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Texas Tech football: Pros of a Big-12-only schedule

By Matthew Conner

ARLINGTON, TX - DECEMBER 07, 2019 - Detail view of Big 12 logo as the Baylor Bears band plays on the field before Baylor plays the Oklahoma Sooners in the Big 12 Football Championship at AT&T Stadium on December 7, 2019 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TX - DECEMBER 07, 2019 - Detail view of Big 12 logo as the Baylor Bears band plays on the field before Baylor plays the Oklahoma Sooners in the Big 12 Football Championship at AT&T Stadium on December 7, 2019 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) /
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Charlie Brewer #12 of the Baylor Bears is pursued by Adrian Frye #7 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images)
Charlie Brewer #12 of the Baylor Bears is pursued by Adrian Frye #7 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images) /

Every conference team has the same schedule

The Big 12 loves to point to the round-robin format of its athletics as a selling point to the legitimacy of its champions.  But while that would not be impacted by a conference-only football season, it will be nice for teams not to be able to skate by in the non-conference portion of the schedule as some have done in the past.

Why does that matter?  There are two reasons: bowl slotting and bragging rights.

Though the Big 12 standings are determined by only conference play, sometimes teams with similar records are separated by ranking when it comes to the postseason.  That’s where a team that played a much easier non-conference schedule could have an edge.

Second, think about how annoying it is to listen to the braggadocio of whatever fan base it is that sees their team get off to a fast start after playing three cupcakes to open the year.  Those teams almost always find themselves in the Top 25 early in the year and though that may not seem like much, it does set that team up to remain in the conversation for a nice ranking all year as we know college pollsters are often lazy and don’t do much research when ranking the teams towards the bottom of their ballots.

Therefore, a team that has already been in the polls that year typically gets a nod over a team that has had to fight out of an early hole after a tough non-con schedule but which is playing better football at the time.

A perfect example of how a patsy non-con slate can boost a team came last year when Baylor faced Stephen F. Austin, UTA, and Rice to open the year.  That quick start put the Bears in the polls early and buoyed their players and fan base with confidence.  And by the end of the season, BU was playing for a spot in the playoff when they were nowhere near as good as the teams they were ranked higher than.

To be fair, Tech isn’t going to play a non-con Power 5 opponent next year, which could give Matt Wells’ team an artificial boost that they may not deserve.  Thus, if every team in the league plays the exact same schedule this year, we will get a better picture of what teams truly are the best, and that could matter when it bowl bids are handed out.

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