Yeah =/= is ≠

Sorry about any confusion, I was feeling lazy and didn't want to take the time to put in a proper 'not equal to' symbol.


The schedule comparison is a stretch. Although I think it is true that the difficulties of many teams' schedules are exaggerated. And of course ND is always picked on, while the teams playing the cupcakes for the first couple weeks are given a free pass.

But that's just the way it is. We are ND.

 

[phork]

You can always do the != for not equal as well. No other schools get their schedules analyzed like NDs does. Why? Because ND is an independent. Everyone sees Navy on the schedule and cries of CUPCAKE can be heard for miles. Except they don't understand why Navy is on the schedule... I've learned to just ignore the morons.

 

[BGIF]

You can always do the != for not equal as well. No other schools get their schedules analyzed like NDs does. Why? Because ND is an independent. Everyone sees Navy on the schedule and cries of CUPCAKE can be heard for miles. Except they don't understand why Navy is on the schedule... I've learned to just ignore the morons.

Not they don't understand the Navy/ND relationship but as much as they'll bash the academies SEC teams do not want to play them. They know regardless of talent those kids come to play for all 60 minutes. They'd rather schedule a Div AA team while pointing at ND and hollaring "weak schedule". A marketing ploy Joseph Goebbels made infamous.

Unfortunately some ND fans buy that swill and regurgitate it.

 

[BGIF]

Even the boys at EDSBS find the Gator schedule laughable

EDSBS » Archive » THE 2010 FLORIDA SCHEDULE: SLIGHTLY LESS LAUGHABLE

If you read some of the followup comments there's one guy making the point that Title 9 forces cupcake scheduling to pay for non-revenue sports.

Title 9 is "redistributing the wealth" but how do you get more revenue by playing a cupcake when the fans stay home. Some ND fans are calling for boycotts of games like Nevada, SDS, etc to "make it worth their while to travel so far and spend all that money". UGA has considered upgrading their schedule since a lot of season ticketholders don't show for the Southwest Nowhere U blowout game and the school loses money through lost parking, bookstore sales, lower vendor sales, etc. plus the hefty buyout price. Local merchants have all complained about lower revenue on cupcake weekends. UGA's reviewing their scheduling strategy.