College football is back, and Week 1 wastes no time giving fans a little bit of everything. The schedule stretches from Thursday through Monday night, with a mix of marquee matchups, oddball pairings and late-night games that should keep the sport buzzing all weekend.
The only Top 25 showdown lands Sunday in Nashville, where No. 24 Louisville takes on No.
9 Ole Miss. It’s the kind of early test both teams can use to build a playoff case, and it comes with plenty to like on offense.
Beyond that, the slate includes a Pac-12 After Dark-style trip to Berkeley, a battle in Death Valley, a Big 12-SEC clash in Atlanta and a Labor Day ACC game in Tallahassee.
The transfer portal and NIL have turned every offseason into a kind of controlled chaos, and Week 1 is where that unpredictability shows up fastest. New faces are everywhere, old faces are in new places, and plenty of teams are still trying to figure out what they really are.
Boise State at No. 2 Oregon on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. on CBS, CBSSports.com, the CBS Sports App and Paramount+ is a good place to start.
Oregon is a huge favorite, but it can’t afford to treat Boise State like a tune-up. The Broncos are expected to contend for the new Pac-12 and have every reason to keep this one tight while chasing a College Football Playoff resume boost.
At the same time, Baylor vs. Auburn in Atlanta at 3:30 p.m. on ABC has upset potential written all over it, even if neither side looks like a world-beater on paper.
The quarterback angle gives it juice, and the matchup also brings a rematch of last season when Auburn transfer QB Byrum Brown helped USF stun Baylor transfer QB DJ Lagway and Florida in The Swamp. Auburn linebacker Xavier Atkins adds another reason to watch; he’s one of the best at his position in the country.
Saturday night delivers Clemson at No. 11 LSU at 7:30 p.m. on ABC, and that one feels like a proving ground for both programs.
Clemson is still searching for the kind of edge that put it back on top, and Dabo Swinney has a chance to show there’s more there than questions. LSU has the more talented roster, but it hasn’t had the smoothest fall camp, with distractions that included the SEC suing Lane Kiffin.
If the late window is more your speed, UCLA at California on Saturday at 10:30 p.m. on ESPN should scratch the itch. The matchup keeps the old Pac-12 After Dark vibe alive, with Golden Bears quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele and Bruins quarterback Nico Iamaleava both worth staying up for. Tosh Lupoi is set for his Cal debut, and Bob Chesney will coach his first game for UCLA.
Then comes the week’s headliner in Nashville on Sunday night. No.
24 Louisville and No. 9 Ole Miss both bring real playoff paths into the matchup, and the running game should be front and center.
Kewan Lacy and Isaac Brown are two of the best backs in the country, while quarterbacks Trinidad Chambliss and Lincoln Kienholz also have the kind of mobility that can tilt a game.
The weekend wraps Monday night with No. 19 SMU at Florida State at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN in Tallahassee.
Florida State opened with a sloppy Week 0 win over New Mexico State, yet the Seminoles are still only slight underdogs. That says plenty about the talent at the top of the depth chart, but if the pass rush doesn’t get better quickly, Kevin Jennings could spend the night picking them apart.
And if that happens, the pressure on Mike Norvell will only grow.
In Other News...
Tommy Castellanos Is Now At Center Of An NCAA Eligibility Fight
Tommy Castellanos has found himself at the center of a broader NCAA eligibility fight that could reach far beyond one player or one season. The new five-for-five system was supposed to give Division I athletes five continuous years to play five seasons, but the Class of 2022 was left out of that change and then caught in a legal tug-of-war when a federal judge granted that group a temporary fifth season before the NCAA appealed and the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals put the ruling on hold.
For Florida State, the immediate significance is obvious: Castellanos is among the individual athletes who have already secured separate court injunctions that let them compete and move through the transfer portal despite NCAA restrictions. His case sits in the middle of a messy, unresolved legal landscape, and it underscores how much player movement now depends not just on roster decisions or coaching changes, but on the latest court order attached to eligibility. [Read more 🡒]
Florida State Already Faces Pressure To Hold Onto A Key Commit
Florida States recruiting picture took another hit with ZaKari Johnson, a four-star athlete in the 2027 class, appearing to reopen his recruitment while preparing to visit Texas A&M. Johnson had been committed to the Seminoles, and his profile as both a wide receiver and defensive back made him one of the more important early pledges in the cycle, especially for a program trying to keep its future class on steady ground.
Texas A&Ms push adds another layer of pressure for Florida State at a time when uncertainty around the coaching situation and financial limitations is already making the Seminoles work harder to protect their commitments. The Aggies have the kind of resources that can make a recruiting battle difficult to win, and if Florida States situation shifts again, the concern is not just losing Johnson but watching other young targets start to look elsewhere too. [Read more 🡒]
FSU Running Backs Think Last Week Was Only The Beginning
Sam Singleton Jr. drew some well-earned praise this week from running backs coach Kam Martin, who liked what he saw out of the Florida State back in his recent performance. The message from Martin was not just about celebrating one good outing, though. It was about carrying that momentum forward and keeping the position group moving in the right direction as the Seminoles continue to sort out who can consistently handle meaningful touches.
There is still a clear edge to the way Martin is talking about the room, and that matters for a group trying to establish itself behind the scenes. Florida State has reasons to feel encouraged after Singletons surge, but the staff is also pushing for the kind of weekly growth that turns one promising performance into something more dependable. For a backfield still trying to prove its ceiling, the next step is the one that will tell the real story. [Read more 🡒]