Fifteen marquee college football games kick off today, and the NFL still has nothing to offer. The New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks won’t open the regular season for another four days, which leaves Saturday to college football alone, and it delivers.
Alabama, Georgia, Texas, Oregon, Michigan, LSU, and defending national champion Indiana are all on the schedule, running from a noon kickoff in Indiana through a late West Coast finish in Berkeley.
No NFL Games Today, But There’s College Football Action On Saturday
The day opens at noon with North Texas visiting Indiana on FOX and Liberty at James Madison on ESPNU, before the SEC gets its first real test of the season when East Carolina travels to Alabama at noon on ABC.
Half an hour later, Ohio State hosts Ball State on Big Ten Network, looking to bounce back after a near-perfect 12-0 regular season unraveled with back-to-back postseason losses to Indiana in the Big Ten title game and Miami in the Cotton Bowl, the two teams that went on to meet for the national championship.
The afternoon window is loaded. Georgia hosts Tennessee State at 3 p.m. on SEC Network+, while Baylor and Auburn meet at a neutral site in Atlanta at 3:30 on ABC.
That same slot sends Boise State to Oregon on CBS, Texas State to Texas on ESPN, Tulane to Duke on ACC Network, and Oklahoma State to Tulsa on ESPNU at 3:45.
Night football brings the day’s best matchup. Clemson travels to LSU at 7:30 p.m. on ABC, a game with real national implications for both programs before September is even over.
That kickoff overlaps with Western Michigan at Michigan on NBC and Peacock, and Florida Atlantic at Florida on SEC Network at 7:45.
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FIU opens the evening slate earlier at South Florida on ESPN+. The night and the week’s college slate wrap at 10:30 when UCLA visits California on ESPN.
What’s In Store For NFL Week 1: Full Schedule Details
Saturday is the last full day of college football before the NFL takes the sport back.
The Patriots and Seahawks kick off the regular season Wednesday, September 9, at 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock, a rematch of Super Bowl LX.
The following night, the 49ers and Rams meet in Melbourne, Australia, for the league’s first regular-season game on Australian soil, streaming exclusively on Netflix.
The rest of Week 1 stacks up fast. FOX carries Bears at Panthers, Buccaneers at Bengals, and Saints at Lions at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday, September 13, before NBC closes the day with Cowboys at Giants on Sunday Night Football.
Monday night belongs to Denver and Kansas City, a rematch loaded with stakes after the Broncos won the AFC West at 14-3 while the Chiefs collapsed to 6-11 the year before.
By the time that Monday night game ends, the sports calendar looks completely different. For one more Saturday, though, college football still has the floor to itself.
