College Football Schedules: The 50 Toughest Back-to-Backs of 2011

We've all heard the diatribe about how tough it is to play an SEC schedule.

There just may be something to the claim as five of the top 10 toughest back-to-back games this fall are played by SEC teams.

But don't overlook the Big 12, which has three programs in the top 10.

These are the games you hope are at least at home so the fans can see some of the best teams in the nation come into your stadium.

Now it's time to see who faces the toughest two-, three-, or even four-game stretches.

50. Brigham Young

Tough stretch: at No. 24 Texas (Sept. 10), Utah (Sept. 17), UCF (Sept. 23)

Brigham Young's first season as an independent is packed with solid football games. Cougars fans may love this new lifestyle.

49. Notre Dame

Tough stretch: South Florida (Sept. 3), at Michigan (Sept. 10), No. 17 Michigan State (Sept. 17)

This is why Notre Dame remains an independent.

While this might be considered a break in the SEC, South Florida could shock the Irish in the opening weekend, and the two Big Ten schools are always gunning for Notre Dame.

48. Oklahoma State

Tough stretch: at No. 24 Texas (Oct. 15), at Missouri (Oct. 22)

The Cowboys have their best team in years, so these two games are completely manageable for Mike Gundy's team.

47. Maryland

Tough stretch: Clemson (Oct. 15), No. 5 Florida State (Oct. 22)

Possibly the best part of these two games is that the Maryland fans have an awesome home-ticket package this year.

46. Pittsburgh

Tough stretch: No. 18 Notre Dame (Sept. 24), South Florida (Sept. 29)

Pitt lost a tough game with the Irish last year, but usually hang with Notre Dame. The South Florida game could play a role in determining who wins the Big East.

45. Boise State

Tough stretch: No. 15 TCU (Nov. 12), at San Diego State (Nov. 19)

Remember that Boise opens with Georgia, so this is a nice late-season run that could bolster the Broncos' position in the BCS standings.

44. Oregon

Tough stretch: at No. 6 Stanford (Nov. 12), USC (Nov. 19), Oregon State (Nov. 26)

If Oregon is finally going to get over the BCS hump, these three games shouldn't be much more than a speed bump. Of course that road game at Stanford is looming large.

43. South Carolina

Tough stretch: at No. 14 Arkansas (Nov. 5), No. 23 Florida (Nov. 12)

Hey, it's the SEC. Steve Spurrier knows this is pretty tame.

42. California

Tough stretch: at No. 4 Oregon (Oct. 6), USC (Oct. 13), Utah (Oct. 22)

If Jeff Tedford's job is really on the line this season, it would really help him to get two wins in this three-game run in October.

41. West Virginia

Tough stretch: at Maryland (Sept. 17), No. 4 LSU (Sept. 24)

If the Mountaineers are too focused on LSU, an improved Maryland team will pull off a win at College Park.

40. Miami

Tough stretch: at No. 13 Virginia Tech (Oct. 8), at North Carolina (Oct. 15), Georgia Tech (Oct. 22)

First-year coach Al Golden will learn a lot about the Hurricanes' toughness in October.

39. Texas Tech

Tough stretch: at No. 24 Texas (Nov. 5), No. 8 Oklahoma State (Nov. 12), at Missouri (Nov. 19)

These three games may remind Texas Tech coach Tommy Tuberville of what it was like to coach in the SEC.

38. Ohio State

Tough stretch: No. 17 Michigan State (Oct. 1), at No. 11 Nebraska (Oct. 8)

Ohio State is well versed in big games, but these two will be interesting. The Michigan State game is Ohio State's first Big Ten contest without their suspended players. Then the Buckeyes get them back for a tough road game in Lincoln.

37. Baylor

Tough stretch: No. 1 Oklahoma (Nov. 19), Texas Tech (Nov. 26), No. 24 Texas (Dec. 3)

Baylor is on the bubble this season. There are those who think the Bears could be in the top three of the Big 12; there are others who still think they are a 6-6 or 7-5 team.

These games will dictate that outcome.

36. Air Force

Tough stretch: at No. 18 Notre Dame (Oct. 8), San Diego State (Oct. 13), at No. 7 Boise State (Oct. 22)

With Troy Calhoun coaching the Falcons, it wouldn't be a shock to see Air Force come out of this tough run with a winning mark.

35. Boston College

Tough stretch: at No. 13 Virginia Tech (Oct. 22), at Maryland (Oct. 29), No. 5 FSU (Nov. 3)

Boston College is a program on the decline, but if the Eagles go 2-1 here, it could be a sign that things are turning around.

34. Vanderbilt

Tough stretch: at No. 2 Alabama (Oct. 8), No. 22 Georgia (Oct. 15)

The going has been tough at Vanderbilt since almost forever, so you could almost say that every week of the season is part of a tough stretch.

33. Iowa State

Tough stretch: at No. 1 Oklahoma (Nov. 12), No. 8 Oklahoma State (Nov. 18)

Iowa State is just glad there's still a Big 12 Conference, so they can play against this type of competition.

32. Wake Forest

Tough stretch: at Boston College (Oct. 1), No. 5 FSU (Oct. 8), No. 13 Virginia Tech (Oct. 15)

Wake Forest's hopes of becoming bowl eligible this season will likely be dashed after these three weeks.

31. Florida State

Tough stretch: No. 1 Oklahoma (Sept. 17), at Clemson (Sept. 24)

The Seminoles believe they are back among the elite. Well, facing a tough ACC foe a week after getting the top-ranked Sooners shouldn't be a huge problem, then.

30. Washington

Tough stretch: at No. 6 Stanford (Oct. 22), Arizona (Oct. 29), No. 4 Oregon (Nov. 5), at USC (Nov. 12)

Washington may not have Jake Locker any longer, but expectations are up with the Huskies. So, staring down four tough Pac-12 foes is just part of getting better.

29. Stanford

Tough stretch: No. 3 Oregon (Nov. 12), California (Nov. 19), No. 18 Notre Dame (Nov. 26)

Cal may not be ranked, but they're a huge rival sandwiched between the biggest game of the year, with Oregon, and an improving Notre Dame team.

Andrew Luck should be able to handle this three-game run.

28. Indiana

Tough stretch: at No. 10 Wisconsin (Oct. 15), at Iowa (Oct 22), Northwestern (Oct. 29), at No. 16 Ohio State (Nov. 5)

Maybe this is what upset first-year Indiana coach Kevin Wilson so much before he went on FOX Sports Radio’s Zakk & Jack show.

27. Minnesota

Tough stretch: No. 11 Nebraska (Oct. 22), Iowa (Oct. 29), at No. 17 Michigan State (Nov. 5), No. 10 Wisconsin (Nov. 12)

First-year coach Jerry Kill has enough to deal with rebuilding the Gophers, but this run of games is a huge challenge.

26. LSU

Tough stretch: at No. 20 Mississippi State (Sept. 15), at WVU (Sept. 24)

For an SEC schedule, LSU's back-to-back issues aren't too pressing, especially with a bye week before playing No. 2 Alabama.

25. Wisconsin

Tough stretch: at No. 17 Michigan State (Oct. 22), at No. 16 Ohio State (Oct. 29)

Getting these two on the road is never easy, but don't be surprised when Wisconsin is favored in both matchups.

24. Nebraska

Tough stretch: at No. 10 Wisconsin (Oct. 1), No. 16 Ohio State (Oct. 8)

Nebraska has always played a respectable schedule, but this is still a harsh welcome to the Big Ten.

23. Purdue

Tough stretch: at No. 10 Wisconsin (Nov. 5), No. 16 Ohio State (Nov. 12), Iowa (Nov. 19)

Danny Hope is just praying the Boilermakers don't go 0-3, but anyone putting money on these games isn't likely to go with Purdue without at least 12 points to start with.

22. Florida Atlantic

Tough Stretch: at No. 23 Florida (Sept. 3), at No. 17 Michigan State (Sept. 10)

That's a rough way to start a season, but Howard Schnellenberger just loves to show off his bowtie collection to the country.

21. Texas A&M

Tough stretch: No. 8 Oklahoma State (Sept. 24), vs. No. 14 Arkansas (Oct. 1)

The Oklahoma State game is the most important game, but Mike Sherman would really like to win one against old rival Arkansas.

20. USC

Tough stretch: at No. 18 Notre Dame (Oct. 22), No. 6 Stanford (Oct. 29)

USC has the talent to potentially spoil seasons in consecutive weeks.

19. Michigan

Tough Stretch: No. 11 Nebraska (Nov. 19), No. 16 Ohio State (Nov. 26)

Under Rich Rodriguez Michigan struggled the last month of the season and never beat rival Ohio State. New coach Brady Hoke plans to end both of those trends.

18. Alabama

Tough Stretch: No. 4 LSU (Nov. 5), at No. 20 Mississippi State (Nov. 12)

Does anyone really think Alabama's players look at this as being tough? This is why they chose to play for the Crimson Tide.

17. Toledo

Tough Stretch: at No. 16 Ohio State (Sept. 10), No. 7 Boise State (Sept. 17), at Syracuse (Sept. 24)

Look at Toledo snagging the Friday-night home game with Boise State. The Broncos should win big, but it's still impressive.

16. Clemson

Tough stretch: No. 19 Auburn (Sept. 17), No. 5 Florida State (Sept. 24), at No. 13 Virginia Tech (Oct. 1)

Clemson coach Dabo Swinney will learn pretty quick if new starting quarterback Tajh Boyd is up to the challenge.

He better be, or Swinney might not be sticking around much past 2011.

15. Georgia

Tough Stretch: No. 7 Boise State (Sept. 3), No. 12 South Carolina (Sept. 10)

Georgia doesn't want to become the next Boise State victim, but the Bulldogs should worry more about facing the Gamecocks as this game could decide the SEC East in September.

14. Mississippi State

Tough Stretch: No. 2 Alabama (Nov. 12), at No. 14 Arkansas (Nov. 19)

Dan Mullen has quickly earned a reputation as a big-game coach. He'll get a chance to prove his moxie in November.

Is it possible Mississippi State could be playing for the SEC West title?

13. Penn State

Tough Stretch: No. 11 Nebraska (Nov. 12), at No. 16 Ohio State (Nov. 19), at No. 10 Wisconsin (Nov. 26)

Penn State is facing the Big Ten gauntlet to end the month of November. One (if not two) of these four teams is probably going to be playing in the inaugural Big Ten championship game.

12. Mississippi

Tough Stretch: No. 2 Alabama (Oct. 15), No. 14 Arkansas (Oct. 22), at No. 19 Auburn (Oct. 29)

The party in The Grove is going to be hopping before these first two games, but there may be a lot of upset Rebels afterward.

11. Missouri

Tough Stretch: No. 8 Oklahoma State (Oct. 22), at No. 9 Texas A&M (Oct. 29)

Missouri seems to be the overlooked team in the Big 12 this year. The Tigers always play tough at home, though, so Oklahoma State should be on alert.

10. Tulsa

Tough Stretch: No. 8 Oklahoma State (Sept. 17), at No. 7 Boise State (Sept. 24)

If Tulsa survives the offensive onslaught from the Cowboys, the Golden Hurricane then get to game plan for the methodical and accurate Kellen Moore the following week.

9. Arkansas

Tough Stretch: at No. 2 Alabama (Sept. 24), No. 9 Texas A&M (Oct. 1), No. 19 Auburn (Oct. 8)

Arkansas is ranked and a serious SEC contender again this season, so the focus should be on Alabama and Auburn. However, the Razorbacks just love whipping up on the Aggies.

8. Texas

Tough Stretch: No. 1 Oklahoma (Oct. 8), No. 8 Oklahoma State (Oct. 15)

If Texas rebounds from last year's shocking meltdown, Mack Brown's team just might win close games in back-to-back weeks.

7. Kansas

Tough Stretch: at No. 8 Oklahoma State (Oct. 8), No. 1 Oklahoma (Oct. 15)

It's the same two games as what Texas has, but this is Kansas. It's definitely tougher for the Jayhawks.

6. Kentucky

Tough Stretch: Louisville (Sept. 17), No. 23 Florida (Sept. 24), at No. 4 LSU (Oct. 1), at No. 12 South Carolina (Oct. 8)

Kentucky always seems to be that average SEC team that sometimes pulls off an upset.

Take your pick: Louisville (probably), Florida (maybe), LSU (no way), and South Carolina (not this time).

5. Arizona

Tough Stretch: at No. 7 Oklahoma State (Sept. 8), No. 8 Stanford (Sept. 17), No. 2 Oregon (Sept. 24), at USC (Oct. 1)

Arizona is such an enigma. Just when you think the Wildcats are Pac-12 contenders, they lose three or four games in a row. Here is one of those string of games that could cost Mike Stoops his job.

4. Auburn

Tough Stretch: at No. 12 South Carolina (Oct. 1), at No. 14 Arkansas (Oct. 8), No. 23 Florida (Oct. 15), at No. 4 LSU (Oct. 22)

Auburn's reward for winning the BCS Championship is one of the most brutal four-game runs anyone could ever expect.

3. Florida

Tough Stretch: No. 2 Alabama (Oct. 1), at No. 4 LSU (Oct. 8), at No. 19 Auburn (Oct. 15)

If this were the Florida Gators from 2008 or 2009, you'd say, "No problem." But this ain't Urban Meyer's Gators. (OK, they technically are since he recruited them.)

Will Muschamp has his work cut out for him in Gainesville this fall.

2. Kansas State

Tough stretch: No. 1 Oklahoma (Oct. 29), at No. 8 Oklahoma State (Nov. 5), No. 9 Texas A&M (Nov. 12), at No. 24 Texas (Nov. 19)

Someone in the Big 12 scheduling department hates Kansas State. This is just downright unfair.

1. Tennessee

Tough Stretch: No. 22 Georgia (Oct. 8), No. 4 LSU (Oct. 15), at No. 2 Alabama (Oct. 22), No. 12 South Carolina (Oct. 29)

In this four-week stretch, Tennessee gets to play four of the six best teams in the SEC. If Derek Dooley gets the Vols to go 1-3, that's a moral victory.

If they go 2-2, he should be SEC Coach of the Year.