Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: Tom Izzo has once again put together a fiery non-conference schedule filled with blue bloods, national contenders and top-tier mid-major programs.

The goal is simple — prepare Michigan State for another gauntlet of a Big Ten schedule and, ultimately, an NCAA Tournament run that could end in Detroit.

This year, Izzo may have outdone himself.

The Spartans will face teams such as Duke, Arkansas, Tennessee and Gonzaga, while also taking on smaller programs that have been dominating their respective conferences in recent years, including Drake, Merrimack, Penn and Quinnipiac.

And that doesn't even include two other major opponents Michigan State will face in exhibition play: UConn and Marquette.

The schedule has become so challenging that one of college basketball's leading analysts, Andy Katz, has Michigan State ranked as having the third-toughest non-conference schedule in the country.

In fact, of the six teams Katz has ranked as having the toughest non-conference schedules, Michigan State will face five of them.

Michigan State's Non-Conference Gauntlet

Coming in at No. 1 is UConn, the lone team in Katz's top five that Michigan State will only face in exhibition competition.

The Huskies, who finished as the national runner-up last season, have also put together a brutal schedule before the NCAA Tournament even begins.

At No. 2 is Duke, a team the Spartans will face on November 10 in Chicago.

Duke defeated Michigan State last season and would have been the Spartans' next opponent in the NCAA Tournament had Michigan State been able to get past UConn.

Then comes Michigan State at No. 3.

At No. 4 is the second Big Ten team on the list, the Illinois Fighting Illini. Michigan State will travel to Illinois on February 5.

Last season, the Spartans shocked the Fighting Illini at the Breslin Center. Illinois returns a tremendous roster featuring plenty of size, although the Illini did lose freshman phenom Keaton Wagler to the NBA Draft this past year.

No. 5 is Arkansas, which Michigan State will face in Detroit on Thanksgiving Day, November 26.

That matchup could serve as an interesting preview of what the Spartans hope to experience later in the season, with the Final Four coming to Detroit.

Michigan State defeated Arkansas by three points to open last season despite making just one 3-pointer throughout the entire game.

Rounding out the top six is Gonzaga, whom Michigan State will face at the Acrisure Classic in California on December 19.

The remaining four teams in Katz's top 10 hardest non-conference schedules are Arizona, Kansas, Kentucky and Texas Tech.

Izzo Is Throwing His Team Into the Fire

Tom Izzo has never been one to ease his team into a season.

He puts his teams through the ringer early and often, and there certainly won't be any letup once Big Ten play begins.

That's by design.

Izzo wants his teams to be battle-tested before the NCAA Tournament arrives — a month-long pressure cooker where one bad game can end an entire season and where the craziest upsets can happen if a team isn't fully prepared.

Izzo has called this one of his most-liked squads, and looking at the schedule, there is going to be plenty for Michigan State fans to look forward to.

Not only because of the roster the Spartans are bringing into the season, but because of the number of epic battles waiting for them along the way.

The Spartans aren't simply preparing for a season.

They're preparing for a war.

Michigan State's Non-Conference Schedule

Oct. 2 — (E) UIW

Oct. 20 — (E) UConn

Oct. 25 — (E) Marquette

Nov. 2 — Quinnipiac

Nov. 5 — Toledo

Nov. 10 — (N) Duke — Chicago

Nov. 17 — at Tennessee

Nov. 21 — Detroit

Nov. 26 — (N) Arkansas — Detroit

Dec. 5 — Drake

Dec. 12 — Merrimack

Dec. 19 — (N) Gonzaga — California

Dec. 22 — Oakland

Dec. 29 — Penn

Source: Yahoo Sports