“The melancholy days have come, the saddest of the year / Of wailing winds, and naked woods, and meadows brown with sear” – William Cullen Bryant, Third of November
William Cullen Bryant may not have been a fan of college football. Oh, the sad days ARE coming. They’re coming for 127 teams, the teams that will finish the year without a national championship. Some will come in January. Some in December. Some as early as September. They’re coming, and there’s a 99.2% chance they’re coming for your team. The sad days of Autumn also seem to constantly remind us of what sucks about college football. Tallahassee’s law enforcement issues. The NCAA’s plantation attitude toward student athletes. The recent news about Baylor. Auburn, just in general. And while William Cullen Bryant’s melancholy days are coming, with new and unimagined perversions of that which we love and want to be pure, there’s still cause for excitement. Right, Joey Bosa?
Because the meadows aren’t yet brown with sear. They’re green, or blue, or… red???, and outlined by chalk. Week 1 is upon us, and it’s time for what is right with college football to try its best to balance the scales. Jim Harbaugh at Michigan. David Cutcliffe at Duke. Watching Scooby Wright. Watching some poor bastard try to tackle Nick Chubb. It’s time for the fun stuff.
So, what does Week 1 have in store for us? Here’s a closer look.
New Faces, New Places
As is the case each year, one of the week 1 storylines is that of 1st year coaches. Here are the more interesting ones to watch in week 1:
- Central Michigan hired Detroit Lions Special Teams coordinator John Bonamego when HC Dan Enos surprisingly left to become an assistant coach at Arkansas. Bonamego gets an immediate test in his first home game, as Oklahoma State comes to town on Thursday.
- The Jim McElwain era at Florida begins with New Mexico State coming to the Swamp. It should be an easy win for the Gators, so the game itself isn’t compelling. What’s worth watching is the QB position. If there’s swagger, confidence, and real life effectiveness, you’ll know McElwain has started to really make a difference.
-
He’s baaaaaack. Michigan’s offseason hire of Jim Harbaugh was easily the nation’s biggest, and Harbaugh gets one of the bigger Week 1 games to test his first Wolverine squad, as they head to Rice-Eccles Stadium to take on an always pretty good Utah team.
- Are you ready for a kinder, gentler Nebraska? Mike Riley debuts as the Cornhuskers host dangerous BYU. It’ll be interesting to see how NU differs with Riley in charge.
- Baylor isn’t going to lose to SMU, but SMU does boast an excellent offseason coaching hire – Chad Morris was arguably the country’s best offensive coordinator at Clemson, and this game should tell us how much of an AAC threat SMU can be in his first year.
- Spread guru Neal Brown takes over at Troy and faces a tough opening game, on the road at NC State.
- I won’t try to convince you that UNLV is really ever worth watching, but they’re visiting the always entertaining Northern Illinois in week 1, and their new coach was a local high school coach a year ago.
- Philip Montgomery, formerly the OC at Baylor, takes over at Tulsa. Tulsa’s pretty bad, but week 1 is a winnable game as they host the also-bad Florida Atlantic.
- Finally, no coach has a tougher first game than Wisconsin’s Paul Chryst. Chryst had some interesting things going at Pitt, and in his coordinator days at Wisconsin, the Badgers were nationally renowned. I guess we’ll find out quickly if they’re ready to rejoin those ranks. They open up with Alabama. Yikes.
Heisman candidates, start your engines… and pad your stats
Ok, maybe we don’t mean you, Ezekiel Elliott. You and fellow Heisman candidate [entire Ohio State QB depth chart] have a pretty tough early game, facing Virginia Tech in Blacksburg. But others should all load up on highlights and big yards early.
- Trevone Boykin – Boykin doesn’t get an easy matchup, traveling to Minnesota Thursday night. While the Gophers are disciplined and a pretty solid defensive unit, TCU is better, and Boykin has a national spotlight to rack up some big plays. It isn’t the freebie opponent most teams have in week 1, but it’s one he can work with.
- Nick Chubb – Last year, UL-Monroe actually had an alright defense by FBS standards. An alright defense won’t be enough to slow down Chubb, however. Georgia will aim to limit his carries, but something in the ballpark of 12 carries for 95 yards and 2-3 TD should be the target.
- Leonard Fournette – Fournette gets McNeese State at home, at night. If you remember something about McNeese State from last year, it’s probably how their upset bid at Nebraska ended: not being able to tackle the extremely talented RB going downfield against them, as Ameer Abdullah broke 5 tackles on a 58-yard scamper for the winning score. Fournette hopes to have similar moments on Saturday.
- Everett Golson – Golson’s first opponent at FSU can’t be much easier than Texas State, whose defense is projected to be the 115th best in the country. We won’t know if Golson is really the answer in Tallahassee, but if he is, he should have some lovely counting stats to start his award campaign.
- Derrick Henry – Like Boykin, Henry won’t get a terribly easy game, but with a first time starter at QB facing Wisconsin in a neutral site, nationally televised game, Bama will lean on Henry to pound the Badgers. He’ll have to earn them, but the highlight moments will be there for the taking.
- Cody Kessler – USC hosts Arkansas State, projected to have the 99th best defense in the country. Last year, against defenses ranked 80th or worse by S&P+ (I’ll get to that later), Kessler was 96 for 137 for 1484 yards, 20 TD, and 1 INT. He only faced 4 such opponents – Fresno State, Colorado, Cal, and Washington State – giving him a per game average of 371 yards and 5 TD. In other words, say a little prayer for the Red Wolves. They’re gonna need it.
- Samaje Perine – Oklahoma typically starts with a less talented patsy, in recent years racking up decisive week 1 wins against Tulsa, UTEP, ULM, and Louisiana Tech. This time they invite Akron to the slaughter. Akron might make some waves in the MAC this year, but they’re not at all ready for Perine and the Sooners. The sophomore holds the FBS single game rushing record, at like eleventy billion against Kansas last year, so he should start strongly against the Zips.
- Paul Perkins – Virginia quietly had one of the best rush defenses in the country last year, and we’ll see quickly if that’s still the case when they travel to Pasadena to take on Perkins and UCLA. For what he is, Perkins really doesn’t get enough print. Because what he is, you see, is a guy who had over 1700 yards from scrimmage last year. He also comes up big in big moments against good talent, picking up 195 yards against Texas, 136 against Arizona State, 200 against Oregon, 117 against Washington, 119 against Stanford, and 194 against Kansas State.
- Dak Prescott – If Mississippi State wants to be taken seriously, they have to stop going on the road to Southern Miss. Prescott should be happy to play Southern Miss anywhere, however. They’re one of the worst teams in the country. Last year he torched them for 307 yards and 4 TD. Expect something similar this week.
The Ten Closest Matchups of Week 1
Going by the projected F/+ rankings (I’ll discuss them later when I talk S&P+), here are games featuring teams relatively close in projected strength:
- Charlotte vs Georgia State – It’s not a glamorous matchup by any means, but it could be a really fun one for those attending or watching on TV. Both sides should be pretty decent at putting points on the board this year, and neither should be any good at keeping them off it. If you like shootouts, try to catch this Friday afternoon game. The two teams seem pretty even, and you have the bonus of watching Charlotte play its first real FBS game. In an NFL stadium, no less!
- Michigan vs Utah – This is the Thursday game to watch. You have the Harbaugh subplot, naturally, but the two teams should be interestingly matched. Last year, Utah came to Ann Arbor and won 26-10. But Michigan played more poorly than normal in that one, so the result is a little misleading. Now armed with a new coach, Big Blue comes to Salt Lake. The home game may not be the advantage for Utah that it seems – the Utes actually played better on the road last year than they did at home. Utah should be one of the best pass-rushing teams in the Pac-12 this year, and that’s bad news for a Michigan team that doesn’t seem to have its answer at QB. Both defenses could keep things tight in what should be a very even, very entertaining contest.
- Arizona State vs. Texas A&M – An interesting matchup from similar teams goes down in NRG Stadium in Houston. ASU is a Pac-12 South contender that overachieved last year thanks to QB Mike Bercovici‘s excellent play. A&M is likely a sleeper contender in the SEC West. The Aggie roster is packed with big-time talent, and I expect the passing game to be much more dominant than it was a year ago. John Chavis is taking the reins of the A&M defense, which means it will improve. Even last year, the Aggies started strong, pummeling top 10 South Carolina on the opening Thursday. This will be a fun one to watch.
- BYU vs. Nebraska – The Mike Riley subplot is interesting, but this game features two pretty evenly matched teams. It’s arguably the biggest game of the year for the Cougars.
Photo: Chris Nicholl, USA Today Sports They need some momentum coming out of a first month where they still must face Boise State, UCLA, and Michigan. This might be the best shot at a win, and they could very well wind up 0-4. BYU has a talented offense, and they could recover, but a 1-0 start would definitely make the next 3 weeks more palatable. QB Taysom Hill could give Nebraska fits both through the air and on the ground. The Huskers will have bigger fish to fry, as they should be at least relevant to the Big Ten West, but this one could expose any potential defensive weaknesses.
- Florida Atlantic vs. Tulsa – Terrible teams are always happy to see other terrible teams on the schedule.
- UL-Lafayette vs. Kentucky – It’s not often that Sun Belt teams actually have a shot at giving SEC squads a run for their money, but it could happen here. ULL is one of the best year-to-year SBC teams, led by arguably its best coach, Mark Hudspeth, and Kentucky is hardly an invincible SEC power. I like Kentucky at home, but I don’t like Kentucky as much as Vegas, where they’re favored by 17 points against the Ragin’ Cajuns.
- Kent State vs Illinois – The Golden Flashes won’t have a lot of opportunities for big wins this year, but with Illinois having just fired HC Tim Beckman (as in, just fired him like a week ago… yes, in late August), the Illini could be in disarray for the opener. Kent State might be able to take advantage, although Illinois should be the better team.
- Penn State vs. Temple – It’s weird that Penn State is going on the road here, for what could be a field goal fest. Both teams will likely have very strong defenses, and both offenses could struggle. You have to give James Franklin the benefit of the doubt, especially with as talented a QB as Christian Hackenberg behind center, but the results weren’t there last year. Hack still doesn’t look like the QB he was supposed to be, despite all the NFL attention to his raw talents. If last year’s offenses take the field, expect a close game, but not a particularly thrilling one. Unless, that is, 18-15 games really get you going.
- Western Kentucky vs. Vandy – An SEC team, at home against a Conference USA team that lost 5 games a year ago, is the underdog. Let that sink in.
- Ohio vs Idaho – Another instance of two really bad teams happy to have the opportunity to play one another. The Bobcats should be the distinct favorites, which might be the last time I get to write that for a long, long time.
Your Hour-By-Hour Viewing Guide
Here’s the remote setup for the weekend, all times Eastern.
Thursday
6:00 – Go with UNC/South Carolina as the primary viewing, and set the last channel button to CBS SN for FIU/UCF.
7:00 – Switch your backup game to Oklahoma State/CMU on ESPNU.
8:00 – Upgrade the backup game to Western Kentucky/Vanderbilt game on the SEC Network.
8:30 – If UNC/SC is competitive, stick with it as the primary and make Utah/Michigan on FS1 the backup until it’s over. If not, turn the focus to FS1 and make UNC/SC the backup.
9:00 – Only stick with UNC/SC at this point if it’s close and coming down to the wire. If it’s in hand, stick with Utah/Michigan as your #1 and make TCU/Minnesota on ESPN your backup.
Insomniac? At 1 AM, Colorado plays at Hawaii on CBS SN.
Friday
3:30 – Charlotte vs. Georgia State on ESPNU. Fun!
7:00 – When the Sun Belt Shootout is over, it will be replaced by Michigan State vs. Western Michigan. Keep that as your primary game, and set Baylor vs. SMU on ESPN as the backup.
9:00 – If either of those games has reached boring blowout status, maybe give Kent State/Illinois a try on the Big Ten Network.
10:15 – Unless either of the 7:00 games are still close, and they shouldn’t be, go with ESPN’s coverage of Washington/Boise State.
Saturday
12:00 – Not a lot of options here. If you’re without bias, I’d recommend Stanford/Northwestern on ESPN. Make ULM/Georgia, via the SEC Network, the backup. Here’s a pretty good reason to tune in to the Georgia game:
(Wait. You think you’re done watching that GIF? You’re not. Go back to it. Watch each Auburn player individually. Start with #17, who gives chase, nearly catches him at the 5, but can’t get it done. Watch #6, whose thought bubble would read “ow, wait, shit, ahhhhh”. #1, who is literally treated like a Tecmo Super Bowl defender, just zigged and zagged until he is out of the picture. Watch the safety who blows the final tackle – YOU HAD ONE JOB. And finally, marvel at the plight of #23. Gets his first hand on Chubb around the 25. Then makes a helpless dive at the 12. Then gets another hand on him at the 2. And winds up grasping air as he tumbles over his own teammate into the endzone. If you’re still not done, I don’t blame you. Watch forever. This article and all subsequent articles can wait.)
3:30 – Louisville/Auburn on CBS should be the primary here. As the backup, go with either Virginia/UCLA on Fox or BYU/Nebraska on ABC. Keep an eye on your ticker for Penn State/Temple score updates as well.
7:00 – Finish any close games from the 3:30 slate, and then head to ESPN for Arizona State/Texas A&M. The backup game, for now, is UL-Lafayette/Kentucky on ESPNU.
7:30 – Stick with ASU/A&M as the primary, but make Texas/Notre Dame on NBC your backup game. Or, if you like fun, relatively meaningless scoring, take a peek at Georgia Southern/West Virginia.
8:00 – Take your pick as far as which is the primary, but by 8 you should be flipping between the ASU/A&M game and Wisconsin/Alabama. I think ASU/A&M will be more entertaining, but the ABC game could be more important.
10:00 – Once the entertaining 7:00-8:00 games are done, or are no longer entertaining, Mississippi State/Southern Miss will be on FS1. Don’t let it take precedent over any other games, though.
11:00 – Arkansas State/USC on the Pac12 Network won’t be a good game, but you can watch Cody Kessler kickstart his Heisman campaign in high gear.
Sunday
3:30 – Purdue/Marshall on FS1, because they managed to monopolize Sunday’s schedule.
Monday
8:00 – Ohio State/Virginia Tech on ESPN. You know why.
The Full Slate
A quick explanation of a couple of columns:
F/+: F/+ is Football Outsiders’ method of ranking team strength. It’s presented as a percentage and all set against an average FBS team. So, if Team X has a F/+ rating of 12.3%, that means that, by this metric, they’re 12.3% better than the average FBS squad. It encompasses many things that make teams successful, like drive success, explosiveness, and efficiency, all weighted for quality of opponent, but it isn’t an end-all, be-all metric. There’s no such thing. It’s just a far more helpful metric than the collected votes of a bunch of middle-aged beat writers.
S&P+: Developed by Bill Connelly, S&P+ is the “+” half of the F/+ rankings. These are presented as scoring averages, but don’t take that part too seriously. It is a nice combination of two pretty basic concepts: efficiency and explosiveness. The S stands for Success Rate, and it is a better way of looking at teams on a per-play basis than yards. A play is deemed successful if it gains at least 50% of needed yards on 1st down, 70% of needed yards on 2nd down, and 100% on 3rd/4th. Success Rate is just the rate of how often an offense is successful in this regard (or how successful a defense is at preventing this). Explosiveness is measured as points per play. It’s a pretty detailed calculation, but it’s an intuitive one, based on expected point totals from field position. If you want the nitty gritty details, check this out. I listed S&P because it breaks down to both offensive and defensive totals, which gives you an idea of which side of the ball a team might be better on. Remember, these are just projections. They’re just a different, more objective way of doing the projections.
Alright, enjoy the numbers, and enjoy Week 1! But first, go watch that Nick Chubb GIF one more time.
| Visitor | Proj. F/+ | Proj. Off. S&P+ | Proj. Def. S&P+ | Home | Proj. F/+ | Proj. Off. S&P+ | Proj. Def. S&P+ | Favorite | Time | TV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Carolina | 9.0% (45th) | 39.7 (10th) | 32.5 (83rd) | South Carolina (Charlotte, NC) | 26.6% (27th) | 35.4 (26th) | 26.0 (47th) | South Carolina (-2.5) | Thursday - 6:00 | ESPN |
| Florida International | -24.5% (100th) | 16.0 (123rd) | 27.6 (58th) | UCF | 4.0% (50th) | 22.6 (105th) | 24.0 (37th) | UCF (-17) | Thursday - 6:00 | CBS SN |
| Oklahoma State | 16.8% (38th) | 29.9 (51st) | 25.8 (45th) | Central Michigan | -22.1% (98th) | 23.1 (100th) | 32.1 (80th) | Oklahoma State (-20.5) | Thursday - 7:00 | ESPNU |
| Elon | n/a | n/a | n/a | Wake Forest | -16.6% (90th) | 13.1 (127th) | 21.9 (20th) | No Line | Thursday - 7:00 | ESPN3 |
| VMI | n/a | n/a | n/a | Ball State | -7.8% (77th) | 24.6 (89th) | 35.9 (110th) | No Line | Thursday - 7:00 | ESPN3 |
| Stony Brook | n/a | n/a | n/a | Toledo | 0.3% (61st) | 31.0 (47th) | 34.6 (104th) | Toledo (-26.5) | Thursday - 7:00 | ESPN3 |
| Alcorn State | n/a | n/a | n/a | Georgia Tech | 35.9% (17th) | 41.9 (3rd) | 27.5 (57th) | No Line | Thursday - 7:30 | ESPN3 |
| Villanova | n/a | n/a | n/a | Connecticut | -28.5% (104th) | 14.5 (126th) | 29.0 (67th) | No Line | Thursday - 7:30 | ESPN3 |
| Western Kentucky | 3.8% (53rd) | 37.4 (19th) | 38.1 (114th) | Vanderbilt | -10.7% (79th) | 23.0 (101st) | 26.8 (52nd) | WKU (-2.0) | Thursday - 8:00 | SEC Network |
| Michigan | 18.6% (35th) | 28.8 (61st) | 18.4 (11th) | Utah | 21.8% (31st) | 29.6 (54th) | 23.1 (31st) | Utah (-5.5) | Thursday - 8:30 | FS1 |
| TCU | 38.0% (15th) | 37.7 (17th) | 22.3 (27th) | Minnesota | 10.0% (44th) | 28.9 (58th) | 24.0 (36th) | TCU (-14.5) | Thursday - 9:00 | ESPN |
| Ohio | -24.6% (101st) | 22.1 (107th) | 31.8 (79th) | Idaho | -39.9% (123rd) | 24.5 (90th) | 39.0 (119th) | Ohio (-8.5) | Thursday - 9:00 | ESPN3 |
| Southern Utah | n/a | n/a | n/a | Utah State | 8.3% (46th) | 25.3 (86th) | 26.6 (50th) | No Line | Thursday - 9:00 | |
| Duke | 5.1% (48th) | 28.2 (66th) | 26.4 (48th) | Tulane | -19.3% (94th) | 19.6 (115th) | 27.8 (61st) | Duke (-7.5) | Thursday - 9:30 | CBS SN |
| UT-San Antonio | -41.7% (124th) | 9.0 (128th) | 29.1 (69th) | Arizona | 21.6% (32nd) | 34.2 (34th) | 25.9 (46th) | Arizona (-31.5) | Thursday - 10:00 | Pac12 Network |
| UC Davis | n/a | n/a | n/a | Nevada | -8.8% (78th) | 26.8 (78th) | 32.8 (88th) | No Line | Thursday - 10:00 | |
| New Hampshire | n/a | n/a | n/a | San Jose State | -22.1% (97th) | 22.8 (102nd) | 33.8 (94th) | No Line | Thursday - 10:00 | |
| Abilene Christian | n/a | n/a | n/a | Fresno State | -19.0% (93rd) | 23.9 (92nd) | 34.0 (97th) | No Line | Thursday - 10:00 | |
| Colorado | -13.3% (85th) | 31.1 (46th) | 33.6 (92nd) | Hawaii | -29.9% (106th) | 17.9 (120th) | 35.0 (107th) | Colorado (-8.0) | Thursday Late - 1:00 AM (Fri) | CBS SN |
| Charlotte | -34.3% (116th) | 29.2 (55th) | 44.5 (128th) | Georgia State | -36.6% (118th) | 25.2 (87th) | 37.5 (113th) | Georgia State (-7.5) | Friday - 3:30 | ESPNU |
| Michigan State | 42.0% (10th) | 39.8 (9th) | 22.0 (23rd) | Western Michigan | -2.4% (65th) | 31.9 (40th) | 33.1 (90th) | Michigan State (-18.0) | Friday - 7:00 | ESPNU |
| Fordham | n/a | n/a | n/a | Army | -42.3% (126th) | 21.6 (110th) | 41.2 (124th) | No Line | Friday - 7:00 | |
| Baylor | 43.4% (6th) | 41.0 (6th) | 24.7 (38th) | SMU | -35.6% (117th) | 17.9 (121st) | 33.6 (91st) | Baylor (-35.5) | Friday - 7:00 | ESPN |
| Rhode Island | n/a | n/a | n/a | Syracuse | -11.2% (80th) | 23.3 (97th) | 27.7 (60th) | No Line | Friday - 7:00 | ESPN3 |
| Weber State | n/a | n/a | n/a | Oregon State | -4.8% (70th) | 29.6 (53rd) | 34.0 (98th) | No Line | Friday - 8:00 | Pac12 Network |
| Kent State | -21.0% (95th) | 20.1 (113th) | 30.1 (73rd) | Illinois | -7.5% (76th) | 28.7 (62nd) | 28.5 (64th) | Illinois (-14.5) | Friday - 9:00 | Big Ten Network |
| Washington | 4.0% (52nd) | 25.5 (84th) | 26.7 (51st) | Boise State | 30.1% (23rd) | 37.7 (18th) | 25.6 (43rd) | Boise St (-12.0) | Friday - 10:15 | ESPN |
| UL-Monroe | -24.5% (99th) | 17.7 (122nd) | 28.5 (63rd) | Georgia | 48.8% (4th) | 41.8 (4th) | 21.1 (17th) | Georgia (-35.0) | Saturday - 12:00 | SEC Network |
| Tennessee-Martin | n/a | n/a | n/a | Ole Miss | 42.4% (7th) | 34.5 (32nd) | 13.6 (1st) | No Line | Saturday - 12:00 | SEC Network |
| Stanford | 40.6% (10th) | 35.2 (27th) | 20.5 (16th) | Northwestern | 1.1% (59th) | 21.3 (111th) | 22.0 (22nd) | Stanford (-12.0) | Saturday - 12:00 | ESPN |
| Colgate | n/a | n/a | n/a | Navy | 1.1% (58th) | 31.7 (41st) | 32.1 (81st) | No Line | Saturday - 12:00 | CBS SN |
| Norfolk State | n/a | n/a | n/a | Rutgers | -15.1% (87th) | 29.6 (52nd) | 32.2 (82nd) | No Line | Saturday - 12:00 | ESPN News |
| South Dakota State | n/a | n/a | n/a | Kansas | -32.6% (112th) | 20.0 (114th) | 30.9 (76th) | No Line | Saturday - 12:00 | |
| Illinois State | n/a | n/a | n/a | Iowa | 4.0% (51st) | 27.0 (77th) | 27.3 (54th) | No Line | Saturday - 12:00 | Big Ten Network |
| Richmond | n/a | n/a | n/a | Maryland | -7.0% (74th) | 28.1 (67th) | 25.5 (42nd) | No Line | Saturday - 12:00 | ESPNU |
| Wofford | n/a | n/a | n/a | Clemson | 34.0% (18th) | 28.9 (59th) | 14.1 (3rd) | No Line | Saturday - 12:30 | ESPN3 |
| Youngstown State | n/a | n/a | n/a | Pittsburgh | 15.3% (40th) | 37.0 (21st) | 28.6 (65th) | No Line | Saturday - 1:00 | ESPN3 |
| Maine | n/a | n/a | n/a | Boston College | 0.9% (60th) | 26.5 (79th) | 23.7 (34th) | No Line | Saturday - 1:00 | ESPN3 |
| Portland State | n/a | n/a | n/a | Washington State | -7.0% (75th) | 33.5 (37th) | 32.6 (84th) | No Line | Saturday - 2:00 | Pac12 Network |
| UTEP | -30.8% (108th) | 22.5 (106th) | 32.8 (87th) | Arkansas | 31.8% (21st) | 38.3 (15th) | 18.9 (12th) | Arkansas (-33.0) | Saturday - 3:30 | ESPNU |
| Louisville | 19.5% (33rd) | 27.9 (70th) | 19.4 (13th) | Auburn (Atlanta, GA) | 38.9% (11th) | 40.8 (7th) | 21.2 (18th) | Auburn (-10.5) | Saturday - 3:30 | CBS |
| Virginia | 1.5% (57th) | 27.5 (73rd) | 21.4 (19th) | UCLA | 45.0% (5th) | 41.6 (5th) | 22.0 (21st) | UCLA (-19.5) | Saturday - 3:30 | FOX |
| BYU | 15.3% (39th) | 31.6 (42nd) | 27.6 (59th) | Nebraska | 21.9% (30th) | 35.0 (30th) | 25.5 (41st) | Nebraska (-7.0) | Saturday - 3:30 | ABC |
| Old Dominion | -30.9% (109th) | 30.9 (49th) | 42.4 (127th) | Eastern Michigan | -57.2% (128th) | 15.2 (124th) | 38.5 (117th) | Old Dominion (-6.0) | Saturday - 3:30 | ESPN3 |
| Sam Houston State | n/a | n/a | n/a | Texas Tech | 2.2% (56th) | 38.5 (14th) | 35.0 (106th) | No Line | Saturday - 3:30 | |
| Penn State | 17.1% (36th) | 23.8 (94th) | 13.9 (2nd) | Temple | 2.9% (55th) | 18.5 (118th) | 18.4 (10th) | Penn State (-7.0) | Saturday - 3:30 | ESPN |
| Wagner | n/a | n/a | n/a | Rice | -21.1% (96th) | 27.1 (76th) | 34.5 (101st) | No Line | Saturday - 3:30 | |
| Florida Atlantic | -27.1% (102nd) | 25.5 (83rd) | 35.5 (108th) | Tulsa | -18.0% (92nd) | 27.4 (75th) | 39.0 (120th) | Tulsa (-7.5) | Saturday - 3:30 | CBS SN |
| Morgan State | n/a | n/a | n/a | Air Force | -11.8% (81st) | 27.7 (71st) | 32.7 (86th) | No Line | Saturday - 3:30 | |
| Albany | n/a | n/a | n/a | Buffalo | -33.1% (113th) | 23.3 (96th) | 41.3 (125th) | No Line | Saturday - 3:30 | ESPN3 |
| Presbyterian College | n/a | n/a | n/a | Miami (OH) | -37.0% (119th) | 20.4 (112th) | 33.9 (95th) | No Line | Saturday - 3:30 | ESPN3 |
| Howard | n/a | n/a | n/a | Appalachian State | -13.2% (84th) | 23.5 (95th) | 33.7 (93rd) | No Line | Saturday - 3:30 | ESPN3 |
| Savannah State | n/a | n/a | n/a | Colorado State | -3.4% (67th) | 31.4 (45th) | 34.5 (102nd) | No Line | Saturday - 4:00 | |
| North Dakota | n/a | n/a | n/a | Wyoming | -37.8% (121st) | 23.2 (99th) | 37.0 (112th) | No Line | Saturday - 4:00 | |
| Southern Illinois | n/a | n/a | n/a | Indiana | -12.5% (83rd) | 28.3 (64th) | 31.8 (77th) | No Line | Saturday - 4:00 | |
| Bowling Green | -16.4% (89th) | 28.0 (69th) | 38.3 (116th) | Tennessee (Nashville) | 28.6% (26th) | 33.7 (35th) | 17.7 (9th) | Tennessee (-20.5) | Saturday - 4:00 | SEC Network |
| Southeast Missouri State | n/a | n/a | n/a | Missouri | 33.2% (20th) | 31.9 (39th) | 19.8 (15th) | No Line | Saturday - 4:00 | SEC Network |
| Grambling State | n/a | n/a | n/a | California | -0.3% (62nd) | 36.6 (22nd) | 33.0 (89th) | No Line | Saturday - 5:00 | Pac12 Network |
| Bethune-Cookman | n/a | n/a | n/a | Miami (FL) | 16.8% (37th) | 33.7 (36th) | 22.0 (24th) | No Line | Saturday - 6:00 | ESPN3 |
| Troy | -42.2% (125th) | 22.6 (104th) | 40.1 (122nd) | NC State | 4.4% (49th) | 32.6 (38th) | 27.2 (53rd) | NC State (-26.0) | Saturday - 6:00 | ESPN3 |
| Towson | n/a | n/a | n/a | East Carolina | -4.0% (69th) | 28.5 (65th) | 32.6 (85th) | No Line | Saturday - 6:00 | ESPN3 |
| Gardner-Webb | n/a | n/a | n/a | South Alabama | -30.9% (110th) | 18.5 (119th) | 30.1 (72nd) | No Line | Saturday - 6:00 | ESPN3 |
| Mississippi Valley State | n/a | n/a | n/a | New Mexico | -29.4% (105th) | 30.1 (50th) | 40.2 (123rd) | No Line | Saturday - 7:00 | |
| Akron | -33.4% (114th) | 18.9 (117th) | 31.8 (78th) | Oklahoma | 36.4% (16th) | 39.3 (12th) | 22.2 (26th) | Oklahoma (-31.0) | Saturday - 7:00 | |
| Missouri State | n/a | n/a | n/a | Memphis | -2.8% (66th) | 25.7 (82nd) | 27.9 (62nd) | No Line | Saturday - 7:00 | ESPN3 |
| Florida A&M | n/a | n/a | n/a | USF | -27.8% (103rd) | 19.2 (116th) | 29.1 (68th) | No Line | Saturday - 7:00 | ESPN3 |
| Alabama A&M | n/a | n/a | n/a | Cincinnati | 6.2% (47th) | 34.8 (31st) | 30.8 (74th) | No Line | Saturday - 7:00 | ESPN3 |
| Southern | n/a | n/a | n/a | Louisiana Tech | 3.4% (54th) | 28.9 (60th) | 26.5 (49th) | No Line | Saturday - 7:00 | |
| Jackson State | n/a | n/a | n/a | Middle Tennessee | -17.5% (91st) | 28.5 (63rd) | 34.8 (105th) | No Line | Saturday - 7:00 | |
| Arizona State | 33.9% (19th) | 36.3 (24th) | 23.5 (33rd) | Texas A&M (Houston) | 29.1% (25th) | 39.8 (8th) | 25.7 (44th) | Texas A&M (-3.0) | Saturday - 7:00 | ESPN |
| UL-Lafayette | -15.2% (88th) | 28.1 (68th) | 34.6 (103rd) | Kentucky | -5.7% (73rd) | 29.2 (56th) | 25.0 (40th) | Kentucky (-17.0) | Saturday - 7:00 | ESPNU |
| South Dakota | n/a | n/a | n/a | Kansas State | 25.6% (28th) | 35.2 (29th) | 27.4 (56th) | No Line | Saturday - 7:10 | |
| Texas | 11.1% (43rd) | 27.6 (72nd) | 17.1 (8th) | Notre Dame | 38.4% (14th) | 37.8 (16th) | 22.5 (29th) | Notre Dame (-9.5) | Saturday - 7:30 | NBC |
| Georgia Southern | -1.1% (64th) | 30.9 (48th) | 34.0 (96th) | West Virginia | 14.6% (42nd) | 31.5 (43rd) | 23.7 (35th) | West Virginia (-19.5) | Saturday - 7:30 | |
| McNeese State | n/a | n/a | n/a | LSU | 42.3% (8th) | 35.2 (28th) | 17.0 (7th) | No Line | Saturday - 7:30 | SEC Network |
| New Mexico State | -42.7% (127th) | 22.7 (103rd) | 41.8 (126th) | Florida | 18.9% (34th) | 22.0 (108th) | 14.1 (4th) | Florida (-37.0) | Saturday - 7:30 | SEC Network |
| UNLV | -39.0% (122nd) | 23.2 (98th) | 39.6 (121st) | Northern Illinois | -0.6% (63rd) | 25.3 (85th) | 30.9 (75th) | NIU (-23.0) | Saturday - 7:30 | CBS SN |
| San Diego | n/a | n/a | n/a | San Diego State | -5.1% (72nd) | 25.1 (88th) | 28.9 (66th) | No Line | Saturday - 8:00 | |
| Wisconsin | 30.1% (22nd) | 34.3 (33rd) | 22.8 (30th) | Alabama (Arlington) | 59.8% (2nd) | 39.3 (11th) | 14.8 (5th) | Alabama (-10.5) | Saturday - 8:00 | ABC |
| Texas State | -30.2% (107th) | 26.4 (80th) | 38.2 (115th) | Florida State | 38.5% (13th) | 36.3 (23rd) | 22.0 (25th) | FSU (-29.0) | Saturday - 8:00 | ESPN News |
| Eastern Washington | n/a | n/a | n/a | Oregon | 52.5% (3rd) | 45.7 (2nd) | 24.8 (39th) | No Line | Saturday - 8:00 | Pac12 Network |
| Northern Iowa | n/a | n/a | n/a | Iowa State | -12.5% (82nd) | 29.1 (57th) | 35.7 (109th) | No Line | Saturday - 8:00 | |
| Tennessee Tech | n/a | n/a | n/a | Houston | -4.0% (68th) | 21.7 (109th) | 29.7 (70th) | No Line | Saturday - 8:00 | ESPN3 |
| Mississippi State | 24.5% (29th) | 37.0 (20th) | 23.1 (32nd) | Southern Mississippi | -33.6% (115th) | 24.4 (91st) | 35.9 (111th) | Miss St (-21.0) | Saturday - 10:00 | FS1 |
| Arkansas State | -4.9% (71st) | 31.5 (44th) | 34.2 (99th) | USC | 38.6% (12th) | 38.9 (13th) | 22.5 (28th) | USC (-27.0) | Saturday - 11:00 | Pac12 Network |
| Purdue | -13.8% (86th) | 25.9 (81st) | 27.4 (55th) | Marshall | 14.7% (41st) | 36.0 (25th) | 30.0 (71st) | Marshall (-7.5) | Sunday - 3:00 | FS1 |
| Ohio State | 60.5% (1st) | 46.7 (1st) | 19.6 (14th) | Virginia Tech | 29.1% (24th) | 27.4 (74th) | 15.8 (6th) | OSU (-12.0) | Monday - 8:00 | ESPN |
Leave a Reply