It’s been a long, brutal, existential nightmare of an offseason for college football fans. We’ve had to question the very nature of the sport we love, the stability of its future, and how much of its past we will be able to save as conferences, rivalries and traditions are thrown to the wayside in a play for TV ratings and revenue.
It’s time to clear our minds from the behind-the-scenes maneuvering, backstabbing and politicking. It’s time for real, actual football.
For most teams, the season will begin on Labor Day Weekend. But a few teams are getting started one week early, giving us a bit of an on-ramp into the college football season. We’ve conveniently ranked the five best games of Week 0 so you know where to tune your TV or streaming devices for the ideal college football Saturday.
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1
Navy vs. No. 13 Notre Dame (Saturday, 2:30 p.m. ET on NBC)
Favorite: Notre Dame (-21)
Marcus Freeman got off to a fantastic start at Notre Dame last year but was plagued by a few inexplicable losses that kept the Irish from having a special season. Freeman’s team will kick off the 2023 college football season in Dublin against Navy in the Midshipmen’s first season of the post-Ken Niumatalolo era. This should be an easy win for the Irish, but true college football fiends can’t miss the season’s first kickoff.
2
No. 6 USC vs. San Jose State (Saturday, 8 p.m. ET on Pac-12 Network)
Favorite: USC (-30.5)
When Lincoln Riley took his offensive circus from Oklahoma to USC, it didn’t take long to see the same success when it comes to racking up yardage and points. Unfortunately, the defensive liabilities Riley’s teams had at Oklahoma also seemed to follow him to L.A., and it bit the Trojans down the final stretch of 2022. Riley has tried to patch some of the holes in his defense with a plethora of impressive transfer players, but it remains to be seen whether it’s a question of talent or scheme.
3
Vanderbilt vs. Hawaii (Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET on SEC Network)
Favorite: Vanderbilt (-17.5)
Timmy Chang enters his second season as head coach of his alma mater. Hawaii is coming off a tough season, but it gets a huge opportunity for a statement here against a Vanderbilt defense that gave up nearly 40 points per game last year in its first season under head coach Clark Lea. The Commodores are solid favorites here, but a chance for an upset against an SEC team has to have the Warriors champing at the bit.
4
New Mexico State vs. UMass (Saturday, 7 p.m. ET on ESPN)
Favorite: New Mexico State (-7.5)
New Mexico State returns eight starters on offense, including quarterback Diego Pavia, coming off a winning season and a bowl win, making it unquestionably one of the best seasons in NMSU history. Meanwhile, hope springs eternal for UMass as it enters the season looking to climb out of the college football basement under second year head coach Don Brown.
5
Jacksonville State vs. UTEP (Saturday, 5:30 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network)
Favorite: UTEP (-1)
Is this a massively impactful contest that will send shockwaves through college football? Certainly not. But it’s not everyday you get to see an FCS powerhouse make its debut at the FBS level! Jacksonville State joins the ranks after years of success in the FCS subdivision, led by a familiar name: former West Virginia and Michigan head coach Rich Rodriguez. The Gamecocks will make their FBS debut against UTEP, a program with much more experience at the FBS level but presents a very realistic opportunity for JSU to start off its new era with a win.
