How Ohio State Would Fare with Alabama's 2015 Schedule
It's become an annual tradition for national pundits and fans around the country to criticize Ohio State and the perceived weakness of its schedule.
This year is no exception, as the top-ranked Buckeyes have reached the midway point of the season unbeaten despite playing long stretches of subpar football. After coming into the season as the first-ever unanimous No. 1 in the Associated Press poll, Ohio State's grasp on the top spot has loosened as teams such as TCU, Baylor and Utah have surged.
At a simple glance, the Buckeyes should have dominated the teams they've played. Their first six opponents have a combined 16-20 record, and only one opponent (Indiana, 4-2) currently boasts a winning record. And despite that lowly competition, it took Ohio State all four quarters to put away teams such as Northern Illinois and Indiana.
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What if Urban Meyer and the Buckeyes were playing a tougher schedule? What if they were lining up against the teams on Alabama's slate?
That's a popular hypothetical that media and fans (especially from the SEC) like to entertain. But outside of the Ole Miss game, the Tide haven't played a significantly more difficult schedule than the Buckeyes.
There was the neutral-site game against Wisconsin to open the season, followed by gimme games against Middle Tennessee State and Louisiana Monroe that sandwiched the Rebels game. The Tide's showdown with a Top 10 Georgia team was highly anticipated, but that victory has lost most of its shine, as Georgia has tumbled out of the rankings entirely.
Last Saturday, Alabama moved to 5-1 with an underwhelming 24-13 win over Arkansas that resulted in a slip in the polls to No. 10 this week, down from No. 8 after beating Georgia two weeks ago.
It's hard to imagine the Buckeyes with a worse record against that schedule, especially now, as their offense continues to find a rhythm with Cardale Jones as the starter and J.T. Barrett as a situational red-zone quarterback.
But looking ahead to the second half of the season, Ohio State's schedule looks just as challenging as Alabama's.
| Week 7 | Penn State (5-1) | @ No. 9 Texas A&M (5-0) |
| Week 8 | @ Rutgers (2-3) | Tennessee (3-3) |
| Week 9 | Bye Week | Bye Week |
| Week 10 | Minnesota (4-2) | No. 6 LSU (5-0) |
| Week 11 | @ Illinois (4-2) | @ Mississippi State (4-2) |
| Week 12 | No. 7 Michigan State (6-0) | Charleston Southern (4-1) |
| Week 13 | @ No. 12 Michigan (5-1) | @ Auburn (4-2) |
The Tide have two games remaining against ranked opponents. They'll hit the road for a matchup with undefeated and ninth-ranked Texas A&M this Saturday, then they'll host No. 6 LSU in Week 10.
The Buckeyes have a tough end to their season, as they host No. 7 Michigan State the week before the season finale against a surging Michigan team that checked in at No. 12 in this week's AP poll.
With both teams playing two highly regarded opponents, there would have to be a significant difference in the quality of the other games on each team's schedule. But Ohio State's other four opponents currently have a 15-8 record, while Alabama's boast a 14-8 record.
It's safe to say Ohio State isn't being challenged week in and week out like Alabama is, but the difference here is marginal at best.
All stats via cfbstats.com.
David Regimbal is the Ohio State football Lead Writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @davidreg412.
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