i respect that mindset from a mercer fan. building a tough schedule to get battle-tested is smart football, and i get why you're proud of that. for us, though, the conversation is totally different. we're in the mac, fighting for respect every single year, and our non-conference schedule is built for survival and opportunity. we'll take on those power four road games for the paychecck and the chance to shock the world. our path to being playoff-ready, meaning bowl-ready for us, is about winning the conference. that happens by getting our young guys confident in september, then running through the mac grind. we don't have the luxury to schedule a top fcs opponent just for the test. our test is every week in a league where anyone can beat anyone. so while i see your point about being playoff-ready in the fcs, for the zips, being ready means being healthy. good luck to mercer, though. anyone who wants to play tough opponents has my respect.