Speaking of drawing the short straw on rotating SEC opponent, that “honor” in the East went to South Carolina, picking up conference favorite Alabama. In addition to its regular season-ending game against Clemson, the Gamecocks open the season against North Carolina in Charlotte. South Carolina also has to go to Georgia.
Auburn, by virtue of having to play Georgia every year as its traditional opponent, automatically has “tough” as an adjective to its schedule. The Tigers’ games against Alabama, at LSU, at Texas A&M, and vs. Georgia also rank on that list of top 10 SEC games.