Or if there were a playoff and we knew winning the conference was enough to get there, I might prefer to see us face some top opponents for entertainment value. In the end, other than entertainment, I can’t see any football or championship rationale for playing top-tier programs in September. Playing patsies allows you to get young guys on the field to test their mettle, it generally keeps you healthier, and it allows you to hide or tinker with your playbook before conference play.

USC generally proves that playing a touch OOC slate is no guarantee you won’t shit the bed against one of your weaker sisters…in fact, their troubles may stem from the fact that they play too many high-stress games in September and lose their focus against weaker, but highly motivated and informed, competition in October. I think the two years they made it to the championship game they actually played lower numbers of ranked teams than in years when they didn’t make it.

The reality is you need to game the system by trying to schedule the Vanderbilts, Dukes, and Iowa States of the world. They give you cred with the computers while not greatly increasing the likelihood of a loss. The problem is that they too want to get to bowl games and their only shot is by scheduling four patsies in their OOC slate. That is why I liked having Arkansas on the slate. While there was always the risk they might be better than advertised we should generally have the advantage, the fact that they are long time rivals made it see unlikely they would try to dodge us…boy, I was wrong there.