ESPN FPI ranks top 25 toughest schedules in 2022 college football season

275133747_4796292347117549_592518599057046758_nby:Jonathan Wagner•04/16/22•

Jonathan Wagner

Spring ball is wrapping up, which means the 2022 college football season is inching closer and closer. As we gear up for the new season, ESPN FPI has ranked the 25 teams with the toughest schedules in college football for the 2022 season.

ESPN’s FPI tool is a predictive tool used across college football to measure team strength and predict performances moving forward. According to ESPN’s FPI tool, the majority of the top 25 in terms of toughest schedules in college football come from the same conference.

There are 12 teams featured from the SEC, including all seven from the loaded SEC West. Five of the seven teams in the SEC East are listed, as well. There are then seven teams included from the Big Ten, with five coming from the Big Ten East. The ACC has three teams, while the Big 12 has two.

2022’s toughest college football schedules, per FPI

  1. Auburn Tigers
  2. Mississippi State Bulldogs
  3. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
  4. Vanderbilt Commodores
  5. Tennessee Volunteers
  6. Alabama Crimson Tide
  7. Texas A&M Aggies
  8. South Carolina Gamecocks
  9. LSU Tigers
  10. Indiana Hoosiers
  11. Rutgers Scarlet Knights
  12. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
  13. Arkansas Razorbacks
  14. Texas Longhorns
  15. Florida Gators
  16. Iowa Hawkeyes
  17. Ole Miss Rebels
  18. Maryland Terrapins
  19. West Virginia Mountaineers
  20. Wisconsin Badgers
  21. Syracuse Orange
  22. Michigan State Spartans
  23. Penn State Nittany Lions
  24. Louisville Cardinals
  25. Missouri Tigers

Some teams ranked in this top 25 are somewhat surprising, such as Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets play a tough ACC slate as is, but also play non-conference games against Ole Miss, UCF, and Georgia. Vanderbilt also plays against a loaded SEC schedule, and also tacked on a non-conference home date against Wake Forest.

There are also a number of teams that finished just outside of ESPN FPI’s top 25 toughest schedules in college football. The teams on the outside looking in include Georgia, Baylor, Texas Tech, Florida State, and Michigan.

The majority of college football will begin their 2022 schedules on the weekend of September 3, but some teams will be in action the week before.