Cal's Strength-of-Schedule Ranks Lower on This List Than an Earlier One

Last week, we told you Cal had the fourth-toughest football schedule in the Pac-12 in 2020, but apparently we were mistaken, because Sports Betting Dime says Cal has the fifth-toughest schedule in the conference.

OK, our earlier report was not inaccurate, it just used a different method of determining strength of schedule. The metrics used by CBSSports.com figured Cal had the fourth-most-challenging schedule in the Pac-12 and the 12th toughest schedule among the 64 Power Five Conference teams.

The Sports Betting Dime strength of schedule ranks Cal's schedule No. 5 in the Pac-12 and No. 34 among Power Five Conference teams. (The Golden Bears' schedule ranks 36th among all 130 FBS schools, but Houston and South Florida are not in a Power Five conference.)

The difference between ranking 12th and 34th is rather substantial.

This simply proves that determining a strength of schedule before the season starts is a rather arbitrary undertaking. Sports Betting Dime is a gambling site so its methodology has wagering in mind.

As much as I hate to admit it, Sports Betting Dime seems to more accurately portray teams' strength of schedule because it considers incoming elements to the program.

Here is what Sports Betting Dime said about its method of ranking strength of schedule:

Even more so than strength of schedule calculations in the NFL, SOS in college football should not be purely based on last season’s power ratings. There is far too much roster turnover from year to year. The calculations and rankings below factor in opponents’ efficiency ratings from last season plus how much production teams are losing in 2020, recent recruiting rankings, and major incoming transfers.

Here is how Sports Betting Dime ranks the strength of schedules in Pac-12 schools, followed by the school's national rank.

1. Colorado, 8

2. USC, 22

3. Stanford, 29

4. Oregon State, 35

5. Cal, 36

6. Washington, 42

7. Oregon, 47

8. Arizona, 50

9. Utah, 64

10. Arizona State, 65

11. UCLA, 80

12. Washington State, 71

Although Colorado and USC rank first and second in the Pa-12 in both rankings, there are a few noticeable differences between this Pac-12 ranking and the one we cited from CBSSports.com last week.

Stanford has the third-toughest schedule in this Pac-12 ranking, but was ninth in the CBSSports.com ranking. Oregon, which was third in CBSSports.com's strength-of-schedule ranking of the Pac-12, is seventh in this one. Arizona State's schedule in not dowgraded as much in the Sports Betting Dime rankings as it is in the CBSSports.com rankings.

It shows how different the results can be depending on the information that is fed into the formula.

Follow Jake Curtis of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jakecurtis53

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