Does anybody enjoy neutral site games playing in stale, empty arenas located thousands of miles away from either team's campus? It is soul crushing watching Maryland and Tennessee playing in front of a 10 am crowd in Vegas. However, thanks to a misguided NET system that rewards neutral site games more than home games and the enshittification of everything that includes finding every last way to eke out another dollar we have more shitty neutral site games than ever. I hate them. You hate them. Today's schedules contain a lot of them. Instead of creating a legal monopoly and limiting player opportunities via the hilariously misnamed Protect College Sports Act, Congress should make a law limiting schools to no more than 5 neutral site games in the non-conference. Play more games on campus.
Anyway, today I'm grading another 18 college basketball non-conference schedules from the Big East, Big 12, Big Ten, ACC, SEC, and Pacific 12.
This is part 4. If you missed parts 1 through 3, click the links below. If you didn't miss those, 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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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.
A Few Too Many Cupcakes
Team #23 DePaul Blue Demons B-
Big East, 12 possible non-conference games, Fort Myers
2 true road games, 2 neutral games, 8 home games
6 good games, 5 sub-300 games
Road: Northwestern (74), St. Louis (69)
Neutral: Purdue (Fort Myers, 29), Pittsburgh (Fort Myers, 88)
Home: Southern Methodist (54), South Florida (92), Alabama A&M (293), West Georgia (301), North Alabama (308), Canisius (321), Maine (328), Maryland Eastern Shore (365)
DePaul has two road games including the Battle for the Mayor's Key to Chicago and a pretty solid top of the schedule. Half of their games are against programs that believe they should be competing for an at-large bid (maybe not this year for Northwestern or South Florida). The bottom half of the non-conference is putrid so DePaul gets the lone B- grade out of the bunch.
Acceptable Schedules
Team #22 Marquette Golden Eagles B
Big East, 12 possible non-conference games, Battle 4 Atlantis
1 true road game, 3 neutral games, 8 home games
6 good games, 3 sub-300 games
Road: Michigan (14)
Neutral: Virginia (Battle 4 Atlantis, 5), Texas A&M (Battle 4 Atlantis, 34), Missouri (Chicago, 30)
Home: Wisconsin (47), Mississippi St (63), Detroit Mercy (245), Northern Illinois (247), Mercyhurst (284), New Hampshire (303), Wagner (347), Chicago St (353)
There are some that say the majority of Marquette's student body is from Chicagoland. If that's the case, should they get "in-state" credit for playing Northern Illinois and Chicago St? The road game at the reigning champ will be a challenge as will the Battle 4 Atlantis opener against Virginia. Somewhere Marquette should add at least one resume building win as they are giving themselves multiple opportunities.
Team #21 Maryland Terrapins B
Big Ten, 12 possible non-conference games, Players Era 16
1 true road game, 4-5 neutral games, 6-7 home games
6-7 good games, 4 sub-300 games
Road: Georgetown (61)
Neutral: Tennessee (Players Era, 16), San Diego St/Iowa St (Players Era, 58/10), Players Era Game 3, South Carolina (Baltimore, 97)
Home: Virginia (5), American (194), Radford (282), Morgan St (342), Wagner (347), Bucknell (354), Alcorn St (355)
First things first: Maryland's Players Era bracket includes Oregon, St. John's, Louisville, and Texas Tech. We could see a non-conference conference game for the Terrapins. Should Maryland make a surprising run to the Players Era 16 championship game they would have to cancel a game: almost certainly one of American, Morgan St, and Radford.
I really like the Georgetown and Virginia games. These are games Maryland should be playing more often than not.
The buy games aren't the most challenging but there's a handful of programs from Maryland/Maryland's surrounding states/district. Well done, Buzz.
Team #20 Houston Cougars B
Big 12, 14 possible non-conference games, Players Era 8
0 true road games, 7 neutral games, 7 home games
8 good games, 0 sub-300 games
Neutral: Rutgers (Players Era, 76), Florida/Notre Dame (Players Era, 3/82), Players Era Game 3, California (Lake Tahoe, 90), Alabama (New York, 21), LSU (Houston. 51), Florida St (Jacksonville, 60)
Home: Texas St (123), La Salle (150), Central Arkansas (176), Queens (188), Texas A&M Corpus Christi (203), Jacksonville St (220), Oakland (223)
The other four teams in the Players Era 8 include Kansas, UNLV, West Virginia, and Auburn.
Houston gets their 8th "good game" against Texas St - the most questionable of the Pac 9 teams. I've included the Pac teams as good opponents because they should have more money than most of the mid majors and all of the low majors to spend on their rosters, but Texas St is the newest program in the conference to high level basketball so I can forgive you if you don't think they should count. That being said, Houston also has zero bad games. That's impressive.
There are a few too many neutral site games for my taste but that's balanced out a little by games against LSU & in-state opponents Texas St & Corpus Christi.
Team #19 Southern California Trojans B
Big Ten, 12 possible non-conference games, Acrisure Series
2 true road games, 4 neutral games, 6 home games
6 good games, 1 sub-300 game
Road: California (90), San Diego (137)
Neutral: South Carolina (Acrisure, 97), Utah St (Acrisure, 59), Texas Tech (Fort Worth, 17), Wichita St (Stateline Nevada, 70)
Home: Tarleton (144), Western Michigan (166), Louisiana (216), Jacksonville (224), Milwaukee (250), Arkansas Pine Bluff (361)
A road game at San Diego! There are just five road games at non-power conference programs by power conference programs this year. Salute USC and Musselman for their willingness to play this game.
The only drawback on this schedule is the home slate. It's not super appealing even if Tarleton and Western Michigan are more difficult than a lot of buy games out there.
Team #18 St. John's Red Storm B
Big East, 12 possible non-conference games, Players Era 16
0 true road games, 4-5 neutral games, 7-8 home games
6 good games, 1 sub-300 game
Neutral: Oregon (Players Era, 41), Louisville/Texas Tech (Players Era, 9/17), Players Era Game 3, Alabama (Birmingham, 21)
Home: Arizona (2), Syracuse (73), Monmouth (192), Columbia (198), Colgate (214), Iona (237), Siena (239), Wagner (347)
St. John's third game in the Players Era will be one of Tennessee, Maryland, San Diego St, or Iowa State. The Red Storm are capable of going 3-0 and making it to the Players Era 16 championship. If they do they will need to cancel a buy game.
The absence of road games hold this grade back a little, but I like the home game against Syracuse and that all the buy games are against local schools.
Team #17 Duke Blue Devils B
ACC, 14 possible non-conference games, No MTE
1 true road game, 6 neutral games, 7 home games
8 good games, 2 sub-300 games
Road: Florida (3)
Neutral: Michigan St (Chicago, 11), Washington St (Palm Springs, 168), Connecticut (Las Vegas, 13), Georgia (New York, 35), Texas Tech (New York, 17), Gonzaga (Detroit, 8)
Home: Illinois (7), Harvard (124), Campbell (218), Coastal Carolina (225), Southern Illinois Edwardsville (258), Grambling (337), Army (359)
Buckle up. Duke's schedule is the first of many coming up that is everything wrong with modern college basketball. There's a ton of good games here. Unfortunately they are all being played in what will be dead, emotionless, neutral sites.
Georgia & Texas Tech in New York. Michigan St in Chicago. Gonzaga in Detroit. Connecticut in Vegas. Washington St in Palm Springs. Only the Michigan State game is anywhere close to one of the fanbases but even that game looks stupid when you consider that Duke is also playing a game in Detroit (yes, I know the Chicago game is part of a double header).
Undeniably challenging, incredibly infuriating. That's applies to the next two schedules as well but Duke has 2 sub-300 games so they don't get the B+.
Almost Great Schedules
Team #16 Florida Gators B+
SEC, 14 possible non-conference games, Players Era 8
1 true road game, 6 neutral games, 7 home games
8 good games, 0 sub-300 games
Road: Florida St (60)
Neutral: Notre Dame (Players Era, 82), Houston/Rutgers (Players Era, 6/76), Players Era Game 3, Miami (Tampa, 12), Georgia Tech (Orlando, 111), Grand Canyon (Jacksonville, 43)
Home: Duke (1), Merrimack (158), Vermont (186), Jacksonville (224), Milwaukee (250), Long Island (252), Florida A&M (298)
Players Era game 3 will be one of Kansas, UNLV, West Virginia, or Auburn.
Keeping the Florida St & Miami rivalries rolling is fantastic but why did we need neutral site games in Tampa, Orlando, and Jacksonville?
Team #15 Kansas Jayhawks B+
Big 12, 14 possible non-conference games, Players Era 8
1 true road game, 6 neutral games, 7 home games
8 good games, 0 sub-300 games
Road: Connecticut (13)
Neutral: UNLV (Players Era, 98), West Virginia/Auburn (Players Era, 48/38), Players Era Game 3, Missouri (Kansas City, 30), Kentucky (Chicago, 28), The Ohio St (New York, 20)
Home: Villanova (31), Northern Iowa (118), Fordham (132), Middle Tennessee (143), New Orleans (210), Indiana St (241), Denver (259)
Oh yay! More neutral site games. At least there's a really nice set of buy game opponents. Florida, Notre Dame, Houston, or Rutgers will be the third game in the Players Era 8 tournament.
Team #14 Clemson Tigers B+
ACC, 14 possible non-conference games, Maui
2 true road games, 4 neutral games, 8 home games
8 good games, 3 sub-300 games
Road: Texas Christian (53), South Carolina (97)
Neutral: Mississippi (Maui, 63), BYU/Washington (Maui, 24/75), Maui Game 3, Cincinnati (Cincinnati, 37)
Home: Auburn (38), Georgetown (61), American (194), Colgate (214), Stetson (262), North Dakota (317), Le Moyne (322), The Citadel (351)
Clemson? You usually don't think of the Tigers as having their basketball program put together, but look at this schedule. Two road games, plus a neutral site game against Cincinnati in Cincinnati. Some solid home challenges. Maui also includes Providence, VCU, Arizona, and Colorado St.
Team #13 Mississippi State Bulldogs B+
SEC, 14 possible non-conference games, Battle 4 Atlantis
2 true road games, 5 neutral games, 7 home games
8 good games, 1 sub-300 game
Road: Central Florida (50), Marquette (32)
Neutral: Wake Forest (Battle 4 Atlantis, 78), Memphis/Penn State (Battle 4 Atlantis, 110/99), Xavier (Greenbrier, 52), VCU (Huntsville, 57), Tulsa (Jackson, 95)
Home: Georgia Tech (111), Campbell (218), Tennessee Tech (228), Jackson St (273), Northwestern St (291), Alabama A&M (293), Mississippi Valley St (364)
Impressive. Now, the Bulldogs may not play an actual NCAA Tournament team in the non-conference. They are taking a bunch of risks here though. Two road games and a willingness to play both an A10 and American program. To top it off, Mississippi State's buy games are against programs from in-state or neighboring states with the exception of Campbell which is two states away. Well done.
Team #12 Seton Hall Pirates B+
Big East, 12 possible non-conference games, Baha Mar
2 true road games, 3 neutral games, 7 home games
8 good games, 3 sub-300 games
Road: Alabama (21), Rutgers (76)
Neutral: Wisconsin (Baha Mar, 47), North Carolina St/Murray St (Baha Mar, 46/106), Charlotte (Philadelphia, 101)
Home: Kansas St (81), Siena (239), Long Island (252), St. Peter's (287), New Hampshire (303), NJIT (310), UNC Greensboro (325)
A Big East program with two road games is the equivalent of an ACC/Big 12/SEC program with three road games thanks to the Big East's 20 game conference schedule. Solid challenges for Seton Hall, but they miss out on the top ten in these rankings thanks to their buy games lacking any semblance of a challenge.
Team #11 North Carolina Tarheels B+
ACC, 14 possible non-conference games, No MTE
1 true road game, 4 neutral games, 9 home games
8 good games, 1 sub-300 game
Road: Georgetown (61)
Neutral: West Virginia (Charlotte, 48), North Carolina St (Greensboro, 33), Kentucky (New York, 27), Illinois (Nashville, 7)
Home: Arkansas (22), Georgia (35), Butler (89), Wyoming (119), Western Carolina (173), Monmouth (192), Wofford (279), Marshall (289), The Citadel (351)
One of the better home slates out there.
Team #10 Louisville Cardinals B+
ACC, 14 possible non-conference games, Players Era 16
2 true road games, 5-6 neutral games, 6-7 home games
8-9 good games, 1 sub-300 games
Road: Memphis (110), Kentucky (27)
Neutral: Texas Tech (Players Era, 17), Oregon/St. John's (Players Era, 41/18), Players Era Game 3, Michigan (Detroit, 14), Baylor (Nashville, 45)
Home: Texas (19), Eastern Michigan (165), Long Island (252), Stetson (262), Chattanooga (283), Morehead St (315)
I'm giving Louisville the benefit of the doubt here due to the Players Era 16. The Cardinals have only scheduled 13 out of 14 games. I'm operating under the assumption they will schedule a Division 1 opponent as their 14th game if they don't get that fourth game in the Players Era 16. At the very least Louisville will play one of Tennessee, Maryland, San Diego St, and Iowa St.
Two road rivalry games (I'm a little surprised Louisville never figured out how to alternate those so they get one of those at home each season) a tough neutral site slate and a home game against Texas round out the good things. I'm greedy so I'm love to see cross-city Bellarmine on here but at least there is in-state Morehead. Everyone gets excited for Morehead.
Team #9 Arizona Wildcats B+
Big 12, 14 possible non-conference games, Maui
2 true road game, 5 neutral games, 7 home games
8 good games, 2 sub-300 games
Road: Auburn (38), St. John's (18)
Neutral: Colorado St (Maui, 84), Providence/VCU (Maui, 55/57), Maui Game 3, UCLA (Las Vegas, 25), Arkansas (Phoenix, 22)
Home: Connecticut (13), Cal Poly (171), New Orleans (210), Tennessee Tech (228), Northern Illinois (247), Incarnate Word (312), Northern Arizona (316)
The third Maui game will be one of Clemson, Mississippi, BYU, and Washington.
There's probably one more neutral site game on here than I'm happy with, but there's also two true road games and the Wildcats play in-state Northern Arizona. This is a good schedule.
Team #8 Wisconsin Badgers B+
Big Ten, 12 possible non-conference games, Baha Mar
2 true road games, 3 neutral games, 7 home games
6 good games, 0 sub-300 games
Road: Marquette (32), Villanova (31)
Neutral: North Carolina St (Baha Mar, 33), Seton Hall (Baha Mar, 71), Auburn (Nashville, 38)
Home: Colorado St (84), Coastal Carolina (225), Fairfield (235), Northeastern (248), Denver (259), Delaware (260), Fort Wayne (281)
Very, very few complaints here. Two true road games and solid MTE are the highlights, but you'll note that Wisconsin doesn't play any truly terrible teams. They stay behind team #7 since they continue to avoid playing both Green Bay and Milwaukee during the regular season. The Badgers know they should - that's why Green Bay was an exhibition. On the plus side, Marquette is locked in as a yearly game.
Team #7 Purdue Boilermakers B+
Big Ten, 12 possible non-conference games, Fort Myers
1 true road game, 4 neutral games, 7 home games
6 good games, 0 sub-300 games
Road: Iowa St (10)
Neutral: DePaul (Fort Myers, 64), Oklahoma (Fort Myers, 28), Gonzaga (Las Vegas, 8), Colorado (Indianapolis, 87)
Home: Tennessee (16), Illinois St (105), Valparaiso (148), Cal Baptist (185), Ohio (206), Oakland (223), Lipscomb (230)
Another year, another excellent schedule from Matt Painter and the Boilermakers. Purdue got exactly what they wanted scheduled as they were the first team out of 365 to announce their non-conference schedule.
Two games against top 10 teams (which Purdue will almost certainly lose, but if they win they get a major resume victory) plus a home game against hated Tennessee.
What really elevates this schedule is the buy games. Yes, Purdue has six games against top 100 programs, but they don't have a single buy game opponent they can overlook. Purdue isn't good enough this year that you can say none of those games has any risk.
Okay, why isn't this an A? Two reasons. 1) The six teams in front of them all have more good games. 2) There's just one in-state opponent. Purdue does not get any credit for the exhibitions against Ball State and at Fort Wayne. Play those in the regular season. Or play one of Butler/Notre Dame instead of Colorado. Still these are minor complaints for a very, very solid schedule.
Team #6 Connecticut Huskies B+
Big East, 12 possible non-conference games, No MTE
1 true road game, 4 neutral games, 7 home games
7 good games, 5 sub-300 games
Road: Arizona (2)
Neutral: Duke (Las Vegas, 1), Michigan (Boston, 14), Illinois (Chicago, 7), Virginia (New York, 5)
Home: Kansas (4), The Ohio St (20), Delaware St (346), Wagner (347), Gardner-Webb (356), Rider (362), Mississippi Valley St (364)
This is the most challenging top of a schedule in college basketball. Five games against preseason top 10 teams plus another game against the reigning champion and another against what should be a solid Ohio State team.
Honestly this should be an A graded schedule, but I'm not handing those out to someone that also plays five bottom 25 teams. There's no risk with this schedule. If UConn loses any of the top 7 games, it's no big deal. Those are great opponents (or Ohio State who would almost certainly be considered great if they beat UConn). Meanwhile there's no chance UConn loses to any of the five buy game opponents. As challenging as this schedule is - and it is challenging - it's still a coward's schedule.
Next Article
We get to the five A graded schedules. The teams that nailed the assignment. Will I hand out my first A+ ever? Who has the best schedule? Find out either tomorrow or Sunday.
Let me know which games you are interested in from today's Big Ten slates.
Basketball season is approaching! See you soon.
