The Nebraska football team has the second toughest 2018 schedule in the country according to Phil Steele.
There has been quite a bit of talk about just how tough the schedule for the Nebraska football team is going to be in 2018. Now a well-known analyst has put the toughness of the schedule into stark contrast.
Phil Steele has always been someone who looks at numbers in order to make his decisions. He’s not someone who puts much into the “eyeball test.” When he says the Cornhuskers have the second strongest schedule in the country, it’s because he’s taken a long look at what the Huskers have to face.
At the top of the rating scale is a simple formula. It takes the wins and losses of opponents from this past season into account.
Using the NCAA method for toughest 2018 schedule (opp win loss records)
— Phil Steele (@philsteele042) March 22, 2018
1. Florida St 97-56 63.4%
2. Nebraska 98-58 62.8%
3. Michigan 96-57 62.7%
4. Auburn 94-58 61.8%
45. Notre Dame 85-69 55.2%
54. Alabama 81-69 54%
87. Ohio St 75-75 50%
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That is how the Huskers managed to get the second strongest schedule. Only Florida State’s 2018 opponents had a better winning percentage in 2017.
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Wins and losses aren’t the only thing Steele is monitoring. He’s also taking into account how many teams on a schedule finished the 2017 season ranked in the Top 25.
Steele also factored in how many opponents on a team’s schedule had winning records and how many of them went to bowls. While the Cornhuskers aren’t at the top of the list in those categories, they’re pretty high up there.
As far as opponent winning percentage, Cornhuskers’ 2018 foes posted a 62.8 percent winning percentage. That’s just below FSU’s 63.4 percent and Michigan’s 62.7 percent.
Nebraska will take on four teams that finished last season ranked in the Top 25. That’s compared to six teams for Michigan and five for Florida State.
When looking at teams that finished with winning records and/or in bowl games, the Huskers will face off against nine bowl teams. That means just three squads on the schedule for 2018 missed the postseason.
Next: Takeaways from Sporting News preview of the 2018 season
When you factor in that the Nebraska football team doesn’t know who is going to replace Tanner Lee, and whether Tre Bryant can be what he looked like he was going to be, it’s not secret why some don’t believe the Huskers are in for a great season. 8-4 seems like it would be a huge accomplishment.