Much has been made of the 2012 Ole Miss football schedule this off-season. It's a tough one.

That was validated today with the release of the coaches poll. The Rebels play Nos. 1 (LSU), 2 (Alabama), 6 (Georgia) and 10 (Arkansas) all on the road. No. 15 Texas and No. 25 Auburn come to Oxford.

I don't get amped up about the schedule, however. It's the SEC. In this shifting landscape of college football, teams are trying to get into the SEC, not out of it. Those four top 10 teams are all SEC teams. Among the ranked opponents, there's not a "breather" until Texas at No. 15.

There's a little bit of misfortune in the fact that SEC East opponent Georgia replaces Kentucky on the Ole Miss schedule, but those other guys ... you've got to play them.

The good news is that all four of those top 10 opponents are on the road. The likelihood of winning one of those games - regardless of venue - is not strong. It's better to play them on the road and save the home games for Auburn and unranked SEC opponents Texas A&M, Vanderbilt and MSU. If Ole Miss is improved, it should be competitive in those games and have a chance to win.