(08-18-2017 09:38 AM)Nerdlinger Wrote:  While I'm not really a fan of abandoning divisions, doing so would allow for a schedule in which even a school in a conference of 14 could play all the other schools in the conference at least twice in 4 years (and with only an 8-game conference schedule). I was inspired by this article. Basically, for a 14-team conference, each team gets 3 protected annual matchups and alternates between half of the other 10 opponents every 2 years. The author proposes a different scheme for the ACC, adding ND as a full member and having 4 protected matchups. Here I'm working with the ACC as is and giving them 3 protected matchups like the Big Ten and SEC. I also changed some of the matchups around in each conference. I tried to retain traditional/desired rivalries while still remaining somewhat competitively balanced.

The last 2 columns for the ACC, Big Ten, and SEC are the matchups I'd add if the conferences wanted to expand to 5 protected matchups and a 9-game schedule. This also allows each school to play every conference opponent at least twice in 4 years.

ACC

Code:

BOSTON COLLEGE  Syracuse        Miami-FL        Pittsburgh     | NC State        Virginia Tech  
CLEMSON         Georgia Tech    Florida State   NC State       | Louisville      Miami-FL        
DUKE            Wake Forest     Georgia Tech    North Carolina | Virginia        NC State        
FLORIDA STATE   Miami-FL        Clemson         Georgia Tech   | Syracuse        Louisville      
GEORGIA TECH    Clemson         Duke            Florida State  | Virginia Tech   North Carolina  
LOUISVILLE      Pittsburgh      Virginia Tech   Virginia       | Clemson         Florida State  
MIAMI-FL        Florida State   Boston College  Virginia Tech  | Pittsburgh      Clemson        
NC STATE        North Carolina  Wake Forest     Clemson        | Boston College  Duke            
NORTH CAROLINA  NC State        Virginia        Duke           | Wake Forest     Georgia Tech    
PITTSBURGH      Louisville      Syracuse        Boston College | Miami-FL        Wake Forest    
SYRACUSE        Boston College  Pittsburgh      Wake Forest    | Florida State   Virginia        
VIRGINIA        Virginia Tech   North Carolina  Louisville     | Duke            Syracuse        
VIRGINIA TECH   Virginia        Louisville      Miami-FL       | Georgia Tech    Boston College  
WAKE FOREST     Duke            NC State        Syracuse       | North Carolina  Pittsburgh

Big Ten

Code:

ILLINOIS        Northwestern    Purdue          Rutgers        | Iowa            Indiana        
INDIANA         Purdue          Rutgers         Northwestern   | Maryland        Illinois        
IOWA            Nebraska        Wisconsin       Minnesota      | Illinois        Ohio State      
MARYLAND        Rutgers         Minnesota       Purdue         | Indiana         Penn State      
MICHIGAN        Michigan State  Ohio State      Penn State     | Minnesota       Wisconsin      
MICHIGAN STATE  Michigan        Penn State      Ohio State     | Nebraska        Northwestern    
MINNESOTA       Wisconsin       Maryland        Iowa           | Michigan        Nebraska        
NEBRASKA        Iowa            Northwestern    Wisconsin      | Michigan State  Minnesota      
NORTHWESTERN    Illinois        Nebraska        Indiana        | Purdue          Michigan State  
OHIO STATE      Penn State      Michigan        Michigan State | Wisconsin       Iowa            
PENN STATE      Ohio State      Michigan State  Michigan       | Rutgers         Maryland        
PURDUE          Indiana         Illinois        Maryland       | Northwestern    Rutgers        
RUTGERS         Maryland        Indiana         Illinois       | Penn State      Purdue          
WISCONSIN       Minnesota       Iowa            Nebraska       | Ohio State      Michigan

SEC

Code:

ALABAMA         Auburn          Tennessee       LSU            | Georgia         Florida        
ARKANSAS        Texas A&M       Missouri        Mississippi St | Ole Miss        LSU            
AUBURN          Alabama         Georgia         Florida        | Texas A&M       Ole Miss        
FLORIDA         Georgia         South Carolina  Auburn         | Tennessee       Alabama        
GEORGIA         Florida         Auburn          South Carolina | Alabama         Tennessee      
KENTUCKY        South Carolina  Vanderbilt      Tennessee      | Missouri        Mississippi St  
LSU             Ole Miss        Texas A&M       Alabama        | Mississippi St  Arkansas        
MISSISSIPPI ST  Missouri        Ole Miss        Arkansas       | LSU             Kentucky        
MISSOURI        Mississippi St  Arkansas        Texas A&M      | Kentucky        Vanderbilt      
OLE MISS        LSU             Mississippi St  Vanderbilt     | Arkansas        Auburn          
SOUTH CAROLINA  Kentucky        Florida         Georgia        | Vanderbilt      Texas A&M      
TENNESSEE       Vanderbilt      Alabama         Kentucky       | Florida         Georgia        
TEXAS A&M       Arkansas        LSU             Missouri       | Auburn          South Carolina  
VANDERBILT      Tennessee       Kentucky        Ole Miss       | South Carolina  Missouri

I also have one for the Pac-12. The protected matchups were obvious. I suppose they could go with an 8-game schedule, but if they stick with 9 games, every team can play 3 California schools per season.

Pac-12

Code:

ARIZONA         Arizona State   Colorado        Utah            
ARIZONA STATE   Arizona         Utah            Colorado        
CALIFORNIA      Stanford        UCLA            USC            
COLORADO        Utah            Arizona         Arizona State  
OREGON          Oregon State    Washington      Washington St  
OREGON STATE    Oregon          Washington St   Washington      
STANFORD        California      USC             UCLA            
UCLA            USC             California      Stanford        
USC             UCLA            Stanford        California      
UTAH            Colorado        Arizona State   Arizona        
WASHINGTON      Washington St   Oregon          Oregon State    
WASHINGTON ST   Washington      Oregon State    Oregon

Here's my setup for the ACC with 15 schools (ND goes all in). Each school has 4 protected matchups and alternates between half the other 10 every 2 years.

ACC

Code:

BOSTON COLLEGE  BYE/OTHER       Syracuse        Pittsburgh      Notre Dame      Miami-FL        
CLEMSON         Virginia Tech   NC State        Florida State   Georgia Tech    (South Carolina)
DUKE            BYE/OTHER       Georgia Tech    NC State        North Carolina  Wake Forest    
FLORIDA STATE   Georgia Tech    Louisville      Clemson         Miami-FL        (Florida)      
GEORGIA TECH    Florida State   Duke            Notre Dame      Clemson         (Georgia)      
LOUISVILLE      Pittsburgh      Florida State   Virginia Tech   Virginia        (Kentucky)      
MIAMI-FL        Notre Dame      Virginia Tech   BYE/OTHER       Florida State   Boston College  
NC STATE        BYE/OTHER       Clemson         Duke            Wake Forest     North Carolina  
NORTH CAROLINA  Virginia        BYE/OTHER       Wake Forest     Duke            NC State        
NOTRE DAME      Miami-FL        Pittsburgh      Georgia Tech    Boston College  (Stanford/USC)  
PITTSBURGH      Louisville      Notre Dame      Boston College  BYE/OTHER       Syracuse        
SYRACUSE        Wake Forest     Boston College  Virginia        BYE/OTHER       Pittsburgh      
VIRGINIA        North Carolina  BYE/OTHER       Syracuse        Louisville      Virginia Tech  
VIRGINIA TECH   Clemson         Miami-FL        Louisville      BYE/OTHER       Virginia        
WAKE FOREST     Syracuse        BYE/OTHER       North Carolina  NC State        Duke

What do you think of the whole scheme? Any matchups I should change?

I revamped the protected matchups for the ACC, Big Ten, and SEC in the OP to (hopefully) better accommodate rivalries and strength of schedule. Let me know what you think! I'm certainly open to suggested changes.