Nearly all of the regular
season non-conference games have been played. As the College Football Playoff
Selection Committee will begin to release its weekly rankings this month,
conference strength stands out as one factor, which should be considered. I
present the rankings of the ten FBS conferences using my objective formula.
Here is an overview of the
factors that comprise each conferences score:
1.
Wins by each member of every conference when facing non-conference foes.
2.
Games on the road are worth more than those at neutral sites or at home.
3.
Victories versus other conferences’ champions or second-place teams/divisional
winners count for more points.
4.
Wins against FBS opponents have much more value than those against FCS members.
Below
is how the 10 conferences measure up compared to one another entering November.
Each conference’s score is in parenthesis. For those curious about the scale of
my formula, a perfect score for a conference is 3.188.
Southeastern
(.649)
After stumbling out of the
gates at the start of the season with a 6-6 tally in non-conference games, the
SEC rebounded successfully for the most part. The SEC is 2-0 against both the
American Athletic and Pacific 12 conferences.
The SEC has not dominated the
other conferences as it had in recent seasons. It does not have a winning tally
against the other Power Five: ACC (2-3), Big Ten (0-1) and Big Twelve
(1-1). Even CUSA has beaten the SEC
twice in eight tries this season.
Big Ten (.589)
The Big Ten has scored an
impressive tally in non-conference contests. They swept all six games versus
the Mountain West and both against the Big 12. They also won four out of five
of the contests against the AAC plus three of four versus the PAC 12.
Additionally, in the only match-up between the Big Ten and the SEC, the Big
Ten's member won.
However, a conference's
strength depends as much on its front-runners as it does on its
cellar-dwellers. The Big Ten members have lost two of seven matches with the
MAC. The Big Ten has played the same number of FCS opponents as the SEC up to
this point. The glaring difference is that the SEC won all of them but the Big
Ten lost two of the eight contests.
American Athletic (.544)
In the interest of fairness,
the College Football Playoff Selection Committee should still consider a bid
for the champion of the AAC if no conference champion finish undefeated. The members
of the AAC have acquitted themselves rather admirably in non-conference
matches. They have won 3 out of four versus the Big Twelve. They are 3-4
against the ACC. Unfortunately for this group, its champion will have at least
two losses, which will most likely kill any chance of playing in the Final
Four.
Atlantic Coast (.525)
The ACC looked mediocre in
the first three weeks. Then the conference swept all nine of its non-conference
games on the last weekend of September. The ACC has held its own versus the Big
Ten (3-1) and SEC (3-2). They also swept all five contests versus CUSA.
The number of quality wins is
lacking. More than a third of the ACC's wins came at the expense of FCS
opponents. More than 40 percent of their victories occurred versus the Group of
Five. The ACC is a combined 2-3 against
two mediocre independent teams, Notre Dame and Army. Four intra-state rivalries with SEC teams on
Thanksgiving weekend present the ACC opportunities to increase the conference's
stature.
Pacific Twelve
(.515)
The Pacific Twelve has proved
it superiority over the Big Twelve. Its score is significantly higher than the
Big Twelve's. Plus, the PAC 12 won all three games in which these two have met.
Against the other major conferences,
the PAC Twelve has struggled. They lost both games versus the SEC. They won
only one of the four contests with the Big Ten. They have even piled up an
underwhelming 6-3 tally in presumed rent-a-wins against the Mountain West. More
bad news for the dozen from the Left Coast: they only have two non-conference
games remaining to bolster their reputation.
Big Twelve (.375)
One can safely assume that
the chances of the champion of Big Twelve advancing to the playoffs ended last
Saturday. Actually, they took a huge nosedive in September. The group finished the
non-conference slate 2-6 against the other Power Five members. Also, the AAC
beat the Big Twelve in two of their four meetings.
The conference has little reason for pride. The group finished the
non-conference slate 2-6 against the other Power Five members. Also, the AAC
beat the Big Twelve in two of their four meetings. Seven of the conference's 18 non-conference wins
occurred over FCS teams. Four other victories came at the expensive of
Conference USA, the third weakest conference.
Mountain West (.341)
The MWC can take some pride
in having won three of nine versus the PAC 12.
Those victories helped keep the MWC out of the basement in these
rankings.
Nearly half of the MWC's
non-conference wins were against FCS teams. This group has a winning tally
versus only two other conferences. One of those two is Conference USA against
whom the MWC is 1-0. The other is the Sun Belt (4-3).
Conference USA (.255)
CUSA has only won 18 of its
49 non-conference games. Eleven of those wins were against FCS opponents. CUSA
is 0-4 versus the AAC and Big Twelve respectively; against the ACC, CUSA is
0-5. In total, the conference is 3-18 against Power Five members.
On the bright side, CUSA does
have one win over an opponent from the Big Ten and two versus teams from the
SEC.
Sun Belt (.238)
The Sun Belt Conference is
trying to show that it is not just a collection of programs, which should be in
the FCS. The decent records versus other conferences in the Group of Five help
this claim: MAC (2-3), MWC (3-4) and CUSA (1-1).
However, the Sun Belt is
still merely hoping to be considered as a mid-range conference. The group has only
one win in ten games against the Power Five. The conference has only played six
FCS opponents but has lost one of those.
Mid-American (.229)
The MAC has scored some
notable wins. They have won both games versus the Big Twelve. They have a 3-3
record against the MWC. They have also beaten the Big Ten twice in seven tries.
The MAC's reputation also has
been tarnished rather noticeably. Its members have 0-3 marks versus both the
SEC and AAC. The MAC lost both games against the ACC. This group also has four
losses in its thirteen contests with FCS teams.
