College Football makes its triumphant return this week and right off the bat the NCAA has put some must-see TV games on the opening weekend schedule. With a few key Top 25 matches on the docket, the pollsters will be doing some early shifting after the first week of games.
Opening Week thunder
Talk about getting right to it! The NCAA football Top 25 schedule for Week 1 will see several games that will surely have an early impact on the CFB rankings.
According to CBS Sports, No. 6 Washington will take on the No. 9 ranked Auburn Tigers from Atlanta on Saturday afternoon, while the nightcap will feature the 14th ranked Michigan Wolverines heading to South Bend to square off against No. 12 ranked Notre Dame.
To say this is the biggest opening game in several seasons for these two teams, and their head coaches is an understatement.
Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh knows that a lot is expected of his Wolverines in 2018 not just from the fan base, but from the national media as well. This is the year that Michigan fans can officially say that the Wolverines are now he and his staff recruited a product of coach Harbaugh as most of the players on the roster.
The winner of this game will have a great shot at cracking the Top 10 next week.
No room for error
When it comes to college football, the margin for error is slim. In fact, you could say compared to the NFL, the window of opportunity is 100 times tougher at the collegiate level than it is in the pros. One slip up for a top-ranked team, especially if that early season hiccup comes against a team that isn’t anywhere near the ranking board, can seriously jeopardize that team’s chances of heading to a major bowl game in December, or even the NCAA playoffs.
This weekend, teams like Michigan State and Ohio State are big favorites in their opening day games, however, if one of them does fail to earn the win, it could be an early season deal breaker in terms of heading to the playoffs.
Unlike Michigan vs. Notre Dame, or Washington vs. Auburn, the Spartans, and Buckeyes are playing teams they should destroy as both are better than three-touchdown favorites. The No. 5 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes will face unranked Oregon State on Saturday, while the Spartans prepare to cash with Utah State from East Lansing Friday evening.
Below is a look at the complete Top 25 schedule and current Las Vegas odds for each game.
Thursday, Aug. 30
7:00 p.m. -- No. 21 UCF Knights (-22) at Connecticut Huskies
Friday, Aug. 31
7:00 PM -- Utah State Aggies at No. 11 Michigan State Spartans (-23.5)
9:00 PM -- Western Kentucky Hilltoppers at No. 4 Wisconsin Badgers(-35.5)
9:00 PM -- San Diego State Aztecs at No.
13 Stanford Cardinal (-15)
Saturday, Sept. 1
12 PM. -- OSU Beavers at No. 5 Ohio State Buckeyes (-37)
12 PM -- No. 23 T. Longhorns at Terrapins (+13.5)
12 PM -- FAU at No. 7 Oklahoma Sooners (-21.5)
3:35 PM -- Tennessee vs. No. 17 West Virginia (-9.5) -- Game played in Charlotte
3:35 PM -- No. 6 Huskies vs. No. 9 Tigers (-2.5) -- Game played in Atlanta
3:35 PM -- App. State Mountaineers at No. 10 Penn State (-23.5)
4:00 PM -- Rebels at No. 15 USC Trojans (-24)
6:00 PM -- No. 22 Boise State at Troy (+10.5)
7:30 PM -- No. 14 Michigan Wolverines at No. 12 Notre Dame Irish (-2)
8:00 PM. -- Louisville at No. 1 Alabama (-24.5) -- Game played in Orlando
8:00 PM -- BGU at No. 24 Oregon (-33)
Sunday, Sept. 2
7:30 PM. -- No. 8 Miami Hurricanes at LSU Tigers (+3)
Monday, Sept. 3
8:00 PM -- No. 20 Virginia Tech Hokies at No. 19 Florida State Seminoles (-6.5)