[NU Sports] Non-con scheduling

[JHCCLARK at aol.com]

I have always been a fan of Michigan's scheduling logic, that is until the  
state legislature got involved.
 
One Major 
One Minor
One Medium
 
preferably in that order.
 
One thing that I have noticed over the years, is that good teams tend to  
spend the off-season aggressively preparing for a Major opponent scheduled for  
the first game of the year (Michigan and Notre Dame when scheduled first;  
Northwestern and Notre Dame '95 or Oklahoma '97).  And yes, I know  Oklahoma in 
'97 was not a good team, but the name "Oklahoma" meant  something.
 
Good teams know they have to hit the ground running when playing a Major  
team.  Good teams that play a creampuff off the bat tend to let the spring  and 
summer slide (Northwestern and Wake Forest '96 and '97).  There is less  of a 
sense of urgency.
 
Schedule Miami (FL) first off, not Ohio.
Schedule Alabama first off, not Vanderbilt.
Schedule Texas first off, not SMU.
 
Then you fill out the schedule with the Ohios, Vanderbilts and SMUs,  
followed by the Mizzous, Stanfords and Syracuses.
 
My $.02