Considering the number of teams switching conferences since the end of last season, the folks responsible for putting together schedules should be commended for their work.
Some schools might not necessarily agree with that after the schedule-makers delivered tough slates, but with 10 squads from the Pac-12 alone having to be worked into new league fixtures, it was impossible to ask for an entirely level fixture across the college football landscape.
Even without the realignment, some schools listed way down on the NCAAF futures boards were already facing difficult journeys in 2024, and these three teams will find their road trips especially grueling.
Florida Gators – SEC
If there is one thing preseason polls and rankings can agree on, it’s the toughest overall schedule for 2024 belongs to the Florida Gators.
With Billy Napier on the hot seat, it is a little like handing a drowning man a straw. The home slate is daunting enough, opening with Miami before Texas A&M arrives in Week 3. Kentucky, LSU and Ole Miss also visit the Gators in October and November.
It’s the games away from Gainesville, however, that are driving a 5.5-win total at top-rated sportsbooks, and why the Gators are picked to finish well back in the SEC pack.
The first away game comes in Week 4 when Florida heads to Mississippi State. That one is manageable since the Gators have beaten the Bulldogs in three of the last four meetings, including their last two trips to Starkville.
Road wins become far less likely after that. Week 7 finds the Gators in Knoxville where 100,000+ fans will be at Neyland Stadium cheering their Tennessee Volunteers on to victory. The Vols rank sixth on the SEC futures market.
Though technically a neutral-site affair, the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party in Week 10 against Georgia is still away from home, and it is followed the very next week with a contest in Austin against Texas. The Bulldogs and Longhorns are picked 1-2 in the SEC.
The campaign wraps up with a short trip to Tallahassee to face Florida State in the final week of the regular season. It will be something of an accomplishment if the Gators have a shot to finish 6-6 by the time they reach that contest.
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets – ACC
While Florida State, a co-favorite in the ACC, ends its season against a non-con rival in Florida, the Seminoles begin the season against a conference rival when they travel to Dublin to battle Georgia Tech in the 2024 college football opener.
That is the first of seven games the Yellow Jackets will play somewhere other than Bobby Dodd Stadium, and they are currently nearly 2-TD underdogs to the Seminoles at sharp sportsbooks.
Georgia Tech will be at Syracuse for a Week 2 matchup, then in Louisville for a Week 4 collision with a Cardinals team picked to finish fourth in the ACC.
Chapel Hill is their destination in Week 7, and the good news is the Yellow Jackets have beaten North Carolina on its home turf the last two visits. Week 8’s contest does take place in Atlanta, but it’s under the roof of Mercedes-Benz Stadium and comes against a Notre Dame team that expects to be part of the College Football Playoffs.
The Yellow Jackets then go to Virginia Tech in Week 9, and face the toughest season finale in the country when they are in Athens against Georgia in Week 13. That Georgia Tech is picked in the middle of the ACC with that schedule is a miracle.
Purdue Boilermakers – Big Ten
When you are picked to finish dead last in any conference, as Purdue is in the Big Ten, it could be argued that every game is going to be difficult regardless of where it is played.
Ryan Walters’ first season at the helm in West Lafayette produced a dismal 4-8 record, with just three of those wins coming in the Big Ten. It’s not expected to be much better in 2024 with futures odds that include a 4.5-win total and +30000 to win the conference crown.
Unlike most of the old Power 5 schools that play more home games than away, Purdue’s slate is evenly split at 6-6 with half of the contests in front of the fans at Ross-Ade Stadium during the first five weeks of the season.
The first road trip is in Week 4 when the Boilermakers travel to Corvallis to take on the Oregon State Beavers. Two weeks later, Purdue is in Madison to face Wisconsin and then immediately go to Illinois the following Saturday.
Purdue then spends three of the final four weeks of the campaign on the Big Ten highway, and there is the potential to be utterly embarrassed in Week 10 at Ohio State.
The final two Saturdays at Michigan State and at Indiana won’t be against the same level of talent the Buckeyes will put on the field, but those two rivalry games are still going to be a difficult end to a trying season.
