If teams didn’t play 1-AA schools, here are some intriguing matchups (or not-so-intriguing, but certainly better than Alcorn State) that could have been. I only matched teams that played on the same day, so with some restructuring (pairing a Thursday 1-AA game with a Saturday 1-AA game), the schedule could have been even better. Also, the matchups I picked were mostly aribtrary, though often I tried to get the #1 v. #2 out of the teams from different conferences, and worked my way down.
August 28
Iowa State-Ball State
Central Michigan-UConn
Eastern Michigan-Georgia Tech
Miami (FL)-Cincinnati
August 30
LSU-Oklahoma
Ohio State-BYU
Penn State-Texas Tech
Iowa-Central Florida
Georgia-West Virginia
Air Force-Boise State
Navy-Maryland
Marshall-Duke
UNC-Arkansas
South Florida-Arizona State
Houston-San Jose State
Nevada-San Diego State
September 6
Illinois-UVa
Purdue-Colorado
Army-Florida State
Virginia Tech-Mississippi State
Louisville-Colorado State
Clemson-Missouri
Kentucky-Indiana (Why the hell didn’t they play this year?)
NC State-Baylor
Arkansas State
TCU-Kansas State
SMU-Hawaii
Western Kentucky
Idaho
*Idaho and Western Kentucky were left out because they played presumed rivals Idaho State and Eastern Kentucky, respectively.
September 13
Northwestern-Wyoming
Minnesota-Ole Miss
Oklahoma State-Florida State
Kent State-Troy
Miami (OH)
September 20
Northern Illinois-UAB
Syracuse-Memphis
Texas Tech-Washington State
Kansas-South Carolina
Western Kentucky-Western Michigan
Louisiana Tech
September 27
Boston College-Utah
Rutgers-Tulsa
Ohio
October 4
New Mexico State
October 11
Georgia Tech
November 8
Auburn
November 22
Florida-Wisconsin
What should the NCAA do to encourage (or force) better matchups? Allow 1-A teams to play against lower-division squads, but not count it toward bowl eligibility.
Posted under Misc.
Tags: scheduling