Back by popular demand: it's part 2 of the five part series ranking each high major's non-conference schedule.
If you missed part 1 where I accurately described the Washington Huskies as a terrible, cowardly, no good basketball program (click the link below). If not, you know the drill. I'm grading (and ranking) non-conference schedules. This is based on schedule difficulty, protecting rivalries, playing regional & in-state competition, and prioritizing on-campus games. A full explanation of the grading criteria is further down the article.
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Before we get into today's grades, I want to reemphasize something. Teams do not and should not get credit for playing big games during the exhibition part of the season. Any team that plays a heated rivalry or lower tier in-state competition that they've avoided scheduling in the regular season should be shamed. I'm looking at you Indiana (Butler). And you Ohio State (Cincinnati). And even Purdue (Fort Wayne). That's not to say you can't have good exhibitions on the schedule, but if the only time you will consciously choose to play certain teams is during the exhibition season thats a problem.
The Grading Rubric
The most important thing a program can do is schedule games against other top programs. Limit the cupcakes which do nothing for your NCAA tournament resume. Credit is given for any games against members of the top 6 conferences OR other programs projected to be a top 100 team this season. Credit will also be given for true road games & neutral site games against top 200 competition. Collectively these games will be referred to as "good" games.
While the majority of a team's grade is determined by the above paragraph, it should be noted that not every team is graded equally just based on the number of good games. The Big East and Big Ten play 20 game conference schedules. For a Big 12, ACC, or SEC team to have an equal number of road games for the overall season, they need to play 1 more road game than their Big East and Big Ten counterparts. The same goes for games against quality competition. Example: In their non-conference schedule, Iowa and Arkansas play one true road game and 5 "good games". Iowa is playing 1 more road game and 2 more "good" games over the course of the 32 game regular season. Iowa's going to have a better grade than Arkansas because they have less games against bad competition.
Other things being rewarded
1) A higher number of true road games. Road games are challenging and difficult to win. Playing true road games is good for the sport. Some coaches are too cowardly to play any non-conference true road game.
2) More games against out of conference rivals. Give the fans something to get excited about. People want to watch Kentucky v. Indiana, Marquette v. Wisconsin, Missouri v. Illinois. Play those games.
3) More games against in-state & regional competition. In-state mid-majors and low majors will get up for a game against big brother in a way that a mid-major or low-major from the other side of the country won't. Yes, the game might result in an embarrassing loss like Indiana State over Indiana. Or Seattle over Washington. Or Fort Wayne over Indiana. It's worth it overall. Those games get people interested in the sport and people remember them. Play those games.
Things hurting grades
1) A higher number of games against sub-300 competition. Any team with a ranking of 300 or below isn't likely to compete with a high major program. Most of those games are 40-50 point blowouts. Nobody wants to watch these. Season ticket holders hate them. One or two isn't the worst thing in the world, but programs playing three or more just hate their fans. There are 365 teams in college basketball. Don't play a quarter of your non-conference games against the bottom 65.
2) Ducking out of conference rivals. If your program has a long-standing yearly rivalry and your coach or athletic director has decided to quash that yearly tradition in order to play another cupcake, they are going to get called out in this article series.
3) An excess number of neutral site games. College basketball is special because of the student sections. Watching games being played in front of empty Las Vegas arenas instead of a rabid crowd makes me sick. Play more games on campus. Multiple team events and a marquee game (or return game) in a city that's important to one of the team's fanbases is okay, but if there are 6 neutral site games, 0 road games, and your best home game is Central Arkansas that's a problem.
4) Division 2 or NAIA games. Programs that scheduled a non-Division 1 opponent automatically receive a F. No exceptions. These games do not count on your Selection Sunday resume. Any program that schedules them is not making the most of their opportunities to add to the resume and metrics that the committee will consider. With 365 Division 1 programs in the 2026-27 season, there is no reason for any team with NCAA tournament at-large dreams to schedule these games. If you really, really want to play a former assistant coach or traditional exhibition opponent, use one of your three allowed exhibitions for that.
Not every team will get a full explanation, but I will include every team's schedule, grade, ranking within the 88 power conference teams, and some additional numbers. Opponents' preseason Torvik rankings as of Wednesday are included in (). Scroll til you see an embedded schedule if you just want to see the Big Ten teams.
Truly Bad Schedules with One Redeeming Quality
Team #69 Arkansas Razorbacks - D-
SEC, 14 possible non-conference games, No MTE
1 true road game, 4 neutral games, 9 home games
5 good games, 2 sub-300 games
Road: North Carolina (45)
Neutral: Virginia (DC, 4), Indiana (New York, 25), Michigan St (Detroit, 10), Arizona (Phoenix, 2)
Home: Central Arkansas (169), Robert Morris (175), Texas Arlington (205), Central Michigan (211), Oakland (225), Oral Roberts (247), Texas Rio Grande Valley (249), Arkansas Pine Bluff (361), Mississippi Valley St (364)
Originally Arkansas was going to be a F grade. Just five "good" games on the schedule which is the equivalent of only 3 on a Big Ten or Big East non-conference slate. However, the fact that they have three top ten opponents and are playing all three at what are effectively road environments means that I have given them a slight pass. That being said, I hate this schedule for Arkansas fans. The best home game is Central Arkansas. There is just one true road game. Pretty typical for Calipari and just another piece of evidence for why he is partially responsible for the decline of this sport.
Team #68 Syracuse Orange - D-
ACC, 14 possible non-conference games, No MTE
2 true road games, 3 neutral games, 9 home games
5 good games, 6 sub-300 games
Road: St. John's (18), Oklahoma (27)
Neutral: Indiana (Indianapolis, 25), Rutgers (Brooklyn, 75), Providence (Boston, 55)
Home: Colgate (212), Cornell (231), Albany (289), Canisius (320), Mercyhurst (323), Binghamton (332), Lafayette (330), New Haven (337), Central Connecticut (343)
Holy cupcakes, Batman! In years past, Syracuse was infamous for never leaving the state of New York during non-conference season unless forced to by a conference challenge. The good news is that Syracuse has two road games this year. The neutral site games aren't too shabby either. The home slate is just pure, unadulterated awful though. Even if it's local teams (which we like to see), there's only so much of a pass I'm going to give you for avoiding challenging games completely.
Team #67 Stanford Cardinal - D-
ACC, 14 possible non-conference games, Acrisure Series
2 true road games, 2 neutral games, 10 home games
4 good games, 0 sub-300 games
Road: UNLV (95), Texas A&M (32)
Neutral: Colorado (Acrisure, 106), Grand Canyon/UC Irvine (Acrisure, 42/69)
Home: UC Irvine (108), Pacific (129), St. Thomas (145), Sacramento St (159), Portland (166), Eastern Washington (186), Northern Colorado (198), Oakland (225), Rice (241), San Jose St (253)
Only four games against power conference teams/top 100 mid-majors isn't great, but Stanford avoids the F line thanks to two true road games and avoidance of any truly terrible games. You've also got to appreciate their willingness to play solid mid-majors including in-state competition. There's just not enough heft on the overall schedule to justify anything higher than a D-.
Team #66 Miami Florida Hurricanes - D-
ACC, 14 possible non-conference games, Players Era 16
0 true road games, 5-6 neutral games, 8-9 home games
6-7 good games, 6-7 sub-300 games
Road: N/A
Neutral: TCU (Players Era, 53), Creighton/Michigan (Players Era, 43/11), Players Era Game 3, Florida (Tampa, 3), Texas (Houston, 19)
Home: Alabama (21), Stetson (262), North Alabama (306), Manhattan (307), North Florida (322), USC Upstate (342), Wagner (349), Alcorn St (357), Rider (362)
It's an all or nothing approach from Miami. The other four teams from their Players Era bracket are Baylor, Alabama, Gonzaga, and Kansas State. If they make the Players Era 16 championship game (game #4), they will cancel one of Stetson, Alcorn State, or USC Upstate. Even if that happens this is still a schedule with at least 6 sub 300 teams and zero true road games. That's laughably bad. Do better.
Team #65 Boston College Eagles - D-
ACC, 14 possible non-conference games, ESPN Events
2 true road games, 3 neutral games, 9 home games
6 good games, 7 sub-300 games
Road: Georgia (33), Harvard (122)
Neutral: Central Florida (ESPN Events, 50), Cincinnati (ESPN Events, 39), UMass (Boston, 191)
Home: George Washington (76), Northeastern (246), New Hampshire (304), NJIT (310), UMass Lowell (321), New Haven (337), Stonehill (345), Wagner (349), Maryland Eastern Shore (365)
One thing I want to make clear. This grade is not a reflection of the fact that Boston College is playing Harvard on the road or UMass at a neutral site in Boston or has a good A10 opponent! I've giving BC full credit for those games and they should be applauding for playing them. This grade is a reflection of the fact that despite giving BC credit for those games, they are still playing seven sub-300 opponents. I know Boston College is beginning a massive rebuild with a new coach, but how exactly does this home slate reenergize the fanbase?
Team #64 Penn State Nittany Lions - D-
Big Ten, 12 possible non-conference games, Battle 4 Atlantis
0 true road games, 4 neutral games, 8 home games
4 good games, 5 sub-300 games
Road: N/A
Neutral: Memphis (Battle 4 Atlantis, 110), Mississippi State/Wake Forest (Battle 4 Atlantis, 63/77), Pittsburgh (Philadelphia, 86), Saint Joseph's (Hershey, 127)
Home: IU Indianapolis (251), Chattanooga (283), Albany (289), Mercyhurst (323), Canisius (320), Lafayette (330), New Haven (337), Tennessee Martin (338)
Okay, Penn State basketball. We need to have a conversation. You are in the Big Ten conference. It's one of the premier college basketball conferences in the sport. Pretty easily arguably a top 3 basketball conference. This schedule is unacceptable. Beyond the cupcake buffet that you will inevitably choke on at least once (and therefore bring down the entire conference's metrics), you are playing Pittsburgh in Philadelphia and Saint Joseph's in Hershey. Why not play Saint Joseph's in Philly? Better yet, why not make these both home and home series? You also have two exhibitions scheduled: St. Bonaventure (in Buffalo) and Drexel (in Philly). Either of these games would be the 5th best on your non-conference schedule. Instead you are playing them as exhibitions because you are scared you might lose? It's time to grow up. Put on your big boy pants and become serious about the sport. Stop trying to limp your way to a 16-16 record by going 10-2 in the non-conference followed by 6-14 in the B1G.
Team #63 Iowa State Cyclones - D-
Big 12, 14 possible non-conference games, Players Era 16
1 true road game, 4-5 neutral games, 8-9 home games
6-7 good games, 4-5 sub-300 games
Road: Iowa (48)
Neutral: San Diego St (Players Era, 58), Tennessee/Maryland (Players Era, 16/40), Players Era Game 3, Memphis (Sioux Falls, 110)
Home: Purdue (28), Southern Miss (214), Missouri St (244), Southern (298), New Hampshire (304), Niagara (315), Northern Arizona (316), NC Central (355), Alcorn St (357)
The other foursome in Iowa State's Players Era bracket is St. John's, Oregon, Louisville, and Texas Tech. Should they go 3-0, they will need to cancel a game to play for the Players Era 16 championship. That game could be any of Alcorn State, NC Central, Missouri State, Northern Arizona, or New Hampshire. It would also graduate this schedule to the C- level. I just don't think Iowa State is likely to make it past Louisville.
The rivalry with Iowa is nice. The return game from a home/home with Purdue is nice. There are too many buy games on this schedule though and almost every one of them features teams many hundreds of miles away from Iowa State's campus. Go back to playing Drake and Northern Iowa.
Team #62 Mississippi Rebels - D-
SEC, 14 possible non-conference games, Maui
1 true road game, 6 neutral games, 7 home games
5 good games, 3 sub-300 games
Road: Virginia Tech (36)
Neutral: Clemson (Maui, 35), BYU/Washington (Maui), Maui Game 3, NC State (Tupelo, 31), Southern Miss (Biloxi, 214), Louisiana Monroe (Southaven, 331)
Home: Central Arkansas (169), William & Mary (196), Southeastern Louisiana (254), Youngstown St (286), Nicholls (291), Jackson St (335), Alcorn St (357)
Maui game #3 will be one of Providence, VCU, Arizona, and Colorado State. Mississippi has dressed up this schedule a little with three neutral site games across the state of Mississippi. Don't be fooled though. Monroe and Southern Miss aren't going to be competitive games. At the end of the day, there's just five good opponents on the schedule. Even with a small bump in the schedule rankings for playing local schools, the Rebels can't escape the D- level.
Team #61 Oklahoma Sooners - D-
SEC, 14 possible non-conference games, Fort Myers
1 true road game, 4 neutral games, 9 home games
6 good games, 6 sub-300 games
Road: Southern Methodist (52)
Neutral: Pittsburgh (Fort Myers, 86), Purdue (Fort Myers, 28), Arizona St (Tulsa, 66), Oklahoma St (Oklahoma City, 56)
Home: Syracuse (61), Campbell (216), Alabama St (279), North Alabama (306), Louisiana Monroe (331), Jackson St (335), East Texas A&M (350), Fairleigh Dickinson (344), Mississippi Valley St (364)
This road and neutral site games are the start of a decent schedule. Then we get to the buy games. While the Sooners get partial credit for continuing to play Oklahoma State, they ruined it by playing it at a neutral venue. It's your biggest rival in basketball! Schedule a home/home series.
Team #60 Texas A&M Aggies - D-
SEC, 14 possible non-conference games, Battle 4 Atlantis
1 true road game, 3 neutral games, 10 home games
6 good games, 4 sub-300 games
Road: TCU (53)
Neutral: Xavier (Battle 4 Atlantis, 54), Marquette (Battle 4 Atlantis, 30), Florida St (Houston, 71)
Home: Oklahoma St (56), Stanford (82), Northern Kentucky (223), Southeastern Louisiana (254), Alabama St (279), Prairie View A&M (280), North Florida (322), Louisiana Monroe 331), Holy Cross (333), Arkansas Pine Bluff (361)
There are 25 Division I programs in the state of Texas. The Aggies can't play themselves and Texas is in their conference. That still leaves 23 potential in-state opponents to play in the non-conference. They play TCU and Prairie View A&M. Meanwhile they are going to bus in Northern Kentucky, Holy Cross, and North Florida. What are we doing?
Weak Schedules
Team #59 Texas Tech Red Raiders - D
Big 12, 14 possible non-conference games, Players Era 16
0 true road games, 5-6 neutral games, 8* home games
6-7 good games, 5* sub-300 games
Road: N/A
Neutral: Louisville (Players Era, 8), Oregon/St. John's (Players Era 38/18), Players Era Game 3, Southern Cal (Fort Worth, 34), Duke (New York, 1)
Home: Illinois (6), Bethune Cookman (183), LSU New Orleans (221), Omaha (308), Incarnate Word (313), Jackson St (335), Stonehill (345), Mississippi Valley St (364)
Texas Tech's solution to the Players Era 16 was to avoid scheduling their final non-conference game. I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt here and assuming they will pick up a buy game against a Division I opponent when/if they fail to go 3-0 to start the Players Era.
Now some people will say "how can you only give Texas Tech a D? They are playing Louisville, Duke, and Illinois." The answer is pretty simple. The Red Raiders play in the Big 12. Theres less road games on their entire schedule than any Big East or Big Ten program. There's five sub-300 games on the schedule and when it's all said and done that number could easily balloon to six. In short, this schedule is emblematic of the problem with current Division I power conference scheduling priorities. Teams either want to play the very top of the division or the very bottom. Where are the games between teams 50-300? That would be 69% (nice) of the sport for my math nerds. There's two (or 14%) of them on Texas Tech's non-conference: Bethune Cookman and LSU New Orleans.
Team #58 North Carolina State Wolfpack - D
ACC, 14 possible non-conference games, Baha Mar
0 true road games, 5 neutral games, 9 home games
6 good games, 2 sub-300 games
Road: N/A
Neutral: Murray St (Baha Mar, 105), Wisconsin/Seton Hall (Baha Mar, 47/78), Tennessee (Nashville, 16), North Carolina (Greensboro, 45), Mississippi (Tupelo, 62)
Home: South Carolina (94), Troy (136), East Tennessee St (178), Campbell (216), Presbyterian (233), Elon (239), Alabama A&M (261), UNC Greensboro (325), Norfolk St (329)
Kudos to the Wolfpack for playing a bunch of regional and in-state competition. However, 8 buy games is still 8 buy games. And why are they playing North Carolina in Greensboro? I understand the two rivals only play once in the ACC schedule and wanted to play a 2nd time, but wouldn't you want to play the second non-conference game at the campus of the team that doesn't get to host a conference game against their rival? Or I guess let's go sell out neutral site tickets and screw those season ticket holders over. Hooray!
Team #57 Texas Christian Horned Frogs - D
Big 12, 14 possible non-conference games, Players Era 16
1 true road game, 3-4 neutral games, 9-10 home games
6-7 good games, 2 sub-300 games
Road: Notre Dame (73)
Neutral: Miami Florida (Players Era, 12), Creighton/Michigan (Players Era, 43/11), Players Era Game 3
Home: Texas A&M (32), Clemson (35), Oral Roberts (247), Milwaukee (248), Houston Christian (275), Alabama St (279), Lindenwood (294), Southern (298), Louisiana Monroe (331), Holy Cross (333)
TCU isn't making the Players Era 16 championship game so they won't actually have to worry about cancelling a buy game. I'm running out of ways to say 8 buy games are too many but they are too many.
Team #56 Vanderbilt Commodores - D
SEC, 14 possible non-conference games, No MTE
3 true road games, 0 neutral games, 11 home games
5 good games, 4 sub-300 games
Road: The Ohio State (20), Notre Dame (73), California (90)
Neutral: N/A
Home: Wake Forest (77), Central Florida (50), Memphis (110), Milwaukee (248), Prairie View A&M (280), Southern (298), West Georgia (300), Southern Indiana (301), Bellarmine (305), Eastern Illinois (339), Alcorn St (357)
Vanderbilt gets a pass for having only 5 games that qualify as "good". That's partially due to the fact they have 3 true road games (tied for the most out of the non-Pac 12 power conferences), partially due to their embrace of playing games away from sterile neutral sites, and partially due to me giving them extra credit for playing Memphis. Memphis might not be a top 100 team according to Torvik’s preseason projections, but they are an in-state rival of Vanderbilt and that game was not scheduled with the intention of Memphis being outside of the top 100 this season.
Team #55 Kentucky Wildcats - D
SEC, 14 possible non-conference games, No MTE
1 true road game, 3 neutral games, 10 home games
6 good games, 6 sub-300 games
Road: Virginia (4)
Neutral: Kansas (Chicago, 7), Indiana (Indianapolis, 25), North Carolina (New York, 45)
Home: Louisville (8), Wichita St (70), James Madison (153), Appalachian St (268), Sacred Heart (302), Manhattan (307), Northern Arizona (316), Bryant (326), Grambling (348), Gardner-Webb (354)
Feast or famine. Lots of things to love about UK's schedule here. Rivalry games against Louisville and Indiana (would have been nice for the IU game to be on campus, but I know thats a relic of Calipari's influence). There are three games against programs that have won a national title in the past decade. The overall schedule is held back by six really bad cupcakes. Go play Western Kentucky or Eastern Kentucky or Northern Kentucky or Bellarmine. Two of those aren't very good either but those games would mean something in parts of Kentucky.
Team #54 Georgia Bulldogs - D
SEC, 14 possible non-conference games, ESPN Events
2 true road games, 3 neutral games, 9 home games
6 good games, 4 sub-300 games
Road: North Carolina (45), Georgia Tech (111)
Neutral: Cincinnati (ESPN Events, 39), Central Florida (ESPN Events, 50), Duke (New York, 1)
Home: Boston College (124), Jacksonville (209), Presbyterian (233), Alabama A&M (261), Florida Gulf Coast (271), West Georgia (300), North Florida (322), Gardner-Webb (354), NC Central (355)
Good regionality in their matchups. Bad competition level after their first six games.
Team #53 Cincinnati Bearcats - D
Big 12, 14 possible non-conference games, ESPN Events
1 true road game, 3 neutral games, 10 home games
6 good games, 1 sub-300 games
Road: Dayton (72)
Neutral: Georgia (ESPN Events, 33), Boston College (ESPN Events, 124), Clemson (Cincinnati, 35)
Home: Xavier (54), Minnesota (79), Bethune Cookman (183), American (189), Green Bay (190), Marist (206), Monmouth (222), Stetson (262), Youngstown St (286), UMass Lowell (321)
The Crosstown shootout is an amazing rivalry and great time. I'm pretty sure the game against Dayton is solely to poke Xavier in the eye for the Musketeers refusing to schedule a regular season game against their other big rival, but it's still nice to see UC willing to travel to Dayton. I am planning to attend the Minnesota game. It's the rest of the schedule I take offense to. As a Cincinnati native and someone that wants to attend good basketball games, which of these games am I supposed to get excited about?
And why is UC playing a neutral site game downtown at Heritage Bank Arena? The Bearcats finished a massive renovation of their on-campus arena less than a decade ago. They are literally only a few miles away from downtown and the majority of the fanbase will have to drive past the exits for UC's campus to get downtown. Heritage Bank Arena is a rundown piece of crap long overdue for major renovations or just replacement. I guess UC didn't want to include that game in the season ticket holders allotment? Or is playing games with the NET rankings. Absolute bullshit. Be grateful I didn't flunk you for that game alone.
Schedules I Sort of Like But Lacking in Quantity of High Quality Opponents
Team #52 Wake Forest Demon Deacons - D+
ACC, 14 possible non-conference games, Battle 4 Atlantis
2 true road games, 4 neutral games, 8 home games
6 good games, 3 sub-300 games
Road: Vanderbilt (23), LSU (51)
Neutral: Mississippi St (Battle 4 Atlantis, 63), Memphis/Penn State (Battle 4 Atlantis, 110/96), West Virginia (Greensboro, 49), UMass (Springfield, 191)
Home: Western Carolina (171), Hampton (187), Southern Utah (199), Presbyterian (233), Monmouth (222), Charleston Southern (324), Gardner-Webb (354), Maryland Eastern Shore (365)
The more I look at this schedule, the more I want to move it down a few spots. Before I do that let's talk about what I liked when I originally placed it here. There's two true road games plus four neutral site opportunities. Unlike the schools below them in the rankings, Wake Forest isn't afraid to leave home. Have to applaud the neutral site game with a MAC school even if I don't quite understand it. The eight game home slate is also mostly regional. It's packed with schools from the Carolinas, Virginia, Maryland - and then there is Southern Utah who sticks out like a sore thumb.
Team #51 Virginia Tech Hokies - D+
ACC, 14 possible non-conference games, Charleston Classic
1 true road game, 4 neutral games, 9 home games
6 good games, 3 sub-300 games
Road: West Virginia (49)
Neutral: Northwestern (Charleston. 74), Oklahoma St (Charleston, 56), Iowa (Sioux City, 48), Central Florida (Fort Lauderdale, 50)
Home: Mississippi (62), Richmond (112), Old Dominion (243), Mercer (258), Radford (282), Mount St. Mary's (299), Virginia Military Institute (334), Coppin St (358), Maryland Eastern Shore (365)
Virginia Tech deserves lots of credit for playing West Virginia, Richmond, and Old Dominion. I suspect all three of those programs will be up for those games and it adds some spice to this schedule.
Team #50 Central Florida Knights - D+
Big 12, 14 possible non-conference games, ESPN Events
2 true road game, 3 neutral games, 9 home games
6 good games, 1 sub-300 games
Road: Vanderbilt (23), Indiana (25)
Neutral: Boston College (ESPN Events, 124), Georgia (ESPN Events, 33), Virginia Tech (Fort Lauderdale, 36)
Home: Mississippi St (63), Florida International (164), Towson (218), American (189), Yale (197), Jacksonville (227), South Alabama (267), Florida Gulf Coast (271), Georgia Southern (336)
Two quick thoughts on UCF's schedule. I like the buy game opponents. More challenging than most and includes two lower tier Florida schools in FIU and Jacksonville. Understand why there are not any games against Miami/FSU/Florida as those three are still ignoring UCF's existence. That being said I would have liked to see a game against FAU or USF. There's no need to apply the same treatment to those schools that is being applied to you.
Team #49 Colorado Buffaloes - D+
Big 12, 14 possible non-conference games, Acrisure Series
1 true road game, 4 neutral games, 9 home games
6 good games, 1 sub-300 game
Road: Providence (55)
Neutral: Stanford (Acrisure, 82), Saint Louis/Grand Canyon (Acrisure, 69/42), Purdue (Indianapolis, 28), San Diego St (San Diego, 58)
Home: Colorado St (83), San Diego (115), Texas El Paso (160), Portland (166), Central Arkansas (169), Cal Poly (170), Denver (258), Abilene Christian (270), North Dakota (317)
Colorado tried here. I love the games against Colorado State and Denver. There's a ton of games against competition level between 100-200 (a group most of the power conference programs avoid like the plague). There's just not enough games against other power conference programs or the mid majors that are projected to be top 100 quality teams this season for me to put this schedule above a D+.
Team #48 Kansas State Wildcats - D+
Big 12, 14 possible non-conference games, Players Era 16
1 true road game, 3-4 neutral games, 9-10 home games
6-7 good games, 1 sub-300 game
Road: Seton Hall (78)
Neutral: Gonzaga (Players Era, 17), Baylor/Alabama (Players Era, 46/21), Players Era Game 3
Home: Creighton (43), Wichita St (70), Montana (202), Cal St Northridge (215), Campbell (216), IU Indianapolis (251), Arkansas Little Rock (252), South Dakota St (263), Lindenwood (294), Omaha (308)
Kansas State plays an American conference program from their state. Other than Vanderbilt playing Memphis, I'm pretty sure that's the only other instance of this occurring. They are unlikely to make the Players Era 16 championship game which means they won't be cancelling a buy game to play in it.
Team #47 Michigan State Spartans - D+
Big Ten, 12 possible non-conference games, No MTE
1 true road game, 3 neutral games, 8 home games
4 good games, 0 sub-300 games
Road: Tennessee (16)
Neutral: Duke (Chicago, 1), Gonzaga (Palm Springs, 17), Arkansas (Detroit, 22)
Home: Pennsylvania (117), Northern Iowa (118), Drake (148), Toledo (151), Merrimack (174), Oakland (225), Quinnipiac (237), Detroit Mercy (242)
You probably weren't expecting to find Izzo here. He's built a reputation of scheduling tough games. And look, I love a lot of the matchups on this schedule. But if you haven't caught on by now, there's been a common thread for most of these D graded teams. The have 8 or more buy games. Michigan State has 8 buy games. However much I individually love the games against Northern Iowa, Penn, Toledo, Oakland, and Detroit Mercy that doesn't change that fact.
I really appreciate Izzo playing in-state Oakland & Detroit Mercy (and practically in-state Toledo). Those are matchups that make college basketball special. Also I completely understand him playing Fran at Penn. Love the not one, but two games against the MVC opponents. I beg the B1G to schedule more games against the Valley and MSU is doing so.
While I did consider bumping MSU to the C- tier, I couldn't quite justify it and it wouldn't have changed their placement in the overall rankings. But if MSU had replaced Quinnipiac with (throws dart at list of power conference teams - Marquette), I'd probably bump this schedule all the way to a B-/B grade. There's a lot to like with this schedule, it's just needs another game with slightly more potential to trip up Michigan State. Instead it's relegated to the top of the D tier.
Next Week Article
We get to the C-/C/C+ graded schedules.
Let me know which games you are interested in from the Penn State and Michigan State slates and feel free to guess in the comments which Big Ten teams will be included next week. Also, tell me who you feel I unjustly graded this week. I didn't but this is the internet. It's a place to argue.
Basketball season is approaching! See you soon.
