College Football 2011 Predictions: The 10 Toughest Schedules for the 2011 Season
LaMichael James and Darron Thomas will be back for the Oregon Ducks. Under coach Chip Kelly, Oregon will try to reach the BCS National Championship game again. They'll utilize their fast-paced, explosive offense to try to go undefeated in the regular season for the second straight year.
But, there will be plenty of obstacles in their path.
The Ducks have one of the toughest schedules in college football in 2011.
How will they handle the pressure of trying to repeat their magical 2010 season? It remains to be seen, but I'm excited to watch it.
Oregon, however, doesn't have the No. 1 toughest schedule of 2011.
Who has that honor?
Here's a look at which teams have the toughest schedules for the 2011 college football season.
10. Iowa Hawkeyes
1 of 10
Notable Games:
- September 17: v. Pitt
- October 8: at Penn State
- November 26: at Nebraska
The Big 10 is going to be interesting this year with the addition of Nebraska.
That's another stacked team entering the league that might catch some teams by surprise.
A game against Pitt is a decent non-conference game that a lot of power conference teams would have stayed away from.
9. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
2 of 10
Notable Games:
- September 17: v. Michigan State
- October 22: v. USC
- November 26: at Stanford
Being an independent school, Notre Dame has the power to schedule any team they want.
They do a pretty nice job with it.
Michigan State, USC and Stanford are big games and Michigan and Navy are no pushovers themselves.
8. Arizona State Sun Devils
3 of 10
Notable Games:
- September 10: v. Missouri
- September 17: at Illinois
- October 15: at Oregon
I'm a big fan of tough non-conference schedules, and the Sun Devils have created just that.
Missouri and Illinois aren't the best teams in their conferences, but neither is Arizona State.
These are two very respectable games.
Playing in the Pac-10 means you have to play Oregon too, so Arizona State gets credit for that.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
7. Ohio State Buckeyes
4 of 10
Notable Games:
- September 17: at Miami (FL)
- October 1: v. Michigan State
- October 8: at Nebraska
The first two games on this list are significant because the Buckeyes will be without Terrelle Pryor and the other four players suspended for improper benefits.
Then, the Nebraska game is significant because it's Nebraska's first year in the Big Ten. Plus, Pryor and company will be returning for that game.
6. Nebraska Cornhuskers
5 of 10
Notable Games:
- October 1: at Wisconsin
- October 8: v. Ohio State
- November 12: at Penn State
The Huskers didn't face very many good defenses in the Big 12 and they still struggled to put up points at times.
So, how will they handle a conference that prides itself on strong defense?
These three games will go a long way towards determining how Nebraska will fare for the next couple years.
5. USC Trojans
6 of 10
Notable Games:
- September 10: v. Utah
- October 29: v. Stanford
- November 19: at Oregon
The Trojans are serving their final year of bowl suspension in 2011, so the game against Oregon will be like their bowl game.
They will possibly have a chance to keep Oregon from reaching the title game with a victory.
If that's not enough of a reason to play hard, then I don't know what is.
4. Georgia Bulldogs
7 of 10
Notable Games:
- September 3: v. Boise State (at Georgia Dome)
- October 29: v. Florida (at EverBank Field)
- November 12: v. Auburn
The Bulldogs don't have to play Alabama or LSU this year, but their schedule is still really tough since they play in the SEC.
Plus, they get major bonus points for being brave enough to schedule Boise State.
That will be a fun game to watch.
3. Oregon Ducks
8 of 10
Notable Games:
- September 3: v. LSU (at Cowboy Stadium)
- September 10: v. Nevada
- November 12: at Stanford
The Ducks aren't going to have an easy time repeating their undefeated regular season in 2011.
They might get their first loss in Week 1, when they'll play a very, very dangerous LSU team on a neutral field in Dallas.
But, if they win that game, they have a good chance of winning out. They'll still need to take care of Andrew Luck and Stanford though.
2. Utah Utes
9 of 10
Notable Games:
- September 10: at USC
- October 15: at Pitt
- October 29: v. Oregon State
The Utes are moving up to the Pac-10 in 2011, along with Colorado, to form the Pac-12.
But, the Utes were given a huge break when they discovered they didn't have to play either Oregon or Stanford in their first year in the conference.
Still, there's enough talent on their schedule to make this one of the most difficult seasons they've ever faced.
I get the feeling 2012 is going to be a bear of a season for them too.
1. LSU Tigers
10 of 10
Notable Games:
- September 3: v. Oregon (at Cowboy Stadium)
- September 24: at West Virginia
- October 22: v. Auburn
- November 5: at Alabama
- November 25: v. Arkansas
The toughest schedule in college football in 2011 belongs to the LSU Tigers.
If they can even make it through out-of-conference play undefeated, it'll be a major victory.
Oregon is a national championship contender and West Virginia has flashes of brilliance.
Then, they have to face the "Killer A's": Auburn, Alabama and Arkansas.
Les Miles, aka the Mad Hatter, will need to use all of his tricks and have some of his trademark luck if the Tigers are going to be in the hunt for the BCS National Championship game.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
