Some of the early season college football matchups that feature Power Five teams against FCS opponents will be tough to sit through from start to finish but that is the expectation of those primer contests that rarely end in an upset. Even worse are the unnecessary later non-conference games that absolutely nobody is looking forward to watching. Here is a look at the worst non-conferences games on the college football schedule.
Eastern Michigan Eagles @ Missouri Tigers
September 10
Missouri will open its season on the road at West Virginia in what could be a thriller but the very next week they will return home to host Eastern Michigan in an absolutely terrible matchup. The Tigers’ defense was formidable in 2015 but its offense was extremely incompetent. Even if it does manage to put up some decent numbers against Eastern Michigan, this game will be painful to watch. The Eagles are a mess right now and have been one of the worst programs in the country. They’re in disarray in all facets of the game. Combined with Missouri’s anemic offense, this will be sore on the eyes. Although, this should be an easy victory for Missouri at home.
Duke Blue Devils @ Northwestern Wildcats
September 17
These teams combined for 20 points per game and less than four yards per play on offense last season so it’s fair to assume this matchup won’t produce an absolute thriller. The stands will be filled with aspiring sports journalists but there likely won’t be many hardcore football fans across the country tuning in to watch this game.
Mississippi State Bulldogs @ UMass Minutemen
September 24
Mississippi State opens the season at home against South Alabama before hosting South Carolina in Week 2 and then visiting LSU in a crucial SEC showdown in week three. That is one heck of a start to the year but the Bulldogs will pump the brakes on the excitement in week four when they visit UMass in a game with the potential to be an absolute snoozer. UMass left the MAC following a four-year stretch in which they posted a 6-26 mark. The fact that those in power actually decided to move this game to Gillette Stadium in order to accommodate the triple-digit amount of fans that will make the trip from the campus 90 miles away is testament to how terrible it projects to be.
Army Black Knights @ Wake Forest Demon Deacons
October 29
Two of Wake Forest’s four FBS wins over the last two seasons have come against Army, and neither of them were by more than a field goal. That’s actually more of an insult to Wake Forest than it is Army. Army only beat two teams last season: Bucknell and Eastern Michigan. By the way, Eastern Michigan is one of the worst programs in the country.
The Demon Deacons will look to extend their run against the Black Knights in their final October game. That’s one of the few things they’ve been able to celebrate over the last few seasons. There aren’t many fans outside of the two schools that will actually care about the outcome of this college football game.
UConn Huskies @ Boston College Eagles
November 11
UConn has several games on its schedule that could have made it to this list but a November matchup with Boston College should be the worst of them. These two teams ranked No. 111 and No. 124 in yards per play on offense last season while both ranked in the top-40 in yards per play on defense. But beyond that, these are two of the least entertaining teams when it comes to college football. They lack stars on either side of the football, their coaching staffs collectively don’t have a lot of shrewd minds and the strategy that they employ is fairly boring. They grind out wins in ugly fashion – when they do win – and their offenses are painful to watch.
Not much has changed for either side so this should turn out to be another cold weather defensive college football matchup that features very little scoring and a ton of stoppages as both sides look to grind out a victory. Make sure your television is tuned in to something else.
