Oklahoma is battling Baylor in Waco, Texas. It’s a matchup between a pair of top 25 sides and has significant College Football Playoff ramifications, not to mention Big 12 title game impact. Broadcasters Gus Johnson and Joel Klatt have the call for FOX.

At the same time, No. 2 Alabama is beating down a 1-8 New Mexico State team. The Tide topped 40 points before halftime.

Alabama, despite having a loss on its record, sits 6 spots above the Sooners in the latest College Football Playoff rankings in part because of the Sooners’ weaker schedule. Well, when the crew in Waco did a cut-away to update viewers on the Alabama game, Johnson posed a question: Why is Alabama playing New Mexico State this late in November?

Klatt had a quick-trigger response.

“Because the SEC schedules for championships,” he said.

Klatt went on to talk about the difference in scheduling between the Power 5 conferences.

“That’s their M.O., and they’re able to do that because there’s no consistency across the country in how conferences schedule,” Klatt continued. “They only play 8 conference games and wisely they play one of those conference games really early in the season in September and it frees up a date late for a non-conference game. Just like Oklahoma played Western Carolina, Alabama scheduled New Mexico State, but the difference is they play them in November and not September.”

The Sooners pounded Western Carolina 76-0 on Sept. 11. The date, Klatt says, is significant.