2023 College Football - Week 1: Labor Day Weekend Bonanza
Aug 31, 2023 17:39:10 GMT -6
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Post by Uncle on Aug 31, 2023 17:39:10 GMT -6
With the 2023 NFL preseason over and rosters trimmed to 53 players, it's nearly time to get ready for the Week 1 matchup between the Vikings and Bucs at US Bank on September 10th...
...but, before we get to NFL action, there's a full weekend of College Football this Labor Day weekend, and when I say full, I mean there are solid games from Thursday evening all the way through Monday evening. If you wanted to just be a couch potato from Thursday through Monday night and watch nothing but College Football, then all the networks and channels have you covered - including the big Top 10 matchup between FSU and LSU on Sunday night!
Thursday, 8/31 - Evening Games
Florida @ #14 Utah - 8PM ET (ESPN); spread is Utah -4.5
This is a rematch of the big Week 1 matchup last season when Florida hung on to beat Utah 29-26 at "The Swamp". It was arguably Anthony Richardson's best game as a Florida Gator and really propelled him to Round 1 of the 2023 Draft. This year the game is at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, which is arguably a tougher environment to win a game than "The Swamp". The Utes had Playoff aspirations last season as they opened the season ranked #7, and they come into this one ranked #14 while Florida is probably looking up at Georgia, Tennessee and possibly South Carolina again in the SEC East. After Utah QB Cam Rising tore his ACL in the Rose Bowl game vs Penn St, there's been big questions as to whether he'll be ready to go for this one. He's officially listed as "doubtful" so it'll be up to the Utah defense and the tough Utes home environment to pull this one off.
Nebraska @ Minnesota - 8PM ET (FOX); spread is Minnesota -7
The Cornhuskers hope to turn the page under new HC Matt Rhule (former Baylor & Carolina Panthers HC) and QB Jeff Sims, a transfer from Georgia Tech. Rhule has a relatively steep rebuilding project on his hands and he's on the road for a BIG10 West matchup for his first challenge. I liked what I saw out of Sims during Week 1 of the 2022 College season when he toook on a solid Clemson defense, but his season went downhill pretty fast after that. On the other side, Golden Gophers HC PJ Fleck has a little rebuilding to do, as well after RB Mo Ibrahim and several IOL split for the NFL. I think this one will boil down to how quickly Sims can grasp Rhule's offense and if Minnesota can generate enough points.
Friday, 9/1 - Evening Games
Louisville @ Georgia Tech - 7:30PM ET (ESPN); spread is Louisville -7
Another conference matchup to start-off the season for both teams, this time in the ACC. Louisville is now lead by former 'Ville QB (and former Purdue HC) Jeff Brohm who many fans wanted the last go-around instead of App St HC Scott Satterfield (who's now at Cincinnati in the BIG XII). Brohm is known for high-powered offenses and that's traditionally what Louisville football has been about so this seems like a good fit for both sides. Former Cal QB Jack Plummer will be under center for the Cardinals and Georgia Tech will be QB'd by Texas A&M transfer Haynes King. The Yellowjackets are 2-0 all-time vs Louisville and with this game being played at Mercedes Benz stadium in Atlanta, they'll have the home crowd. I could easily see Georgia Tech pulling this one out with Louisville having a new HC, new QB and a slew of transfers on offense, but I'm a Louisville fan and I'm hoping the new faces gel quickly on offense.
Saturday, 9/2 - Afternoon Games
Colorado @ #17 TCU - Noon ET (FOX); spread is TCU -20.5
The media has had a frenzy with "Coach Prime" all offseason, but "Prime Time" is about to get a harsh reality lesson of "prime time" college football in a Power 5 conference on the road. Deion and his highly-touted son, Shedeur, will have their hands full with the Horned Frogs, who may have lost some players to the NFL from their National Championship run, but they have plenty of NFL talent on defense still and their offense could be more explosive than what Max Duggan ran last year. I'm personally interested in how Shedeur performs on the road in his first FBS game against a ranked opponent and it could tell us plenty about whether the offseason hype was true.
#3 Ohio St @ Indiana - 3:30PM ET (CBS); spread is Ohio St -30.5
Much like the previous matchup, the most interesting thing here will be the debut of another highly-touted QB, Ohio St QB Kyle McCord. Buckeys HC Ryan Day teased fans for months as to who would start for Ohio St and didn't name McCord the starter until just this week and even though he promised to also play Devin Brown (the QB who battled McCord for the starting job), McCord has had plenty of offseason hype of his own and like Shedeur Sanders, he'll be playing in a Conference matchup on the road to start his 2023 season. The thing McCord has that Shedeur doesn't? Two 2024 Draft Round 1 WR's in Marvin Harrison, Jr. and Emeka Egbuka.
Boise St @ #10 Washington - 3:30PM ET (ABC); spread is Washington -14.5
The Broncos haven't been the typical powerhouse in the Mountain West Conference the past few seasons, but they are currently many "expert's" favorite "Group of 5" team this year, even over #24 Tulane. They open the season with a doozy of a game: on the road vs a Top 10 team that is loaded with NFL talent. Huskies QB Michael Penix, Jr. had a terrific 2022 season and honestly he should have come out and went to the NFL, but he came back for 1 more season to prove he can stay healthy and to possibly see if Washington can get a Playoff spot in a very good PAC-12 Conference. This one could be a sneaky-good game and I wouldn't be surprised if the Broncos kept it relatively close for 3+ quarters.
Saturday, 9/2 - Evening Games
#21 North Carolina @ South Carolina - 7:30PM ET (ABC); spread is North Carolina -2.5
The "Battle of the Carolinas" will be played in Charlotte at Bank of America Stadium (where the Panthers play), which should give the home field advantage to the Tarheels. This should be a fun matchup of two 2024 Draft QB's in NC's Drake Maye - currently the consensus QB2 behind USC's Caleb Williams - and SC's Spencer Rattler, an Oklahoma transfer who may have been the hottest QB in College Football at the end of the 2022 season. Spencer Rattler didn't do much to inspire any NFL Draft hopes during his time under Lincoln Riley at Oklahoma, or during the 1st half of the season last year, but he exploded onto the scene in the Tennessee game (where Hooker went down) and it carried that through to a big win vs Clemson and a near-win vs Notre Dame in the Gator Bowl. Meanwhile, I liked what I saw out of Maye in the Holiday Bowl loss vs Oregon, but I want to see more before I crown him the consensus QB2 for next year's Draft. Should be a fun matchup.
Coastal Carolina @ UCLA - 10:30PM ET (ESPN); spread is UCLA -14.5
The Bruins are going through a bit of rebuilding as they're looking for a QB for the first time in forever as Dorian Thompson-Robinson finally entered the Draft (currently QB2 in Cleveland behind DeShaun Watson). Chip Kelly is missing a bunch of offense and their defense wasn't anything to write home about either and will need to prove they won't be a "doormat" in a very tough PAC-12 Conference this year. Coastal Carolina QB Grayson McCall came onto the national scene during the 2020 COVID year and he's back for his final year for the Chanticleers. MCall is a "veteran" college QB who is probably a Day 3 QB prospect and is more than capable of pulling off this upset. Chip Kelly has stated he'll play 3 QB's until he finds the right one, and I wouldn't be surprised to see Coastal Carolina pull off a Week 1 upset.
Sunday, 9/3 - Evening Games
#5 LSU @ #8 FSU - 7:30PM ET (ABC); spread is LSU -2.5
This one has Playoff implications written all over it and should be a great game. Honestly, these two teams played a heck of an opener in New Orleans during Week 1 of the 2022 season, with FSU pulling it out after blocking at PAT at the end. This game kicked-off awesome seasons for both QB's - FSU's Jordan Travis and LSU's Jayden Daniels - and both teams went on to have really solid seasons. There is NFL talent all over the place on both teams, but I think one of the key losses is LSU's DT Maason Smith, who's been garnering Round 1 hype during the summer. FSU has a good QB, good RB's and a dangerous WR in Johnny Wilson so they should be able to take advantage of Smith not playing in this one. Both of these teams have Playoff aspirations and this should be an awesome treat to watch for College fans on Labor Day weekend.
Monday, 9/4 - Evening Game
#9 Clemson @ Duke - 8:00PM ET (ESPN); spread is Clemson -13
I think this is another "sneaky-good" game on Monday night as Duke should be no pushover for Clemson to open the season. Duke QB Riley Leonard should be the player to keep an eye on in this one as he's garnered some Round 1 hype, and he's going up against a Clemson defense with at least two 2024 Draft Day 2 players on it in Tyler Davis and Ruke Orhorhoro, not to mention another highly-touted LB in Jeremiah Trotter, Jr.. I thought Clemson QB Cade Klubnik looked like a "hot mess" in their bowl loss to Tennessee to close out their 2022 season so it will be interesting to see how Dabo Sweeney's offense looks to open the season on the road. If Leonard leads the Blue Devils to an upset in this one, Drake Maye and his consensus QB2 standing in the 2024 Draft better look over his shoulder...
...but, before we get to NFL action, there's a full weekend of College Football this Labor Day weekend, and when I say full, I mean there are solid games from Thursday evening all the way through Monday evening. If you wanted to just be a couch potato from Thursday through Monday night and watch nothing but College Football, then all the networks and channels have you covered - including the big Top 10 matchup between FSU and LSU on Sunday night!
Thursday, 8/31 - Evening Games
Florida @ #14 Utah - 8PM ET (ESPN); spread is Utah -4.5
This is a rematch of the big Week 1 matchup last season when Florida hung on to beat Utah 29-26 at "The Swamp". It was arguably Anthony Richardson's best game as a Florida Gator and really propelled him to Round 1 of the 2023 Draft. This year the game is at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City, which is arguably a tougher environment to win a game than "The Swamp". The Utes had Playoff aspirations last season as they opened the season ranked #7, and they come into this one ranked #14 while Florida is probably looking up at Georgia, Tennessee and possibly South Carolina again in the SEC East. After Utah QB Cam Rising tore his ACL in the Rose Bowl game vs Penn St, there's been big questions as to whether he'll be ready to go for this one. He's officially listed as "doubtful" so it'll be up to the Utah defense and the tough Utes home environment to pull this one off.
Nebraska @ Minnesota - 8PM ET (FOX); spread is Minnesota -7
The Cornhuskers hope to turn the page under new HC Matt Rhule (former Baylor & Carolina Panthers HC) and QB Jeff Sims, a transfer from Georgia Tech. Rhule has a relatively steep rebuilding project on his hands and he's on the road for a BIG10 West matchup for his first challenge. I liked what I saw out of Sims during Week 1 of the 2022 College season when he toook on a solid Clemson defense, but his season went downhill pretty fast after that. On the other side, Golden Gophers HC PJ Fleck has a little rebuilding to do, as well after RB Mo Ibrahim and several IOL split for the NFL. I think this one will boil down to how quickly Sims can grasp Rhule's offense and if Minnesota can generate enough points.
Friday, 9/1 - Evening Games
Louisville @ Georgia Tech - 7:30PM ET (ESPN); spread is Louisville -7
Another conference matchup to start-off the season for both teams, this time in the ACC. Louisville is now lead by former 'Ville QB (and former Purdue HC) Jeff Brohm who many fans wanted the last go-around instead of App St HC Scott Satterfield (who's now at Cincinnati in the BIG XII). Brohm is known for high-powered offenses and that's traditionally what Louisville football has been about so this seems like a good fit for both sides. Former Cal QB Jack Plummer will be under center for the Cardinals and Georgia Tech will be QB'd by Texas A&M transfer Haynes King. The Yellowjackets are 2-0 all-time vs Louisville and with this game being played at Mercedes Benz stadium in Atlanta, they'll have the home crowd. I could easily see Georgia Tech pulling this one out with Louisville having a new HC, new QB and a slew of transfers on offense, but I'm a Louisville fan and I'm hoping the new faces gel quickly on offense.
Saturday, 9/2 - Afternoon Games
Colorado @ #17 TCU - Noon ET (FOX); spread is TCU -20.5
The media has had a frenzy with "Coach Prime" all offseason, but "Prime Time" is about to get a harsh reality lesson of "prime time" college football in a Power 5 conference on the road. Deion and his highly-touted son, Shedeur, will have their hands full with the Horned Frogs, who may have lost some players to the NFL from their National Championship run, but they have plenty of NFL talent on defense still and their offense could be more explosive than what Max Duggan ran last year. I'm personally interested in how Shedeur performs on the road in his first FBS game against a ranked opponent and it could tell us plenty about whether the offseason hype was true.
#3 Ohio St @ Indiana - 3:30PM ET (CBS); spread is Ohio St -30.5
Much like the previous matchup, the most interesting thing here will be the debut of another highly-touted QB, Ohio St QB Kyle McCord. Buckeys HC Ryan Day teased fans for months as to who would start for Ohio St and didn't name McCord the starter until just this week and even though he promised to also play Devin Brown (the QB who battled McCord for the starting job), McCord has had plenty of offseason hype of his own and like Shedeur Sanders, he'll be playing in a Conference matchup on the road to start his 2023 season. The thing McCord has that Shedeur doesn't? Two 2024 Draft Round 1 WR's in Marvin Harrison, Jr. and Emeka Egbuka.
Boise St @ #10 Washington - 3:30PM ET (ABC); spread is Washington -14.5
The Broncos haven't been the typical powerhouse in the Mountain West Conference the past few seasons, but they are currently many "expert's" favorite "Group of 5" team this year, even over #24 Tulane. They open the season with a doozy of a game: on the road vs a Top 10 team that is loaded with NFL talent. Huskies QB Michael Penix, Jr. had a terrific 2022 season and honestly he should have come out and went to the NFL, but he came back for 1 more season to prove he can stay healthy and to possibly see if Washington can get a Playoff spot in a very good PAC-12 Conference. This one could be a sneaky-good game and I wouldn't be surprised if the Broncos kept it relatively close for 3+ quarters.
Saturday, 9/2 - Evening Games
#21 North Carolina @ South Carolina - 7:30PM ET (ABC); spread is North Carolina -2.5
The "Battle of the Carolinas" will be played in Charlotte at Bank of America Stadium (where the Panthers play), which should give the home field advantage to the Tarheels. This should be a fun matchup of two 2024 Draft QB's in NC's Drake Maye - currently the consensus QB2 behind USC's Caleb Williams - and SC's Spencer Rattler, an Oklahoma transfer who may have been the hottest QB in College Football at the end of the 2022 season. Spencer Rattler didn't do much to inspire any NFL Draft hopes during his time under Lincoln Riley at Oklahoma, or during the 1st half of the season last year, but he exploded onto the scene in the Tennessee game (where Hooker went down) and it carried that through to a big win vs Clemson and a near-win vs Notre Dame in the Gator Bowl. Meanwhile, I liked what I saw out of Maye in the Holiday Bowl loss vs Oregon, but I want to see more before I crown him the consensus QB2 for next year's Draft. Should be a fun matchup.
Coastal Carolina @ UCLA - 10:30PM ET (ESPN); spread is UCLA -14.5
The Bruins are going through a bit of rebuilding as they're looking for a QB for the first time in forever as Dorian Thompson-Robinson finally entered the Draft (currently QB2 in Cleveland behind DeShaun Watson). Chip Kelly is missing a bunch of offense and their defense wasn't anything to write home about either and will need to prove they won't be a "doormat" in a very tough PAC-12 Conference this year. Coastal Carolina QB Grayson McCall came onto the national scene during the 2020 COVID year and he's back for his final year for the Chanticleers. MCall is a "veteran" college QB who is probably a Day 3 QB prospect and is more than capable of pulling off this upset. Chip Kelly has stated he'll play 3 QB's until he finds the right one, and I wouldn't be surprised to see Coastal Carolina pull off a Week 1 upset.
Sunday, 9/3 - Evening Games
#5 LSU @ #8 FSU - 7:30PM ET (ABC); spread is LSU -2.5
This one has Playoff implications written all over it and should be a great game. Honestly, these two teams played a heck of an opener in New Orleans during Week 1 of the 2022 season, with FSU pulling it out after blocking at PAT at the end. This game kicked-off awesome seasons for both QB's - FSU's Jordan Travis and LSU's Jayden Daniels - and both teams went on to have really solid seasons. There is NFL talent all over the place on both teams, but I think one of the key losses is LSU's DT Maason Smith, who's been garnering Round 1 hype during the summer. FSU has a good QB, good RB's and a dangerous WR in Johnny Wilson so they should be able to take advantage of Smith not playing in this one. Both of these teams have Playoff aspirations and this should be an awesome treat to watch for College fans on Labor Day weekend.
Monday, 9/4 - Evening Game
#9 Clemson @ Duke - 8:00PM ET (ESPN); spread is Clemson -13
I think this is another "sneaky-good" game on Monday night as Duke should be no pushover for Clemson to open the season. Duke QB Riley Leonard should be the player to keep an eye on in this one as he's garnered some Round 1 hype, and he's going up against a Clemson defense with at least two 2024 Draft Day 2 players on it in Tyler Davis and Ruke Orhorhoro, not to mention another highly-touted LB in Jeremiah Trotter, Jr.. I thought Clemson QB Cade Klubnik looked like a "hot mess" in their bowl loss to Tennessee to close out their 2022 season so it will be interesting to see how Dabo Sweeney's offense looks to open the season on the road. If Leonard leads the Blue Devils to an upset in this one, Drake Maye and his consensus QB2 standing in the 2024 Draft better look over his shoulder...
... and neither is this Chris guy.