Posted on 07/29/2019 4:27:05 AM PDT by where's_the_Outrage?
The Crimson Tide play Duke (at a neutral site) and host New Mexico State, Southern Mississippi and Western Carolina for their four non-conference games this season. That has led to criticism that they are playing too soft a schedule.
During an appearance Friday on “Golic and Wingo,” Saban shared his side. The Crimson Tide coach says he has long advocated for Power 5 teams to only play each other. He also says the reason Alabama struggles to schedule strong non-conference opponents is because teams don’t want to play the Crimson Tide. Furthermore, he says Alabama ends up playing neutral site games because that’s the only way some teams will agree to face the Crimson Tide.
(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...
Money Quote: "The way college football is set up does not reward teams for going out and losing to Alabama, so the risk of a likely loss is not worth it for teams to play the Tide."
Roll Tide, Y’all. Roll Tide.
RLTW
Cry me a river.
Those same incentives apply to Clemson, Ohio State, Georgia, Oklahoma, ... and yet somehow those top programs schedule tough opponents.
Saban does not deny: The opponents are weak.
Maybe money is a factor here? Just guessing.
If you were a normal Bama opponent, then playing and losing to them isn’t one of your thrills. My guess is that some things have occurred where several of the coaches have re-evaluated their future, and want less games with Bama. I would admit that New Mexico State is a potential 45-7 type game.
The the whole SEC avoids any confrontations Georgia for instance is playing Arkansas State and Murray State.
“Those same incentives apply to Clemson, Ohio State, Georgia, Oklahoma, ... and yet somehow those top programs schedule tough opponents.”
Funny how they can’t seem to schedule Bama.
RTR
“Saban does not deny: The opponents are weak.”
Alabama picking Western Carolina?
If Alabama played all top 30 contenders in all their games, playing even some of these “weaker” top teams every week would wear down Alabama. Injuries are more likely to happen too because the size of the team played against. And these games most likely wouldn’t be a runaway, like much smaller, Western Carolina should be.
Alabama’s schedule reminds me of the 1982 SMU team - only undefeated team 11 - 0 - 1, and yet Penn State was national champion. SMU fans complained but their schedule had more weak teams. I don’t care one way or the other, but Saban looks like he is crying, playing it safe. And when he gets to the big game, he’ll play a team that has played among the better teams ... he’ll be surprised, and he very well may lose.
Alabama had tried to schedule Clemson to open this season. They didn’t want to.
Go back and check Alabama’s opening opponent since Saban has been at Bama and I don’t believe you can find anyone that has opened with better opponents.
I don’t know why Alabama would want to schedule Clemson as an opener. They play each other every year anyway!
Yepp .... many big schools need to get some scrimmage games in early too ... out of the way.... hope nobody notices.
I have lost a lot of interest in the semi-pro league called the politically correct NCAA. Some of my disinterest is because the universities have changed to political machines. Many of the faculty I would bet hate sports, but they tolerate it because of the money it brings in ... on the backs of unpaid athletes. .. who more likely than not will get no diploma, or a watered down one at best.
Its a ridiculously weak schedule for the 3rd best program in the country, Ga and Clemson rising the Tide receding, put your money on it. Saban feels it coming.
Re: I would admit that New Mexico State is a potential 45-7 type game.
Western Carolina, too.
They are in the Southern Conference, which is in a lower division than the SEC teams.
In other words, the majority of starters on Western Carolina are white guys who can’t run fast.
In contrast to which conference?
Ohio State plays Cincinnati, Florida Atlantic, Miami Ohio, and Rutgers. Wow, what a tough OOC schedule. They will be, on average, favored by 30 in those games.
It sure seems that way now.
These schedules are made years in advance.
In 2017, Bama opened with #3 FSU. Both teams suffered a lot of injuries in a brutal game. FSU didn’t have a great season and a lot of that was because they lost so many of there starters for the season in that game. Later that season, some opponent fans were saying Alabama had an easy schedule because FSU wasn’t highly ranked. They weren’t highly ranked because of what Alabama did to them.
I’ll add that Alabama lost some of its best players for the season because of that FSU opener. It was a brutal game.
When Alabama scheduled FSU a few seasons in advance, it was considered a top program. You try to schedule good competition but it doesn’t always work out that way.
Alabama has been scheduling at least one pretty good OOC opponent just about every year with Saban. This is one of the few years where none of the OOC opponents really jump out at you.
RTR!!!
Georgia is rising as a program, and Clemson is right at the top. But Alabama is still at the top. I don’t think Georgia has beaten Alabama in a game that matters in over 10 years, have they?
Playing Cullowhee (Western Carolina)
NCAA Division I?
Who’d a thought?
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