The Gauntlet: The Four Toughest Schedule Stretches in the Big 12

Who you play during the season matters just as much as when you play them. Finding the energy to play at a high level every week is difficult enough for any Big 12 team. These four will have do so against their toughest competition in a few short weeks. 

It's not coincidence that every string of games listed below includes teams like Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Texas—most preseason polls put all three in their Top Ten. 

Having to face any one of them is truly a test.

To play them consecutively surely makes for a preparation nightmare.

Most of these taxing stints include conference games, but non-conference games weren't excluded from the criteria.

I owa State: (Oct. 2 - Nov. 6) Texas Tech, Utah, at Texas, at Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska. 

Life doesn't get any easier for the Cyclones in 2010. They play projected heavyweights Texas, Oklahoma, and Nebraska during a four week span.

As if that's not enough of a tall order, consider that they play a Mountain West team which could contend for a conference title, a Kansas team some think could challenge the Huskers for the North title, and a Red Raider club sure to bring their "A" game. 

This one beats out all the others—even though most of these contests are home games, arguably the two stoutest opponents will be played on the road. 

There are no bye weeks for Paul Rhoads and Co. during this rough string of games. 

Texas A&M: (Oct. 30 - Nov. 25) Texas Tech, Oklahoma, at Baylor, Nebraska, at Texas. 

The 12th man better not go on hiatus from Kyle Field during the last half of this season.  The Sooners and the Huskers, plausible foes in the Big 12 Championship Game, come to Kyle Field within three weeks of each other. 

Hosting the Red Raiders may not seem as difficult as some of the other contests, but Tommy Tuberville's crew may not so easily forget the 52-30 loss handed to them in Lubbock last year. 

Going to Waco to take on the Baylor Bears may not seem too monumental either, but it might be a trap game before Nebraska—look for Robert Griffin's squad to play harder late in the season when they need wins to make them bowl eligible.  

Missouri: (Oct. 16 - Nov. 6) at Texas A&M, Oklahoma, at Nebraska, at Texas Tech. 

The Tigers reel off a few cupcakes to start off the season.

A mid-October trip to Kyle Field could give Mizzou more than it can handle. It doesn't get any easier to host perennial title contender Oklahoma. The next week's contest against Nebraska could be a de facto Big 12 North Title game.

After that, Missouri gets on a bus to visit a Tech team that always plays its best football at home.  

Baylor: (Oct. 30 - Nov. 20) at Texas, at Oklahoma State, Texas A&M, Oklahoma. 

It's safe to say that Baylor's best chances to secure a bowl spot come before this point in the season. 

All of these four teams are yearly South competitors for the Bears.

All four figure to have offenses with both talent and experience come November.  There are no bye weeks in this stretch. Expect these contests to test this team's depth.  

Teams who almost made the cut—Texas and Oklahoma. Both have runs at the beginning of the season which include some big competition.