Yesterday, I graded the Big Ten West’s non-conference schedules. Today, I’ll move on the East.
The East might not be the toughest conference from top to bottom, but it is definitely one of the strongest at the top. Ohio State, Michigan, and Michigan State are three likely preseason Top 15 teams and potential College Football Playoff contenders. Did those teams schedule like CFP favorites should? Let’s find out.
Big Ten East Non-Conference Schedule Grades
Indiana Hoosiers
September 1st: @Florida International
Indiana takes a recruiting trip to Florida along with a should-win game against FIU. Not a bad choice for a program that needs both wins and recruits.
Grade: C-
September 10th: Ball State
Another should-win game against a weak MAC school.
Grade: D
September 24th: Wake Forest
Indiana’s Power 5 opponent is a weak one, but that’s okay. The Hoosiers need wins in the non-conference if they want a chance at a bowl, and it’s not like they’re a better program than Wake Forest right now.
Grade: B
Overall:
There is no FCS team on this schedule. It includes two cupcakes, but that’s okay with a program in the state that Indiana is right now.
Grade: B+
Maryland Terrapins
September 3rd: Howard
If you’ve read some of the earlier ones of these, you know by now that I’m okay with scheduling one in-state FCS school. Besides, Maryland has a history of losing to FCS teams anyway.
Grade: D
September 9th: @Florida International
FIU gets to host two Big Ten teams this year. That will be some nice travel dollars that the school rakes in. It’s a tempting Miami vacation and a tempting recruiting trip for the Terps.
Grade: C-
September 17th: @Central Florida
Maryland gets two Florida recruiting trips in consecutive weeks. UCF hasn’t always been a weak program, but it is right now.
Grade: C-
Overall:
There is no meat here at all. It’s three cupcakes. Two of those look like road games, but they’re not really games Maryland should lose under any circumstances, anyway.
Grade: C-
Michigan Wolverines
September 3rd: Hawaii
Hawaii has had its moments in the past decade, but in recent years, the Warriors have been a pretty bad cupcake, especially on the mainland.
Grade: D
September 10th: Central Florida
Michigan hosts another complete cupcake, though UCF was the class of Conference USA when this game was scheduled, so we can’t hold it against the Wolverines too much.
Grade: C
September 17th: Colorado
Michigan will be a contender for the CFP, so the cream of it’s non-conference schedule is… Colorado? Yes, this game was scheduled a long time ago and Colorado does have a history of success. But the Buffaloes have been pretty bad for close to a decade now. This will not help any Michigan playoff push.
Grade: B-
Overall:
Michigan wants to make the College Football Playoff, but this schedule leaves almost no margin for error. It’s the weakest non-conference schedule of any real CFP contender that we’ve seen so far.
Grade: C
Michigan State Spartans
September 2nd: Furman
Furman is an FCS school. It’s not a very good one. It’s not in the state of Michigan. The Spartans will follow the Paladins with a bye week. I’m willing to let that all slide because of what comes next.
Grade: D
September 17th: @Notre Dame
A road trip to South Bend? This has College GameDay’s destination written all over it. It should help start to shape the CFP picture early in the season.
Grade: A+
October 8th: BYU
The Spartans took a bye week early in the year so that they could play BYU during what would have been a bye in the middle of Big Ten play. It’s a bold move to set up a strong non-conference matchup, even if BYU technically might not be a P5 school depending on who you ask. It also helps because BYU is a dark horse New Years’ Six contender, especially if Taysom Hill is healthy.
Grade: A
Overall:
Like I said, I’ll forgive the FCS school. This is a schedule that a CFP contender should be proud of, with Notre Dame, BYU, and 11 straight weeks of playing (12 if Michigan State reaches the Big Ten championship game).
Grade: A
Ohio State Buckeyes
September 3rd: Bowling Green
The Buckeyes host the Falcons, who have been one of the top MAC teams for a long time now. It’s a game that Ohio State should never lose, but it’s not quite a cupcake either. It’s a good start to the season.
Grade: C+
September 10th: Tulsa
Ohio State gets a second tune-up game against a usually-decent Group of 5 squad. Kudos for scheduling two should-win games that aren’t total cupcakes either.
Grade: B-
September 17th: @Oklahoma
Remember when I said that Michigan State at Notre Dame will get GameDay? It probably will, but this game will give it a run for its money. It’s a blockbuster matchup between two very likely preseason Top 10 teams. This is what non-conference games were made for.
Grade: A+
Overall:
I don’t think I can give this an A+ without having a second P5 school on it (or at least an upper-G5 team), but it’s close. It has the huge marquee game and two more games that can’t honestly be called cupcakes. It’s a strong schedule, that’s for sure.
Grade: A
Penn State Nittany Lions
September 3rd: Kent State
Aside from a bit of success when Dri Archer was in town, Kent State has not been good for a long time. It’s a cupcake to start the season.
Grade: D
September 10th: @Pittsburgh
It’s a revival of a once-classic rivalry and I love to see it. Add in the fact that Pitt might be becoming a powerful program under new coach Pat Narduzzi and we have a game that Penn State gets full props for scheduling, even if Narduzzi wasn’t there when the game was scheduled.
Grade: A+
September 17th: Temple
Temple is a good AAC team and the Owls proved it by manhandling Penn State last year. The Nittany Lions will be out for revenge.
Grade: B+
Overall:
For the majority of P5 teams that play three non-conference games (other than the elites and the bottoms of the conferences), the expected schedule should be one tune-up, one good Group of 5 team, and one decent Power 5 team. This schedule hits all three checkmarks in my book.
Grade: A
Rutgers Scarlet Knights
September 3rd: @Washington
Rutgers and Washington were both expected to be relatively struggling programs when this game was scheduled. Washington is not expected to struggle at all this season with Chris Petersen in his third year. This was a nice idea, but will not end well for the Scarlet Knights.
Grade: B+
September 10th: Howard
It’s an FCS team, but Rutgers might desperately need wins wherever it can find them.
Grade: D
September 17th: New Mexico
The Lobos were one of the worst teams in FBS when this game was scheduled. Unfortunately for Rutgers, Bob Davie is a miracle worker. He actually has made New Mexico good enough that this game is winnable for the Lobos.
Grade: C
Overall:
This schedule should have included one evenly-matched P5 team, a bad FBS cupcake, and an FCS cupcake. The FCS school is still a cupcake, but suddenly the P5 team seems out of Rutgers’ league and the FBS cupcake might be one of the top teams in the Mountain West. It’s funny how plans can get messed up, isn’t it?
Grade: B+
