Missouri’s Eli Drinkwitz becomes latest SEC coach upset over Big Ten schedules originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz said the Big Ten has dominated recent national championships because it’s the only Power Four conference with a weak schedule.
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“I think there were some great decisions by their leadership,” Drinkwitz said at SEC Media Days. “There are some things we look back on in the SEC, and maybe we shouldn’t have done it that way.
“There’s also cycles to college football. And once you get into expanded playoffs, it’s all about match-ups and draws and our match-ups and draws haven’t been as good as we obviously wanted them to be in order to be successful.
“Obviously, when you don’t play an A4 (Power 4) game as one of your non-conference games, that was the quote you were looking for. It’s pretty obvious.”
Is Drinkwitz right? Could the Big Ten’s success come from scheduling? Not entirely sure that he’s barking up the right tree.
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Yes, the Big Ten is the only Power Four conference that doesn’t require its members to play a non-conference opponent from the Big 12, SEC or ACC. Drinkwitz can say it’s the non-conference slate, but remember who Indiana had to get through in the College Football Playoff to go 16-0 last season? Those games count more than Old Dominion, Kennesaw State and Indiana State.
The SEC was known for scheduling cupcake games during the course of a season. It’s not how you start, but how you finish. Needless to say, 3-8 in the Playoff over the past three seasons isn’t a good look for the SEC.
Drinkwitz can claim the schedule is a factor. However, until you finish the season hoisting a trophy, there’s still work to do.
