College Football Week 1 Preview
Good afternoon, college football fans, and happy Friday, Week 1! We have already been blessed with some entertaining games this season, including those in week 0, and a handful of games last night to kick off week 1!
USF pummeled Boise State 34-7, and Nebraska barely escaped Cincinnati 20-17 in Thursday’s highlight games.
This is the first weekly blog preview of the year, and I will begin by explaining how this will work. Each week, I will give a quick snippet of the week’s biggest matchups with a prediction of who I think will win. Additionally, I enjoy challenging myself by picking games against the spread, predicting total points over/under, and combining teams in teasers.
While none of them have been posted on here yet, I have successfully picked four outcomes correctly this season and missed none, a perfect 4-0 thus far. We put that into the atmosphere, and we are now destined to have a bad weekend.
Those picks were Iowa State +3 vs. Kansas State, Iowa State and Kansas State under 51.5, Hawaii -2.5 vs. Stanford, and USF +6 vs. Boise State.
You can follow me in the Action Sports App to get real-time updates when I place a prediction. https://app.actionnetwork.com/4zu6/k7cu3xfb
WEEK 1 GAMES
Tonight, Friday, August 29th, we get a handful of games to suppress our college football hunger before the incredible slate tomorrow. The two biggest matchups tonight feature Georgia Tech at Colorado and Auburn at Baylor.
GT vs. Colorado
Colorado enters its third season under Deion Sanders, aiming to build on last year’s success. They finished with a 9-4 record overall and 7-2 in the Big 12. Now they look to replace a ton of production from last season, including the Heisman trophy winner, Travis Hunter, and both of Deion’s sons, who are now in the NFL.
Georgia Tech, coming off a 6-7 season, is returning 64% of its offensive production and 65% of its defensive production. Haynes King is back at quarterback for his third season leading the Yellowjackets’ offense.
This is a stay-away game for me. However, I would lean towards the yellow jackets to win—too many unknowns on the Colorado sideline for me.
Auburn vs Baylor
This game should be particularly interesting for Auburn. Hugh Freeze and the Tigers are at an interesting crossroads going into their third year of marriage. The first two seasons have been anything but smooth sailing for these two. Per Ryan McGee on ESPN’s College Gameday podcast, Hugh spent ample time telling McGee how much he missed Liberty and wishes he were waking up on Liberty Mountain. Ryan spoke on, and I would agree, that Hugh does not seem like the same excited coach as he did at Liberty or Ole Miss.
I have no idea what is going to happen with this game tonight. It is quite intriguing to see what Auburn looks like with three play callers. Yes, three play callers per the coaching staff in Fall Camp. We will see if this marriage shatters in week 1 of it’s third season or if Hugh can pour a little water on this hot seat before a daunting SEC Schedule.
Auburn is a 2-point favorite tonight with the over/under set at 57.5. Lean on Auburn to get this win.
SATURDAY
Oh boy, buckle your seat belts, we are in for a fabulous Saturday slate. Week 1 features three top-ten matchups. You must go all the way back to 2017 to find a week with three top ten games. Per Seth Emerson with The Athletic, this is only the fourth such week in the history of college football.
Here is a list of the weekend’s top games. All times Central.
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No. 1 Texas at No. 3 Ohio State (Saturday, 11 a.m., Fox)
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No. 9 LSU at No. 4 Clemson (Saturday, 6:30 p.m., ABC)
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No. 6 Notre Dame at No. 10 Miami (Sunday, 6:30 p.m., ABC)
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No. 8 Alabama at Florida State (Saturday, 2:30 p.m., ABC)
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No. 13 South Carolina vs. Virginia Tech (Sunday, 2 p.m., ESPN)
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No. 24 Tennessee vs. Syracuse (Saturday, 11 a.m., ABC)
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No. 25 Boise State at South Florida (Thursday, 4:30 p.m., ESPN)
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Utah at UCLA (Saturday, 10 p.m., Fox)
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TCU at North Carolina (Monday, 7 p.m., ESPN)
Texas at Ohio State
The AP poll did us a disservice by not giving us a one-week vs. two-week matchup. Thankfully, the coach’s poll has the awareness to rank them one and two in the country, respectively.
There are numerous new players, coaches, and schemes for each of these programs.
Ohio State, coming off a National Championship, is replacing both of its coordinators. Matt Patricia takes over the defense, and Brian Hartline takes over the offensive side of the ball.
The Buckeyes must also replace their QB, top two running backs, and one of their leading wide receivers. Former five-star, Julian Sayin, takes the reins at QB and will look to lead Ohio State to a season-setting win in week 1.
Texas is the most hyped team coming into 2025, led by their new starer at QB, Arch Manning, the grandson of Archie and nephew of Peyton and Eli. His father, Cooper, was no slouch, an athletic wide receiver whose playing time was cut short by a back injury.
Arch started two games last season while Quinn Ewers was injured and had what I would call average performances.
The key factor for me in this game is the location. Ohio State gets the benefit of playing at home while Texas must break in a new offensive line in a hostile environment on the road. I’m picking OSU to win, but no outcome will surprise me.
Ohio State is currently a 1-point favorite. Over/under set at 46.5
LSU at Clemson
This is my favorite game of the week and has me considering skipping Ole Miss’s home opener to watch in The Grove.
An actual battle for who is the true “Death Valley”. LSU heads to Clemson as a four-point underdog, and rightfully so.
Clemson leads the nation in returning production, recruits at a top ten level, and has even picked up three key transfers. My Heisman favorite, Cade Klubnik, will have the advantage of playing at home behind a veteran offensive line that returns four starters from last season and was an excellent unit.
Clemson’s defensive line returns four starters and added edge rusher Will Heldt from Purdue to sure up the unit. On the opposite side of the ball, LSU lost four starters and will face a seasoned Clemson front 6/7 on the road at night.
LSU returns Garret Nussmeier at QB and added a few wideouts in the portal. The LSU offense should be potent this season, but I think it will take a few games for them to find their rhythm.
If you read my season preview, you know how high I am on Clemson. I genuinely think they can win a National Championship, and I think they beat LSU tomorrow night. Vegas has Clemson favored by four, and while I would stay away from the line, because this is probably a field goal game. I think Clemson wins and LSU loses their sixth straight week 1 game.
Clemson is currently a 4-point favorite, with the over/under set at 57.5.
Notre Dame at Miami
Week 1, which has given us a great Sunday game over the past few years, is truly a treat, especially given the holiday and the fact that it’s a Monday off. This Sunday, it is Notre Dame at Miami.
Notre Dame, coming up just short of a National Championship last season, I would expect them to be competitive again this year. They look to replace last year’s signal caller, Riley Leonard, with highly touted Sophomore CJ Carr.
Miami looks to replace Cam Ward at quarterback, who was drafted #1 overall by the Tennessee Titans in the NFL Draft this past Spring. Former Georgia quarterback Carson Beck transferred to Miami.
Beck spent four years with the Bulldogs, serving as the starter for two years, during which he amassed over 8,000 career passing yards. In what was a somewhat tumultuous 2024, by Georgia standards, he looks to get Miami over the hump and into the playoffs in 2025.
I have been going back and forth on this one all week, and it came down to which coach I trust more. Both programs have been recruiting at a high level for the past few years. Miami is leaning a little bit harder on the transfer portal than ND. They should be very even on the field. Miami’s coach, Mario Cristobal, is super optimistic about their defensive and offensive line play. I just do not trust him in big, close games.
I think Notre Dame goes down to Miami and wins to open the season. Covering the -2.5 spread.
Notre Dame is currently a 2.5-point road favorite with the over/under 50.5.
Teaser of the Week
A teaser is a fun little pick where you take two picks, combine them, and get an alternate line. This can be two spreads, two over/under, or a combination of the two. The alternate line could move the set line by 6, 6.5, or 7 points.
i.e., The Texas vs Ohio State spread is 1.5, and the LSU vs Clemson line is 4. You can combine Texas and LSU in a pick, and the spreads change to 7.5 and 10, respectively. That is precisely what I did for this week’s fun little teaser.
Texas +7.5 and LSU +10. I think Texas will be within 7 points of Ohio State, and LSU will be within 10 points of Clemson.
We will release a fun teaser every week.
Picks Against the Spread
We will not delve into these in depth, but here is a list of outcomes I predict this weekend.
Virginia Tech to cover +7.5 vs South Carolina (Sunday, August 31st, 2 p.m., Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, GA). South Carolina lost so much after outperforming expectations last season. Sure, starting QB Lenoris Sellers is exceptional, but I think the market is off here. South Carolina will have to prove me wrong before I place any stock in them this season. Predicting a drop off for the Gamecocks.
Ole Miss -22 (first Half) vs Georgia State. I couldn’t find the exact statistic, but Lane Kiffin teams typically dominate lesser opponents in the first half before slowing down in the second half. Look for the Rebs to have a strong showing early, before a slower second half, as they don’t want to put too many plays on film before facing Kentucky next week.
Marshall +39.5 vs Georgia. Kirby Smart has never covered a spread of 38 points or more as a favorite while being a head coach. An incredible 0-13 ATS. That is hard to do, but Kirby does not care about beating up “schools of the poor”. That is what Marshall is now, “poor”, after their head coach bolted for Southern Miss. I do not like it, but it’s hard to go against that trend. The Georgia first-half spread of -24.5 could be a good pick to research.
*SafeHarbour Insurance does not condone gambling, and we strictly advise you not to trust our amateurism when it comes to handicapping college football games. This is strictly for fun conversations. If you or someone you know has a gambling addiction, please call 1-800-GAMBLER*
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