Missouri Football: The Ins and Outs, Highs and Lows of the 2012 Schedule

The Missouri Tigers have new uniforms, and this season they'll have different opponents as they enter the SEC.

This is a big change for this program and should provide many benefits as they begin this journey. While many don't believe the Tigers can compete right away, they do return a talented team that includes 11 starters from a year ago. They also have a solid recruiting class coming in that should help this team as well. But with the change of conferences comes a much tougher schedule.

As we get closer to kicking off the regular season, here is your 2012 Missouri Tigers complete schedule breakdown.

Easiest Game

The first game of the season is usually the easier matchup, and it doesn't get much easier than playing the Southeastern Louisiana Lions. Tell quarterback James Franklin and any other starters that are banged up that they can sit this game out. 

Put it this way, if Missouri loses this game, they should be kicked out and sent back to the Big 12. That has to be in the contract somewhere.

Toughest Game

Playing the defending national champions I'd say is pretty tough. Alabama returns 12 starters from last year's squad, including seven on the offensive side. This game is being played in Columbia, so at least the Tigers have that going for them. But questions on the offensive and defensive line will truly be tested in this game.

The Crimson Tide are as physical as they come and will be more than happy to introduce this team to its new conference. Things could get ugly if that offensive line can't hold up.

Potential Blowout

Missouri may be new to this conference, but they certainly are talented enough to beat one of the bottom feeders in the SEC. Kentucky simply is a bad football team, one that really hasn't shown many signs of turning things around. The defense was an okay group, but only three teams in the country had a worse offense last season.

Going up against a team that scores points in bunches doesn't look good for the Wildcats.

Potential for Disaster

The second game of the season for Missouri will be their first SEC conference game, and it will be against the Georgia Bulldogs. This game could really set the tone the rest of the way with a victory and would show the rest of the conference that this team can compete in year one.

The problem is that Georgia is about as balanced of a team as you'll find, and the Bulldogs have SEC and national championship dreams. The Bulldogs can score at a fast pace and play solid defense, one that returns nine starters from last season.

If the Bulldogs are clicking early on in the season (which they weren't last year), this game could get out of hand.

Most Intriguing Matchup

These teams have never played each other in their history, but the first meeting should be a fantastic matchup that tells us a lot about each team. Missouri has a lot of young potential on both sides of the ball, and Tennessee has a lot of talent that could begin to develop as early as this season.

Both of these squads could be competing for an SEC title as early as next year. The question is, which one of these teams is that much closer to taking that next step? The game will also take place in Knoxville, so it is another test for this young Tigers team.

Trap Game

There really shouldn't be a trap game for Missouri this season. The Tigers the newbies in the SEC, and with a schedule that they have, they should be out to prove themselves and take every game seriously. But with that said, the game against Syracuse would be tricky game at the end of the year for the Tigers.

The Orange return six starters on both sides of the ball, including quarterback Ryan Nassib, who wasn't bad at all last season. This game takes place between two road games against talented SEC teams and could catch this Tigers team off guard if they’re not careful.

Sure, Syracuse wasn't great last season, but they did stay competitive against USC and did upset West Virginia last season.

Rivalry Game Prediction

I'm not sure Missouri has a true rivalry game, but we'll go with Texas A&M because that looks like the team to go with as of right now. These teams have played the last two seasons, and the Tigers won last year's meeting in thrilling fashion. The Tigers have also won five of the last six contests against the Aggies.

Although Missouri has been successful against Texas A&M as of late, I have to go with the Aggies. They're the more physical team and have fewer questions on both sides of the ball, as they return 17 starters. The game will also be played in Kyle Field, which last time I checked wasn't an easy place to earn a victory.

This should be another well fought game, but the Tigers offensive line scares me, especially going up against a defense that had 51 sacks a season ago.

In the end, Texas A&M wins, 28-21.

Upset Special

Central Florida is a program that's slowly making progress under head coach George O'Leary. Sure, the Golden Knights finished with only five wins last season, but they also ranked ninth in scoring defense.

They're also returning eight starters from that tough defensive unit and have seven players on the offense returning as well. This is a veteran team that hung with the Cougars at BYU last season and knocked off the Georgia Bulldogs in 2010.

It's also a home game for the Golden Knights that will take place at Bright House Networks Stadium, and it's after the brutal road game the Tigers have against the South Carolina Gamecocks. The Golden Knights may not receive much love from the media, but this is a feisty group of players that will play you tough.

Heisman Highlight Game

This is of course assuming quarterback James Franklin is fully recovered from the injury he suffered during spring practices. If he is, the Heisman game for him could be against the Georgia Bulldogs. I am a firm believer in getting the voters' attention as soon as possible, and the second game of the season is just that.

It would be a great accomplishment in just knocking off the Bulldogs, but if Franklin can put up numbers against a defense that returns nine starters and was ranked fifth in the country last season, things could get interesting the rest of the way for him.

Must-Win Game

I'm pretty sure nobody expects this Tigers team to compete for an SEC title this season. This first year is all about standing your ground and proving you can hang with the big boys. Missouri will have that chance at the end of the season, when they take a trip to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium to take on the Florida Gators.

Florida is still going through growing pains with a newer head coach and trying to find an answer at the quarterback position. With that said, they're still loaded with talent, and "The Swamp" is one of the most difficult places to win a football game.

Regardless of how the Gators do this season, a win in Gainesville would do a lot for this program moving forward.