The first week of the college football season is usually a mixed bag of Davids vs. Goliaths, but there’s usually at least one great matchup of Goliath vs. Goliath.
That happens Saturday night as the No. 5 Notre Dame Fighting Irish visit the Horseshoe in Columbus to clash with C.J. Stroud (pictured) and the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes in primetime on ABC.
The Irish narrowly missed a trip to the College Football Playoff last season, and are coming off a 37-35 loss to Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl. Marcus Freeman takes over as head coach of the Golden Domers following Brian Kelly’s departure for LSU.
Last seen, the Buckeyes beat Utah 48-45 in the Rose Bowl, but were left out of the CFP for the first time since 2018. OSU is heavily favored over the Irish, and a big win over a preseason top-10 team would be a great start to a season with high expectations.
On Saturday afternoon, the No. 11 Oregon Ducks face the 2021 national champion and No. 3-ranked Georgia Bulldogs in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, airing on ABC.
There’s also rare Sunday and Monday college gridiron games before the NFL takes over next week. The Florida State Seminoles face the LSU Tigers in the Allstate Louisiana Kickoff at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans Sunday on ABC. On Monday night, the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game between the No. 4 Clemson Tigers and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets takes place at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
College Football Week 1 Highlights
All times Eastern/Central.
Saturday, September 3
Colorado State at No. 8 Michigan, noon/11a c, ABC
No. 13 NC State at East Carolina, noon/11a c, ESPN
No. 11 Oregon vs. No. 3 Georgia (at Atlanta), 3:30/2:30c, ABC
UTEP at No. 9 Oklahoma, 3:30/2:30c, Fox
No. 23 Cincinnati at No. 19 Arkansas, 3:30/2:30c, ESPN
No. 7 Utah at Florida, 7/6c, ESPN
No. 5 Notre Dame at No. 2 Ohio State, 7:30/6:30c, ABC
Sunday, September 4
Florida State vs. LSU (at New Orleans), 7:30/6:30c, ABC
Monday, September 5
No. 4 Clemson vs. Georgia Tech (at Atlanta), 8/7c, ESPN
