The SEC has yet to make the move to nine conference games like some of the other Power 5 conferences, so that means there are four non-conference contests on the schedule each year.
Some teams make better use of those games than others, and boy, do a lot of cupcakes show up on the 2019 non-conference schedule.
Below, we list the three easiest non-conference schedules in the SEC in 2019, starting with Alabama and ending with Tennessee (with Arkansas’s abysmal slate in between):
Alabama
- vs. Duke (in Atlanta)
- vs. New Mexico State
- vs. Southern Miss
- vs. Western Carolina
Duke is a good team, don’t get me wrong, but the Blue Devils aren’t exactly on Alabama’s level. After that, there are three non-conference cupcakes on Alabama’s schedule. Expect the bashing of the Crimson Tide’s non-conference slate to continue in 2019.
Arkansas
- vs. Portland State
- vs. Colorado State
- vs. San Jose State
- vs. Western Kentucky
My goodness, this is the worst of the worst. Arkansas didn’t play a Power 5 non-conference opponent in 2018 and won’t in 2019 either. At least this year, they traveled out to Colorado State (where they lost late). In 2019, they won’t leave Fayetteville for a non-conference game.
Tennessee
- vs. Georgia State
- vs. BYU
- vs. Chattanooga
- vs. UAB
BYU just knocked off a Wisconsin team that many thought would challenge for a Big Ten title (and still might), but we can’t assume the Cougars will be able to come into Neyland Stadium and beat the Vols. If Jeremy Pruitt’s team progresses like it should, these games should all be victories.
Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.
