Conference bragging rights are based on it.The College Football Playoff selection committee incorporates a strength of schedule and strength of resume metric into their ranking system.
Perceptions of team strength can swing wildly based on assumptions of their schedule's difficulty.Predictably, the Big Ten and SEC dominate most lists of the toughest schedules in the country in 2026.The Texas Longhorns may have the most difficult road of any team in the country.
Ohio State has road trips to Texas, USC, Iowa, Nebraska and Indiana, while hosting Oregon and Michigan.It's hard to argue that's not one of the toughest schedules, even for arguably the best roster in the sport.ESPN PERSONALITY BUSTED ON SOCIAL MEDIA FOR INACCURATELY TRYING TO PROMOTE THE SEC'S STRENGTH OF SCHEDULEHead Coach Joey McGuire of the Texas Tech Red Raiders gestures as he walks off the field after the game against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at Jones AT&T Stadium in Lubbock, Texas, on Oct.
25, 2025.(John E.
Moore III/Getty Images)The top-to-bottom strength of the nation's two preeminent conferences, particularly the SEC, means most programs in those leagues have a reasonably demanding slate.Then there's the other Power 4 conferences.Few would argue that the ACC or Big 12 plays the same level of schedule as Texas or Ohio State in 2026, for example.
And schools in the SEC and Big Ten are happy to remind you of it.When playoff debate time comes around, they're the first to point out that 9-3 in the SEC is different from 9-3 in the Big 12.
And they're usually right, at least to an extent.But if you ask the Texas Tech Red Raiders, there's an explanation for their weaker strength of schedule, and it's because those same schools won't play them.CODY CAMPBELL THREATENS LAWSUITS AGAINST CFB PLAYOFF, WARNS OTHER CONFERENCES AGAINST AVOIDING TEXAS TECHTech head coach Joey McGuire told Brett McMurphy and On3 that despite their best efforts, and conversations with big programs like USC, Texas A&M, N...