How to Watch College Football in Week 1

#11 Oregon and #16 Auburn headline the official opening weekend of College Football. While that may be the only game featuring ranked opponents, it is hardly the only story line of interest on this holiday weekend.

Here are some things I’ll be watching for:

ACC gut checks

There are a total of three ACC conference games (counting Clemson vs Georgia Tech on Thursday) in week 1. When you add those games to the challenges that Duke (vs Alabama), North Carolina (vs South Carolina), and Louisville (vs Notre Dame) all face this week (not to mention Miami vs Florida from week 0), we are going to get a really good sense of where the ACC stands in terms of the overall competitiveness of the conference.

PAC 12 rivals

We’ve already gotten a pretty good sense of how the season is going to start for the conference. Arizona reminded us that defense matters. Oregon State opened up this season pretty much the same way they opened the last one. So did UCLA. ASU and Colorado made quick work of their opponents. Utah looked tough.

With Stanford hosting Northwestern and USC taking on Fresno State, we should continue to get our first sense of how the better teams (including Oregon) are racking in stacking even as Washington, Washington State and CAl take on less stiff competition.

Week 1 upsets

In each of the last six years, at least one ranked team has suffered a week 1 upset. Could today make a seventh? There are some games that might present some drama that you might want to watch.

Miami (OH) at #20 Iowa

#22 Syracuse at Liberty

Louisiana Tech vs #10 Texas

Enjoy some football today. This is your open thread.

Week 1 Schedule