2019 Football Schedule Released

I'm thinking a conference game to open the season is too early for either team.

you are right.

Both are / should be competitive games with not unfamiliar opponents.

Mercer played @ Campbell in 2013 winning an exciting, hard-fought, “please hang on” 38-31 victory after leading 31-10 at the half.

Mercer has played APSU 3 times, winning all 3 matchups.
* 2014 - 49-21 rout in Macon, but it wasn’t even that close as Mercer led 35-6 @ half & played a lot of reserves in the final 2 quarters.
* 2015 - 28-7 in the season opener, after a slow start (7-7 halftime & 14-7 after 3 quarters) on a broiling hot day in Clarksville.
* 2016 - 41-34 in another, even crazier “please hang on” game, where Mercer led 34-13, again in Clarksville, with 6 minutes to play & scored their final TD by returning an onside kickoff for a TD.

UNC could be an interesting one also.

Would love to see them schedule a 12th game though. With 6 home games, I would think they have complete flexibility to schedule any type of game - a 2nd FBS, an FCS home or away, or a (hopefully) winnable home game vs. a PFL or D2/NAIA Team.

Nah...Bears’ are used to these early season SoCon games & WCU likes to falsely prop up their record by scheduling games against middle schools in Watauga County. Mercer’s upset win up there in 2017 knocked the Cantamounts out of their 1st shot at the Playoffs since 1983.

Early prediction:

Mercer 61 - Cantamounts 3

Yep - which is why I think it makes sense for Mercer to pick up a 12th game...jeez...even if it means playing AT Stetson or Jacksonville...both potential, maybe we could say, likely, D1 Wins. We saw what happened to Furman this year. If they had been 7-4 vs. 6-4, I think they would have been in. Non D1 games are not supposed to ‘count’ with the Committee, but...based on seeds & bids, my sense is that they forgot that this year. Also, FBS games appear to be ‘no-risk’ - no ‘penalty’ if you lose, but BIG ‘bonus points’ if you win...even over FBS dregs, such as San Jose State or UTEP. So, picking up an FBS game with one of those types offers an upside-only opportunity and picking up 2nd quality FBS games has no downside risk, but offers financial & other upsides.

Just interested in what FUBeAR can find...

1) Miami (The U) is only showing 10 games scheduled with a tentative 11th game with FIU. They have no FCS games scheduled. They don’t show a game scheduled on 9/7 or 10/12, but Conf. Schedule is not yet set.

2) USF has 11 games scheduled & no FCS games. They are scheduled for a game on 9/7. They are not showing a game on 10/12, but Conf. Schedule is not yet set.

3) Houston has 11 games scheduled & no FCS games. They do not show a game scheduled on 9/7 or 10/12, but Conf. Schedule is not yet set.

4) FIU has 11 games scheduled and already has an FCS game with New Hampshire. They are not showing a game scheduled on 9/7 or 10/12, but Conf Schedule is not yet set. They also have that tentative 12th game with Miami (see above).

5) UAB has 11 games scheduled & no FCS games. They do have a game scheduled on 9/7. They do not show a game scheduled on 10/12, but Conf Schedules are not yet set.

6) Arizona has 12 games scheduled, but 1 of those 12 is Hawaii, which allows them to play a 13th game. They do have already have an FCS game scheduled with NAU on 9/7 & they have a PAC12 game scheduled on 10/12.

That’s it for FBS opportunities unless changes arise.

Comprehensive & reliable info regarding possible open dates for possible FCS opponents is too difficult to find & compile. But, at a glance, there seems to be many opportunities to schedule a 2019 game with another FCS opponent.

D2 / NAIA schedules are even more difficult to ascertain, but FUBeAR suspects there are many possibilities to schedule such a game at home in 2019.

I was thinking about that.

This is really unusual. Mercer has always been very late to release their schedules; so...I’m wondering if releasing it now just might be a way of ‘informing’ other schools looking for a game (particularly some of these 6 FBS’s & the many FCS Teams that appear to need a game or 2) that the Bears could be a potential opponent for them. Receiving an inbound inquiry about a ‘deal’ does tend to position oneself better from a negotiation perspective. Just a thought.

It certainly is an early release.  Realistically, playing Alabama/Auburn last year and having an ACC slate on the schedule this year might suggest that Mercer is perfectly comfortable playing 11.

From a playoff perspective, the schedule has two winnable home FCS OOC games.  There are two open dates, which will be useful, including one after the Week 1 game where teams realize how much they have to work on.  There really are not any crucibles on the schedule, though the back to back road games in Johnson City and Chapel Hill will be pretty brutal travel.  

Mercer looks like it will also have to endure what Furman did this season - playing pass heavy VMI and Samford and option oriented Citadel and Wofford in alternating weeks.