[OutsiderFan]

IMO, there's no need to schedule teams like Alabama and tOSU other than for bragging rights. We would have been in the national title game if we had won out in either of the past two years with OOC resumes of Sac State, Wake, ND and SJ State, Duke, ND. And that's a Stanford team 2-3 years removed from many consecutive losing seasons.

If we become consistently successful (not necessarily at the level of the last 2 years), we won't need OOC "credibility wins". And beating SC, ND and the northwest power du jour should be all the credibility we need.

Exactly.  In 2012 Alabama has Western Kentucky, Florida Atlantic and Western Carolina on the OOC schedule, along with Michigan.  Stanford's conference schedule, plus N.D. is plenty tough enough.  It would be insane to schedule an Oklahoma or Texas or Georgia or Penn State on top of that. So why not Northwestern, Duke, Vandy, Rice?

[OutsiderFan]

IMO, there's no need to schedule teams like Alabama and tOSU other than for bragging rights. We would have been in the national title game if we had won out in either of the past two years with OOC resumes of Sac State, Wake, ND and SJ State, Duke, ND. And that's a Stanford team 2-3 years removed from many consecutive losing seasons.

If we become consistently successful (not necessarily at the level of the last 2 years), we won't need OOC "credibility wins". And beating SC, ND and the northwest power du jour should be all the credibility we need.

Exactly.  In 2012 Alabama has Western Kentucky, Florida Atlantic and Western Carolina on the OOC schedule, along with Michigan.  Stanford's conference schedule, plus N.D. is plenty tough enough.  It would be insane to schedule an Oklahoma or Texas or Georgia or Penn State on top of that. So why not Northwestern, Duke, Vandy, Rice?