Opponents Review and Rankings - Week 1

When we last left: UB was ranked 98th best FBS team to finish the 20122 season and the 115th best college football team in the nation

Our schedule was rough: facing the SEC East Champion and both MAC CG participants while not getting divisional cupcake Akron.

Against our 6 worst opponents: 4-2, outscoring opponents 32-27.

Against our 6 best opponents: 0-6, outscored 30-11.

Every year of the Quinn era we have played the MAC East and West Champions:

In 2010, we were 0-2 outscored by 43 (66-23) in those games.
In 2011, we were 1-1 tied in score, (68-68) in those games.
In 2012, we regressed, 0-2 outscored by 49 (83-34) in those games.

This year: Based on USA Today's College Football Countdown we have the 6th easiest MAC schedule:

1) Ohio has the easiest schedule, missing NIU, Toledo and Ball State but getting UMass, Akron, EMU, Miami and Central Mich. They have only one road trip, going to Buffalo November 5th and to Bowling Green the following week.

2) NIU has the second easiest schedule, missing Ohio, BGSU, and getting UMass and Akron in the out of division games.

3) BGSU has the third easiest schedule, cursed by their annual series with Toledo, but blessed with back to back home games against Akron and UMass as well as a trip to Ypsilanti.

4) Miami U has a knack of winning games with not great teams, this may occur again in 2013. Their non-conference schedule does them no favors, but they have five winnable conference games in CMU, UMass, Akron, Kent, Buffalo and can sneak into bowl eligibility with a win over Marshall, Ohio, or Ball State.

5) Ball State gets EMU, Akron and Miami while avoiding both top teams in the east, BGSU and Ohio.

6) Buffalo gets mercy this year avoiding NIU and Ball State, and getting relatively weak EMU and WMU. The inherit disadvantage is while Ohio plays all 6 MAC East teams, UB plays only 5, which means they traded a game at Akron for a game at Toledo.

The Rankings

USA Today* & Billingsly (Anderson & Hester and Coley ratings not out):
Average UB Rank: 89 (+9)
Average MAC Rank: 80
UB's MAC Place: 7
UB's MAC East Place: 4
Average Opponent Rank: 71
Average Army Rank: 111 (+5)
Average Syracuse Rank: 62 (-7)
NEW YORK Rank: #2 
Winnable games (teams ranked below or within 20 of UB): 6 (Stony Brook, UMass, EMU, WMU, Miami, UConn)
Winnable games record: (0-0) 
*estimated OSU's finish

Massey (Sagarin & Wolfe ratings not out):
UB Rank 120 (-5)
Average MAC Ranking: 105
UB's MAC Place: 7
UB's MAC East Place: 4
Average Opponent Rank: 92 (-4)
Stony Brook Ranking: 143 (-14)
Albany Ranking: 167 (-13)
Army Ranking: 131 (+9)
Syracuse Ranking: 41 (+9)
NEW YORK Rank: #2
Winnable games (teams ranked below or within 20 of UB): 5 (UMass, Stony Brook, EMU Miami, WMU)
Winnable games record: (0-0)

This Week's Games

Kent hosts Turner Gill and the Liberty Flames Thursday at 6. (Non-UB UB-Story Game of the week)
BGSU hosts Tulsa on Thursday at 7.
UConn hosts Towson Thursday at 7:30.
WMU row row rows their boat into East Lansing to face State Friday at 8.
UMass looks for FBS win #2 at Wisconsin Saturday at noon.
UB and tOSU face off Saturday at noon.
Toledo invades the swamp to take on Florida Saturday at 12:21
EMU faces the Buffalo Bills Howard Bison Saturday at 6.
Miami travels to former MAC foe Marshall Saturday at 7.
Baylor hosts Wofford Saturday at 7:30.
Ohio takes on Heisman hopeful Teddy Bridgewater and Louisville Sunday at 3:30 (My MAC game of the week)
Stony Brook takes a Bye.