Why Georgia football, not Alabama, got the sweetest deal from the SEC

When the SEC on Friday revealed the two additional opponents each member would play this season in the expanded 10-game, conference-only format, it became clear that the league created a favorable path to the playoff for frontrunners.

The inevitable backlash was that the SEC cowed to Alabama and gave the Crimson Tide a cushy draw.

But was Alabama really the big winner of Friday's schedule draw?

On this edition of "The Volunteer State," Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams of the News Sentinel examine the SEC's scheduling assignments. They discuss the tough road that awaits Tennessee and how the paths are more manageable for Alabama, LSU, Georgia and Florida.

Toppmeyer says that Alabama didn't actually receive as favorable of a draw as it might seem. The Crimson Tide will play Georgia, Tennessee and Kentucky – arguably three of the four top teams in the SEC East – along with Missouri. It did not draw Vanderbilt, the projected SEC East cellar dweller.

Toppmeyer and Adams make the case that Georgia was the real winner of the schedule draw. The Bulldogs were scheduled to play Alabama and Auburn from the SEC West and got gifted dates with Arkansas and Mississippi State.

Florida also drew Arkansas, along with Texas A&M, joining previously scheduled LSU and Mississippi. The schedule assignments cement Georgia as the SEC East favorite, with Florida as the top challenger, and it probably furthered the gap between the those two teams and the rest of the East.

Meanwhile, LSU received a tasty draw featuring three of the East's projected worst teams – Vanderbilt, Missouri and South Carolina – to go along with Florida. That gives LSU an easier route to the SEC Championship than Alabama.

Blake Toppmeyer covers University of Tennessee football. Email him at blake.toppmeyer@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @btoppmeyer. If you enjoy Blake’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it. Current subscribers can click here to join Blake's subscriber-only text group offering updates and analysis on Vols football.