The addition of Idaho State finalized the 2010 football schedule yesterday. We’ve got plenty of football left to play this year, but we’ll take a quick look at the 2010 slate while it’s still fresh on our minds.

• The biggest change will be moving the Kentucky game from November back to the late October spot it occupied during the 1990s. One word: horses.
• Georgia will play 11 straight games before a bye week. That’s not unprecedented, but it’s never easy. That’s the trade-off for moving the Kentucky game.
• Your home schedule will be UL-Laf., Arkansas, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Idaho State, and Georgia Tech. Excited yet? Without a major turnaround from either Arkansas or Tennessee, the Tech game might be Georgia’s only chance at a home game against a ranked opponent next year.
• You hate to assume things this far out about the relative strength of conference opponents, but it’s hard to complain about an SEC West schedule that avoids LSU and Alabama.
• It’s nice to see the schedule spread out so that there will be two home games in each month. That means there’s really no road game gauntlet next year; the Dawgs will play no more than two consecutive games away from home. Sticking a road game in front of Florida isn’t ideal (see last year), but it’s also not a trip to Death Valley. Coming home to play Tennessee following two road games and a trip to Colorado might be tough, especially if the Vols are much improved, but the Vols will be coming off a tough road game of their own at LSU.

It’s not going to win the respect that the 2008 and 2009 schedules did, but if the Dawgs can win the games, not many will care. There are still two non-conference opponents from BCS conferences, so there’s not really anything about which to apologize. The SEC schedule looks favorable at first glance, but that didn’t help Georgia much in 2006 when they avoided Alabama and LSU but still went 4-4 in conference. You’ve still got to play the games.

Your thoughts?