5. Ole Miss
Toughest Games: At Memphis, At Alabama, Texas A&M, At Auburn, and LSU
The Rebels take to the road opening week to take on the Memphis Tigers. Mike Norvell has himself a pretty solid team that will be excited to welcome an SEC opponent into Memphis. Memphis hosted a Top 25 UCLA team in 2017 and pulled off the big home upset. Following Memphis, Ole Miss has a bit of a lull in their schedule until they get to a midseason stretch of playing at Alabama, vs Texas A&M, and at Auburn as part of a five-game stretch. They wrap up the season facing LSU and traveling to hated in-state rival Mississippi State.
4. UCLA
Toughest Games: Oklahoma, Washington State, At Stanford, At Utah, and USC
Chip Kelly’s second season at UCLA doesn’t get to start with an easy non-conference schedule. They start off traveling across the country to take on Cincinnati, who is coming off an 11 win season that included a road win against UCLA. After the Bearcats, they face in-state foe San Diego State then they welcome Lincoln Riley and the Oklahoma Sooners into Los Angeles. A tough three-game stretch that doesn’t have a gimme win in it followed up by traveling to Washington State and Arizona. Add in trips to Stanford and Utah and another rough season could be ahead for the Bruins.
3. USC
Toughest Games: Stanford, At BYU, Utah, At Washington, and At Notre Dame
This is not the schedule that you want if you’re a coach on the hot seat. It’s not out of the realm of possibility that the Trojans start the season 0-6. They begin with Fresno State, not the most frightening team, but a roster full of players that dreamed of getting a USC offer. Fresno State and its players will throw everything they have at the Trojans. Waiting on deck is Stanford and a trip to BYU. They are then rewarded with facing three top 15 teams in a row. First off is Utah, the preseason PAC-12 favorites, then back to back games at Washington and at Notre Dame. The second half of the season eases up compared to the first half but will Clay Helton make it to the second half of the season?
2. South Carolina
Toughest Games: Alabama, At Georgia, Florida, At Texas A&M, and Clemson
The Gamecocks face one of the toughest schedules in the entire nation including games against the top 3 teams in the DevyWatch Top 25. Fortunately, they face two of the three opponents at home. South Carolina has to travel to Missouri, Georgia, Tennessee, and Texas A&M in that order. Going 2-2 in road games is probably the best that Gamecock fans can wish for. They round out the season against Appalachian State, at Texas A&M, and Clemson, overlooking App. State could easily lead to an 0-3 finish to the regular season. Finishing above .500 on the season will be a tough task for Head Coach Will Muschamp.
1. Texas A&M
Toughest Games: At Clemson, Auburn, Alabama, At Georgia, and At LSU
Jimbo Fisher gets one of the unluckiest draws in the entire country in his second season. They face off against 4 of the DevyWatch’s top 6 teams. While having to travel to Clemson, Georgia, and LSU – all top 6 teams. After facing Clemson in Week 2, the Aggies face an FCS opponent then they face Auburn and Alabama in a three-week stretch. Post-Alabama, they have much simpler four-game stretch but wrap up the season traveling to LSU and Georgia. Getting to seven wins will be a tough achievement for A&M.
Other Notable Tough Schedules:
California – At Washington, At Oregon, At Utah, Washington State, and At Stanford
LSU – At Texas, Utah State, Florida, At Mississippi State, Auburn, At Alabama, and Texas A&M
West Virginia – At Missouri, N.C. State, Texas, At Oklahoma, and At TCU
Purdue – TCU, At Penn State, At Iowa, Nebraska, At Wisconsin
Florida – Miami (FL), Auburn, At LSU, Georgia, and Florida State
Michigan State – Arizona State, At Ohio State, At Wisconsin, Penn State (Face OSU, Wis, and, PSU three straight games), At Michigan
