College Football's Top 10 Nonconference Trap Games
The nonconference trap game struck hard in 2014, most notably when Missouri, the eventual SEC East champion, lost at home to Indiana, a team that finished 1-7 in the Big Ten.
The Tigers fell victim to a classic trap-game formula. On one hand, they suffered a letdown after beating Central Florida, the reigning Fiesta Bowl champion, by 28 points the week prior. But they also suffered from looking ahead to South Carolina, a team they would travel to play in the SEC opener one week later.
The trap games on this list followed a similar formula. We looked for games in which favored teams would suffer a letdown, a look ahead or both. We also accounted for factors such as cross-country travel, which often throws teams out of whack.
Sound off below and let us know what you think.
Honorable Mentions
1 of 11
The 15 games that follow barely missed the cut; but the favorites in each matchup (indicated by bold) should stay on their toes.
| Game | Previous Opp. | Following Opp. |
| UL-Monroe at Alabama | vs. Ole Miss | at Georgia |
| Jacksonville St. at Auburn | vs. Louisville | at LSU |
| Middle Tennessee St. at Illinois | at North Carolina | vs. Nebraska |
| North Texas at Iowa | vs. Pittsburgh | at Wisconsin |
| Western Kentucky at LSU | vs. Florida | at Alabama |
| Miami (FL) at Florida Atlantic | vs. Bethune-Cookman | vs. Nebraska |
| Southern Miss at Nebraska | at Miami (FL) | at Illinois |
| Tulsa at Oklahoma | at Tennessee | vs. West Virginia |
| Eastern Washington at Oregon | — | at Michigan St. |
| Bowling Green at Purdue | vs. Virginia Tech | at Michigan St. |
| Kansas at Rutgers | at Penn St. | vs. Michigan St. |
| Bowling Green at Tennessee | — | vs. Oklahoma |
| UTEP at Texas Tech | vs. Sam Houston St. | at Arkansas |
| UCLA at UNLV | vs. Virginia | vs. BYU |
| Vanderbilt at Middle Tennessee St. | at Ole Miss | at South Carolina |
10. Wyoming at Washington State
2 of 11
When: Saturday, Sept. 19
WSU Previous Opponent: at Rutgers (Sept. 12)
WSU Following Opponent: at Cal (Oct. 3)
Washington State gets a bye between Wyoming and the start of Pac-12 play, but that doesn't change the travel schedule. One week after flying across the country, playing (and probably losing to) Rutgers and then flying back across the country, the Cougars host a scrappy Wyoming team that should improve in year two under Craig Bohl.
9. Central Florida at South Carolina
3 of 11
When: Saturday, Sept. 26
USCar Previous Opponent: at Georgia (Sept. 19)
USCar Following Opponent: at Missouri (Oct. 3)
Is it wrong to call Central Florida a trap game? Maybe. That's the only reason this doesn't rank higher. After back-to-back AAC titles (one solo, one shared) and a win in the 2014 Fiesta Bowl, the Golden Knights might be too good for South Carolina to overlook.
Still, we must take note of the context. The Gamecocks host UCF after a road trip to Georgia and one week before a road trip to Missouri. Georgia and Missouri have won the past four SEC East titles and are thus the two most important games on South Carolina's schedule.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
8. San Jose State at Oregon State
4 of 11
When: Saturday, Sept. 19
OSU Previous Opponent: at Michigan (Sept. 12)
OSU Following Opponent: vs. Stanford (Sept. 25)
Oregon State draws San Jose State between a road trip to Michigan and a home date with Stanford. That is a difficult way to start for new head coach Gary Andersen. The Beavers lose quarterback Sean Mannion and nine defensive starters, so it reasons they will struggle out of the gate next season. San Jose State returns 15 starters and should improve on last year's down 3-9 record.
7. William & Mary at Virginia
5 of 11
When: Saturday, Sept. 19
UVA Previous Opponent: vs. Notre Dame (Sept. 12)
UVA Following Opponent: vs. Boise State (Sept. 25)
Good luck, Mike London. Virginia's head coach is on the hot seat and plays the hardest nonconference schedule in the country.
The William & Mary game looks like a respite, but context makes it tricky. Virginia starts the season with a cross-country road trip to UCLA and then flies back across the country to host Notre Dame. With a probable 0-2 record and significant mental and physical fatigue, it hosts one of the better FCS teams. And it does all this while planning to host the reigning Fiesta Bowl champion, Boise State.
6. Utah at Fresno State
6 of 11
When: Saturday, Sept. 19
UTA Previous Opponent: vs. Utah State (Sept. 12)
UTA Following Opponent: at Oregon (Sept. 26)
Utah opens the season with a pair of physical defenses: Michigan and Utah State. It opens conference play with four straight high-scoring offenses: Oregon, California, Arizona State and USC.
Lurking between those six games—those six highly losable games—is a road trip to Fresno State, which regressed but still won its division in 2014. One year prior, it started 10-0 and won the Mountain West Conference. The Bulldogs play at Ole Miss one week before hosting Utah, which is all that keeps this game out of the top five.
5. Michigan State at Western Michigan
7 of 11
When: Friday, Sept. 4
MSU Previous Opponent: n/a
MSU Following Opponent: vs. Oregon (Sept. 12)
Michigan State opens the season (a) on the road, (b) on a Friday night, (c) against an underrated Western Michigan team and (d) with Oregon looming the next weekend.
The last time MSU opened the season against Western Michigan (2013), it gained fewer than 300 yards of offense, and the game was tied 7-7 after 29 minutes. The 2013 Broncos finished 1-11. This year's Broncos return 17 starters from a team that finished 8-5.
4. Houston at Louisville
8 of 11
When: Saturday, Sept. 12
LOU Previous Opponent: vs. Auburn (Sept. 5)
LOU Following Opponent: vs. Clemson (Sept. 17)
Louisville opens next season with three consecutive bowl teams, follows that with Samford and then plays three more bowl teams. This early stretch looks especially difficult, as the Cardinal receive no rest between Gus Malzahn's Auburn offense, Tom Herman's Houston offense and the pivotal ACC opener against Clemson.
Herman comes to Houston after three years leading Ohio State's offense. He won the 2014 Broyles Award as the nation's top assistant and will have his team hungry for an upset. If Louisville doesn't match their intensity, the Cougars can make this happen.
3. Georgia Southern at Georgia
9 of 11
When: Saturday, Nov. 21
UGA Previous Opponent: at Auburn (Nov. 14)
UGA Following Opponent: at Georgia Tech (Nov. 28)
Georgia Southern finished 9-3 last season. It lost heartbreakers to NC State (24-23) and Georgia Tech (42-38), having led both games with under 90 seconds to play, and went 8-0 in the Sun Belt. One year prior, when it was still a member of the FCS, it pulled a memorable upset at Florida. Plus, it draws Georgia between Auburn and Georgia Tech.
The only reason this game doesn't rank higher? Because that first paragraph is all well-publicized. There's a chance Georgia glosses over Georgia Southern—Auburn and Georgia Tech are massively distracting opponents—but it also might understand the threat and show up ready to play. And in that case, there's no way it loses.
2. UMass at Notre Dame
10 of 11
When: Saturday, Sept. 26
ND Previous Opponent: vs. Georgia Tech (Sept. 19)
ND Following Opponent: at Clemson (Oct. 3)
Notre Dame draws UMass after Texas, Virginia and Georgia Tech. Those first two opponents bring physical defenses, and Georgia Tech brings a cut-blocking offense. That and a look-ahead spot with Clemson on the horizon make this a quintessential trap situation.
Obviously, UMass isn't very good, but it's not as bad as most people think. It returns 19 starters (just like Notre Dame) and went 3-3 in the second half of last season. In the first half, even though it started 0-6, it lost four games by a combined 12 points, highlighted by three-point losses against Colorado (Pac-12) and Vanderbilt (SEC).
"They're a good team," Colorado receiver Nelson Spruce told reporters after last year's UMass game. "Obviously I don't think we played our best but they fought for four quarters... I don't know if we were prepared for that... they were better than I thought."
1. Florida Atlantic at Florida
11 of 11
When: Saturday, Nov. 21
UF Previous Opponent: at South Carolina (Nov. 14)
UF Following Opponent: vs. Florida State (Nov. 28)
Florida Atlantic ended last season on a five-game losing streak—but that's misleading. According to Bill Connelly of Football Study Hall, its F/+ ranking in the fourth quarter of the season (No. 76) was better than its full-year F/+ ranking (No. 97). In layman's terms: Even though it lost close games, it improved at the end of the year.
Next year, the Owls catch Florida at an opportune time: one week after it plays South Carolina and one week before it hosts Florida State. The Gators get Vanderbilt before South Carolina, but before that they play Tennessee, Ole Miss, at Missouri, at LSU and against Georgia in a six-week stretch. There's a good chance they're beat up and a definite chance they overlook FAU for Florida State.
And that is the definition of a trap game.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
