So you want the 2019 cream puff schedule instead?

This is a slanted view of the 2019 schedule

We play Louisville, Georgia, USC, Michigan, VT, and Stanford.

It's an elite top-end schedule with a very soft bottom half. It's not an easy schedule.

I love that you include Louisville and VT

As difficult.

It's hilarious and sad.

VT has been a top 20 program for 20+ years.

They will be a very challenging game this year.

That doesn't make them elite

And doesn't make playing them elite, or our schedule elite.

Who has had a better 20 years, VaTech or LSU?

PS - we're talking about 2019, not 2018

LSU, but it's been closer than you think.

Over the last 20 years, LSU has been 184-71, with 1.5 National Championships, 6 top 10 finishes, and 15 ranked finishes overall.

V Tech has been 180-69, with 0 NCs (obviously the big differentiator here), 6 top 10 finishes, and 15 ranked finishes overall.

V Tech really fell during Beamer's last 4 seasons, with them all being unrankes 7-6-ish finishes. I think they're back on track now, as they were solid - and ranked - under their new coach last year. And I think they'll be preseason ranked right around LSU (probably a bit higher) this year.

Players currently in the NFL: LSU 55, VT 16

The Tigahs have access to a far better league, and they normally have far better talent than just about any program in the nation.

Click here for link at http://www.espn.com/nfl/college/_/letter/l

Would you be OK with Cal on the schedule then?

And their 36 NFL players?

Actually I'm ok with VT -

I think that they are a top-25 program and including them on the schedule makes the ND schedule stronger. My main reaction was to the comparison with LSU. In comparison to Virginia Tech, LSU regularly plays in a much tougher league against a much tougher schedule, and they have much better players at almost every position on the field.

Funny thing about the "#of players in the pros" stat: LSU seems to have a lead on this against everyone. Only Florida and Miami are close. Alabama, Ohio State, Florida State and USC have 45 or 50 players currently active. ND has around 40. And FWIW, Cal isn't the only Pac-12 team with unusually high number of pro players. Stanford, Oregon, and UCLA have similar numbers, each around 35.

I also think Va Tech is more likely to finished ranked. *

Sure

But which game would you be excited about, LSU or VaTech?

(and as an ND fan, right now, I'd say VaTech because we've played LSU a few times recently)

But if we hadn't played either in the past 20 years and you asked me who would be a more "elite" opponent or better opponent, I'd say LSU.

True

I agree....normally I'd say LSU, but since we've oddly played them so much, I'd now say V Tech for ND.

I'm just saying that I think V Tech is an exciting game as well. Plus, I've heard that's a great place to go to a game at.

to put a finer point of the inanity of your post

Final rankings the past 8 seasons (ie since 2010)

Louisville
2010 - UR
2011 - UR
2012 - 13
2013 - 15
2014 - 24
2015 - UR
2016 - 21
2017 - UR

VaTech
2010 - 15
2011 - 17
2012 - 13
2013 - UR
2014 - UR
2015 - UR
2016 - UR
2017 - 16

Your post was so sad and pathetic, I don't know what to say. But at this point, nothing surprises me when it comes to ND football and our fans.

PS - Michigan sucks (yes in all things, but they actually haven't been very good in a while, they certainly aren't elite).

So odds are one of them will be ranked.

The broader point stands. That’s likely 4-5 ranked opponents at the top end between those six programs. Also Michigan will have very talented upper classmen then. I expect Michigan to be a consistent 2 loss program by 2019.

Probably not

Louisville’s ranking were tied to a couple of their best players ever (and even that didn’t help this year).

Va Tech who knows

I included the top half of the schedule.

Maybe want to edit your post?

Nope

“It's an elite top-end schedule with a very soft bottom half”

It’s not an elite top end schedule. Not even close.

2 likely great teams (and I’m not ready to put USC in this bucket just yet but will for the sake of argument) does not make an elite top end schedule.

VaTech and Louisville are pedestrian and don’t make our top end elite in any way shape or form.

Michigan is good. Stanford will be good.

That’s not an elite top end, it just isn’t.

Show your work. Compare it to other teams.

Our fifth-best opponent has been ranked more times than not the past decade. How many other teams have a schedule like that?

Well, because I can

Here's some more easy ones (preseason ranking in parenthesis).

Auburn
Washington (12)
Miss St (17)
Georgia (4)
Alabama (1)
LSU (19)

USC
Stanford (13)
Washington (12)
Texas (18)
Oregon (22)
ND (14)

I can keep going if you'd like, but I think it's clear, all of the "good" college football teams play that many top end games.

Our schedule is on par with other good teams in CFB, certainly not "elite" (and I think that is the word that set all of this off, elite means at the top, we aren't).

You shifted the goalposts. Washington and Mississippi

State don't meet the criteria you laid out for Louisville and Virginia Tech.

Not really

I was pointing out again, that using your standards, our schedule still isn't "elite". I didn't change my standards, so I'll sum it up.

Under my standards, which are admittedly higher than yours, our schedule is not elite
Under your standards, which are sort of sad and embarrassing, even then, our schedule is not elite.

I didn't move the goal posts, I basically used your diminished expectations to show, a second time, our schedule is pretty fucking far from elite.

But yeah, our schedule is an elite ball buster with L'Ville and Va Tech. Internet high five. You can have the last word here, because, I just don't give a fuck trying to polish the turd that is our scheduling, you seem to think it's super duper hard/awesome. Good for you. Enjoy Ball State. Last word is yours.

Sure

Texas A&M top 5 opponents

Clemson
Auburn
LSU
Mississippi State
Alabama

They play the preseason 1 and 2 teams (Bama and Clemson).

Throw in Auburn, and that's 3 top 10 preseason teams.

Miss St is listed preseason at 17.

So that's 4 top 20 teams, and their 5th best team, LSU, is better than Va Tech recently and historically (and also ranked in the top 20)

You don't hear anyone talking about how elite A&Ms schedule is. You don't hear folks in Texas bitching and moaning about how hard it is. It's their schedule.

That was easy and took 5 seconds. It's without question much better at the top than ours, it's not even close.

Holy sh**! How did I miss this? saucy is the worst

AD in ND history and that is a real low bar. Please, tell me you made this up.

And we have lost to 2 of those teams in the last two years.

We've played four of the six in our history and have lost to Navy, Duke and BC (all of which at home at some point too). We lost to Navy and Duke in 2016 and we needed a long bomb touchdown in the last minute of the game to beat Virginia in 2015.

So anyone looking at that schedule as 6 easy wins? Let me introduce you to Brian Kelly.

Of which we will go 4-2 *