I stole this idea from an article Todd wrote last season at RollBamaRoll.com  Everyone knows Florida State's schedule by now.  It will surely be one of the nation's 10 toughest, as it was the last several years.  But something I have an interest in is the teams FSU's opponents play before facing the 'Noles.  UF has a major advantage every year through scheduling a cupcake before facing FSU, while the 'Noles often have to wrap up the ACC slate.  I am not analyzing team strength here, but rather scheduling factors.

• 9/4 FSU opens at home against Samford (not Stanford).  Neither team will have played a game.  
• 9/11 FSU is @ Oklahoma.  It should be an incredible game.  OU plays Utah State the week before.  Neither team with a significant advantage here.
• 9/17  FSU hosts BYU.  It is unknown who BYU faces before they travel to play FSU.  BYU has the scheduling advantage here as it is an obvious letdown situation for FSU
• 9/25 FSU hosts Wake Forest to open the conference season.  Wake will be coming off a road trip to Stanford.  Major advantage to FSU here.  
• 10/02 FSU is @ Virginia.  This is advantage UVA because of who FSU has on deck (Miami) and because UVA got VMI at home the week before.
• 10/09 FSU is @ Miami.  While FSU will be off a road game, Miami must play @ Clemson the week before.  That's scheduling advantage Florida State, as Clemson is a top 25 team with a tremendous defense and well, UVA isn't that good.  
• 10/16 FSU hosts Boston College.  BC is off a road game @ NC State, and FSU is the last leg of a brutal stretch that sees BC play Notre Dame, Virginia Tech, and @ NC State, in back to back weekends.  
• Both NC State and FSU receive bye weeks before playing the October 28th Thursday night contest in North Carolina.
• On 11/6, FSU hosts North Carolina.  UNC gets William and Mary before traveling to Tallahassee, but FSU gets 10 days rest following the Thursday night game.  
• 11/13 FSU hosts Clemson.  Clemson will have hosted NC State prior to coming to Tallahassee.  Little scheduling advantage can be discerned here.  
• 11/20 FSU is @ Maryland.  Maryland will have played @ UVA the week before.  But FSU will have played UNC and Clemson back to back, and could be looking ahead to the game against UF.