ALRIGHT ALRIGHT ALRIGHT! Somebody cue Big N Rich cause you know what damn time it is. 5 more very long weeks but just to give you a little tease here’s the 50 games that we’re most looking forward to in the first four weeks of the season. Yes, I know what you’re thinking. Why didn’t you guys just make it the first month. Well, after a month we’re diving into conference play and a ton of this seasons narrative will already be formed from out of conference and some of those weirdly scheduled early conference games. All of Week 0 was left off of this list but we will absolutely be sitting on our couches from 2:30 when Notre Dame/Navy starts until midnight when FIU/Louisiana Tech ends. Hope you guys enjoy and please comment on what the heck we missed.
Thursday 08/31 Florida @ Utah 8:00 EST on ESPN
Florida will be traveling to Utah for this one after last years game in Gainesville. The Anthony Richardson hype could not have been any higher after he had one of the craziest plays of the year for a touchdown. Don’t expect too much from Florida here as the Utes are on a 14 game home winning streak dating back to 2020 and look to start off 2023 with a bang.
Friday 09/02 Georgia Tech “vs” Louisville (Georgia Dome) 7:30 EST on ESPN
Two new head coaches in the ACC with a lot of experience in the conference here. New looks across the board for both squads but we’ll see what a Jeff Brohm team will look like and if Brent Key can capitalize off of his strong end of 2022.
You can hear our thoughts on both teams upcoming season here.
Saturday 09/02 Colorado @ TCU 12:00 EST on FOX
Seriously, I mean seriously you can’t ask for more in terms of a storyline game. You have Deion Sanders in his first year heading down to play probably the biggest Cinderella of all time, TCU in Fort Worth. Colorado got absolutely smoked in last years game and honestly I don’t see it going any different but you never know.
Saturday 09/02 UTSA @ Houston 7:00 EST on FS1
Just a couple teams down the road from one another playing a game. Last year was really exciting and ended in triple OT. Both teams should be pretty fun to watch this year and just really can’t wait to watch this one to learn a little bit about where these teams are headed in 2023.
Saturday 09/02 UNC vs SC (Charlotte) 7:30 EST on ABC
For all you that don’t know southeastern geography this is a true neutral-site game and Columbia is actually closer to Charlotte than Chapel Hill is. Really, really, really, excited to see if Drake Maye can start off this year with a bang, if UNCs defense can do anything at all, and if Spencer Rattler can build off his great stretch at the end of the year.
You can hear our personal thoughts on UNC’s upcoming season here.
Saturday 09/02 WVU @ Penn State 7:30 EST on NBC/Peacock
The old old heads will remember but these teams played every year from 1940-1992. This is the first time these teams will face off since then and both teams have a lot of questions going into the season. Regardless of what you think of the matchup it’s a night game in Happy Valley. Yes, I know it’s not a white out but the video still rocks.
Sunday 09/03 LSU vs FSU (Orlando) 7:30 EST on ABC
The sky was falling after Brian Kelly lost to FSU in New Orleans last year. Not too many people saw either of these teams having quite as productive years that they did. Anyways, it’s a top ten matchup with two historically good programs that are loaded with talent and a pair of quarterbacks that are looking to start their Heisman campaigns early.
You can hear our thoughts on FSU’s upcoming season here.
Monday 09/04 Clemson @ Duke 8:00 EST on ESPN
WEEK 1 CONFERENCE MATCHUP ALERT. Yes, we know Clemson is probably going to be good at football but what we’re really looking forward to seeing is what Duke is able to do in year 2 of Elko. Duke has a real chance to be the “conference runs through them” team for the ACC this year.
You can hear our thoughts on both teams upcoming season here.
Friday 09/08 Illinois @ Kansas 7:30 EST on ESPN2
Two power five teams starting a home and home series that are pretty much polar opposites in their playing style. Illinois lost a ton and Kansas is returning a ton and just really hoping Jalon Daniels is healthy all year. Plus, the game is going to be on a Friday night? Sign me up.
You can hear our thoughts on the upcoming Kansas’ season here.
Saturday 09/09 Nebraska @ Colorado 12:00 EST on FOX
So you’re telling me we get the first home game of the Deion Sanders era with a matchup against a traditional rival in Nebraska who is starting their own new journey with Matt Rhule. Regardless of the quality we will tune in. College football actually is just really good reality television when you think about it.
Saturday 09/09 Purdue @ VT 12:00 EST on ESPN2
New Purdue head coach Ryan Walters heading to Blacksburg in week 2 for a pretty good early road test. Brent Pry and the Hokies will look to take some steps forward this year and this would be a good first step to do so if they could pull off the upset.
You can hear our thoughts on the upcoming Virginia Tech season here.
Saturday 09/09 Utah @ Baylor 12:00 EST on ESPN
Utah with back to back, very tough non-conference games. If they do slip up against Florida somehow this will be a tough must-win on the road as Dave Aranda and the Bears will be hungry after a disappointing 2022 season. Seriously, shout out to the Utah staff for not setting up a Michigan non-conference schedule.
You can hear our thoughts on the upcoming Baylor season here
Saturday 09/09 Notre Dame @ NC State 12:00 on ABC
Some of the Notre Dame guys here at TNT were a little scared of this matchup early on. NC State still looks good and this is a true road test early on for Notre Dame before they have some even tougher games on the schedule down the road. This is a must win for the Irish and the Wolfpack love to play spoiler. Also, got some old faces, new places at quarterback with Sam Hartman and Brennan Armstrong at quarterback facing off in a ACC adjacent game.
You can hear our thoughts on both teams upcoming seasons here.
Saturday 09/09 Iowa @ Iowa State 3:30 EST on FOX
YES… HA HA HA… YES!
Two top ten defenses and two bottom twenty offenses? More please. Will Bryan Ferentz score 25? Will the Iowa State offense improve at all? Find out on this years episode of El Assico
You can hear our thoughts on the upcoming Iowa State season here.
Saturday 09/09 Ole Miss @ Tulane 3:30 on ESPN2
The old rare P5 team heading on the road to a G5 team. Tulane was awesome to say the least in 2022 and Ole Miss started off hot but finished pretty slow. Should be an awesome game and opportunity to learn a lot about where these teams are headed in 2023.
Saturday 09/09 Texas A&M @ Miami 3:30 EST on ABC
Two tough seasons for these teams last year as both we’re expected to be inside the top 20 all year. We’ll see if either can get back on track with some new pieces on the coaching staff as they’re both loaded with talent.
You can hear our thoughts on the upcoming Miami season here.
Saturday 09/09 SMU @ Oklahoma 6:00 EST on ESPN+
A lot of questions coming into 2023 for both teams on the defensive side of the ball. We’ll see if either team can get anything going in there but regardless we should have a good old fashioned shoot out from two top 15 offenses.
Saturday 09/09 Cincinnati @ Pitt 6:30 EST on The CW (lol)
Scott Satterfield is in at Cincinnati and the team starts off with a tough road test against a P5 opponent in a transition year into the P5 themselves. Why yes, I do think I will tune in.
You can hear our thoughts on Cincinnati here and Pitt here.
Saturday 09/09 Texas @ Alabama 7:00 EST on ESPN
By far one of the most exciting matchups of the early season. Last years game in Austin was absolutely electric and we’ll see how Sark and the Longhorns do against an “rebuilding” /s Alabama team.
Saturday 09/09 Oregon @ Texas Tech 7:00 EST on FOX
Oregon has a tough road test early on in Lubbock. Bo Nix is looking to start his Heisman campaign off on the right foot and a lot of people have Texas Tech as the dark horse to win the conference this year. Should be an electric matchup.
Saturday 09/09 Arizona @ Mississippi State 7:30 on SEC Network
The gang here is quite literally the biggest members of the Fisch Gang. Zach Arnett has a tough job in year one but he has a great veteran QB on his own roster with Will Rogers. Would have been a full air-raid game but Mississippi State has changed it up a little. Don’t get me wrong, they’re still going to throw the ball a ton.
Saturday 09/09 Wisconsin @ Washington State 7:30 EST on ABC
Washington State pulled off the upset last year in Madison but this year should look a lot different. Gonna be a ton of yards in the air as Wisconsin moves to an air-raid style system and the Cougars already run that themselves. Year one for Fickell starts with a hard road test in Pullman.
Saturday 09/16 Auburn @ California 10:30 on ESPN
Late night football is a blessing. Hugh Freeze is in and the Tigers are heading out west to play the Golden Bears. Justin Wilcox really needs to get it going in Berkley or his time may be coming to an end as he hasn’t reached a bowl game since the 2019 season.
Saturday 09/16 Penn State @ Illinois 12:00 EST on Fox
I’m gonna be honest guys… I just wanted to post the highlights of 9 OT game with a final score of 20-18.
Saturday 09/16 LSU @ Mississippi State 12:00 EST on ESPN
Very possibly chance both of these teams have a loss on their record going into their first conference game. Last years game was pretty exciting as this matchup always is.
Saturday 09/16 Kansas State @ Mizzou 12:00 on SEC Network
It’s not the border war but still a lot of bad blood from the old Big 12 days. These teams played for the first time in 11 years in 2022. Mizzou has looked really good at times and Kansas State lost a ton of key talent after last years Big 12 Championship.
You can here our thoughts on the upcoming Kansas State season here.
Saturday 09/16 South Carolina @ UGA 3:30 on CBS
Beamer is doing his best to improve and this is the first test of any sort for UGA this year. It’s hard to see it being close but we can watch and see how the champs are looking in a new year. UGA has outscored Carolina 133 to 36 over the last three years.
Saturday 09/16 Minnesota @ UNC 3:30 on ESPN
Minnesota has some tough treading to do to get back to competing for the Big 10 West but we will see if they can turn it around quickly. UNC may already have a loss under their belt from SC or even App State at this point and if that is the case this is must-win. Already had a Maye up top and just needed to see how to spell Kaliakmanis.
Saturday 09/16 Washington @ Michigan State 5:00 EST on Peacock
A disappointing year for MSU overall last year and the game in 2022 at Washington was really the start of it all going downhill. Washington’s offense is so explosive and can’t wait to see how it is this year with Penix at the helm again. Nobody expected MSU to upset Miami in 2021 and maybe, just maybe we see that same thing happen here (doubt it).
Saturday 09/16 Tennessee @ Florida 7:00 EST on ESPN
Another big “we’re back” moment for Tennessee last year as they beat UF for the first time since 2016 and only the second time since 2005. Can Tennessee keep it going as it looks like Florida may have a tough year under second year coach Billy Napier?
Saturday 09/16 BYU @ Arkansas 7:30 EST on ESPN2
An absolute shootout last year but BYU won’t be nearly as good. We’ll see if the Cougars can try to pull off an upset before heading into their new conference in 2023.
Saturday 09/16 Syracuse @ Purdue 7:30 on NBC/Peacock
True sickos remember this game from last year as we had 42 points scored in the last 12 minutes of the ball game and Purdue having to kick the ball off from their 10 yard line because of penalties. Don’t think it will be like that again but we can only hope.
Saturday 09/16 Pitt @ WVU 7:30 EST on ABC
This game ruled last year and just really happy to see these rivals playing each other team. A lot of questions about both squads potential this year but it’s one of the best rivalries in the sport and can’t miss television.
Saturday 09/16 TCU @ Houston 8:00 EST on FOX
Friday 09/22 Wisconsin @ Purdue 7:00 EST on FS1
It’s a Friday game and we have two division opponents kicking off their Big 10 play. Purdue hasn’t beaten Wisconsin since 2003 and with two new coaches maybe we start to see a trend of them finally winning one.
Friday 09/22 NC State @ UVA 7:30 on ESPN
We had to get Tony Elliot on here somewhere and it’s only fitting that he kicks off his conference schedule against the team that has UVA’s all-time passing records in pretty much every statistical category. Plus, it’s Friday so why not tune in.
Saturday 09/23 Arkansas @ LSU Time TBD
Arkansas was almost able to pull off the upset last year and if it weren’t for a crazy game from Harold Perkins and KJ Jefferson being hurt they just might have. This one is always a fun one to watch.
Saturday 09/23 Mississippi State @ South Carolina Time TBD
Saturday 09/23 Auburn @ A&M Time TBD
Saturday 09/23 UNC @ Pitt Time TBD
UNC smoked Pitt last year. Narduzzi will be doing everything in his power to have the Pitt defense playing to their top potential by this point in the year and if they are you could see a really good chance to upset UNC with the game being at home.
Saturday 09/23 UCLA @ Utah Time TBD
Saturday 09/23 Texas @ Baylor Time TBD
Texas won a close game last year but that game was much later and this is a tough Big 12 opener on the road in Waco. Much like some of the games up above, if Texas lost at Alabama then this game is an absolute must-win.
Saturday 09/23 Oklahoma @ Cincinnati Time TBD
Cincinnati is absolutely starting off their entrance into the Big 12 with probably the worst matchup they could have asked for. Oklahoma is going to be good on offense as always but we’ll see if Venables has this defense anywhere near what he would have hoped for by now
Saturday 09/23 BYU @ Kansas Time TBD
We loved BYU early on last year and learned to love Kansas after a couple weeks into the season. Both defenses don’t seem to be too steady heading into 2023 so look for a shootout in BYU’s first game as a member of the conference.
Saturday 09/23 UCF @ Kansas State Time TBD
Much like Cincinnati, UCF has a tough matchup for their first game as a member of the Big 12. Kansas State has a lot of questions and most people think that UCF seems the most ready to make an immediate impact in the conference. We’ve seen it happen before when Missouri moved to the SEC so why not UCF?
Saturday 09/23 Ole Miss @ Alabama Time TBD
Alabama held on last year in Oxford and Ole Miss is still going to be a really good team in 2023. The Rebs are always a thorn in Alabama’s side even if they don’t win the game. Absolutely will and always will look forward to this matchup.
Saturday 09/23 UTSA @ Tennessee Time TBD
Everyone heard about Tulane all of last year but UTSA was right up there with them in relevancy as a G5 program. Tennessee should win this game but UTSA is really good and they have a 7th year quarterback in Frank Harris who is definitely up to the challenge of pulling off a big upset on the road.
Saturday 09/23 FSU @ Clemson Time TBD
A completely different look for Clemson this year and a FSU team that should have essentially all the same pieces from 2022 plus some added studs from the portal. This has been the heavyweight matchup in the ACC for a long time now and with this being the first year without divisions we could even see a possible rematch in the ACC Championship Game if things play out perfectly.
Saturday 09/23 Ohio State @ Notre Dame 7:30 EST on NBC/Peacock
This game last year was a little disappoint but it was week one and both teams were working out a lot of kinks. This year we’re lucky enough to have it in week 3. Both teams are set to make a push for the playoff and while this may not be a must-win for Notre Dame this is absolutely a must-win for Ohio State.