2023 College Football Week 1 Kickoff Times Released as Season Approaches
Hang in there college football fans.
We’re less than 100 days away from a much-anticipated Week 1 featuring a couple of high-profile games.
Sure, the season actually kicks off Saturday, Aug. 26, with a few mostly meaningless matchups excluding a tilt in Dublin, Ireland, between Navy and Notre Dame (2:30 p.m. ET, NBC). That should be craic – will be fun to see the fans – although the Fighting Irish are favored by nearly three touchdowns.
Then the action really gets going five days later (Thursday, Aug. 31) when the two-time defending Pac-12 champion Utah Utes host the Florida Gators (8 p.m. ET, ESPN) in what should be an entertaining rematch after the Gators stunned the seventh-ranked Utes in Gainesville last year in the season opener for both teams.
Friday night is pretty slow but the rest of the Labor Day weekend slate features some solid showdowns, topped by LSU vs. Florida State in the Camping World Kickoff in Orlando, Florida (Sunday, Sept. 3, 7:30 p.m. ET, ABC), a game that could have playoff implications.
Let’s take a look at the complete schedule for the first week of the 2023-24 college football season.
Saturday, Aug. 26
Navy vs. Notre Dame (Dublin, Ireland): 2:30 p.m., NBC
Texas-El Paso at Jacksonville State: 5:30 p.m., CBSSN
Ohio at San Diego State (-3.5): 7 p.m., FS1
Massachusetts at New Mexico State: 7 p.m., ESPN
Hawaii at Vanderbilt: 7:30 p.m., SEC
San Jose State at Southern California: 8 p.m., Pac-12
Florida International at Louisiana Tech: 9 p.m., CBSSN
Thursday, Aug. 31
Elon at Wake Forest: 7 p.m., ACC Network
Kent State at Central Florida: 7 p.m., FS1
Saint Francis at Western Michigan: 7 p.m., ESPN+
Rhode Island at Georgia State: 7 p.m., ESPN+
Florida at Utah: 8 p.m., ESPN
South Dakota at Missouri: 8 p.m., SEC Network
Nebraska at Minnesota: 8 p.m., FOX
Missouri State at Kansas: 8 p.m., ESPN+
Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Tulsa: 8 p.m., ESPN+
North Carolina A&T at Alabama-Birmingham: 8 p.m., ESPN+
Southern Utah at Arizona State: 10 p.m., Pac-12 Network
Friday, Sept. 1
Howard at Eastern Michigan: 6:30 p.m., ESPN+
Miami (Ohio) vs. Miami (Fla.): 7 p.m., ACC Network
Central Michigan at Michigan State: 7 p.m., FS1
Louisville vs. Georgia Tech (Atlanta): 7:30 p.m., ESPN
Stanford at Hawaii: 11 p.m., CBS Sports Network
Saturday, Sept. 2
Northern Illinois at Boston College: 12 p.m., ACC Network
Louisiana Tech at SMU: 12 p.m., ESPNU
Virginia vs. Tennessee (Nashville, Tenn.): 12 p.m., ABC
Ball State at Kentucky: 12 p.m., SEC Network
Arkansas State at Oklahoma: 12 p.m., ESPN
Utah State at Iowa: 12 p.m., FS1
Colorado at TCU: 12 p.m., Fox
Fresno State at Purdue: 12 p.m., Big Ten Network
Bowling Green at Liberty: 12 p.m., CBS Sports Network
Northern Iowa at Iowa State: 2 p.m., ESPN+
Long Island at Ohio: 2 p.m., ESPN+
Akron at Temple: 2 p.m., ESPN+
East Tennessee State at Jacksonville State: 2 p.m., ESPN+
Mercer at Mississippi: 2 p.m., ESPN+
Portland State at Oregon: 3 p.m., Pac-12 Network
Ohio State at Indiana: 3:30 p.m, CBS
Boise State at Washington: 3:30 p.m., ABC
Massachusetts at Auburn: 3:30 p.m., ESPN
Tennessee State at Notre Dame: 3:30 p.m., NBC/Peacock
Wofford at Pittsburgh: 3:30 p.m., ACC Network
Eastern Kentucky at Cincinnati: 3:30 p.m., ESPN+
Gardner-Webb at Appalachian State: 3:30 p.m., ESPN+
Buffalo at Wisconsin: 3:30 p.m., FS1
Towson at Maryland: 3:30 p.m., Big Ten Network
Rice at Texas: 3:30 p.m., Fox
South Florida at Western Kentucky: 3:30 p.m., CBS Sports Network
California at North Texas: 4 p.m., ESPNU
Southeast Louisiana at Mississippi State: 4 p.m., SEC Network
Western Carolina at Arkansas (Little Rock, Ark.): 4 p.m., ESPN+
Colgate at Syracuse: 4 p.m., ESPN+
Tennessee-Martin at Georgia: 6 p.m., ESPN+
South Carolina State at Charlotte: 6 p.m., ESPN+
Monmouth at Florida Atlantic: 6 p.m., ESPN+
Bucknell at James Madison: 6 p.m., ESPN+
Albany at Marshall: 6 p.m., ESPN+
The Citadel at Georgia Southern: 6 p.m., ESPN+
Maine at Florida International: 6:30 p.m., ESPN+
Nevada at Southern California: 6:30 p.m., Pac-12 Network
Washington State at Colorado State: 7 p.m., CBS Sports Network
New Mexico at Texas A&M: 7 p.m., ESPN
Alabama A&M at Vanderbilt: 7 p.m., ESPN+
Texas State at Baylor: 7 p.m., ESPN+
Southeast Missouri State at Kansas State: 7 p.m., ESPN+
Central Arkansas at Oklahoma State: 7 p.m., ESPN+
Alcorn State at Southern Miss: 7 p.m., ESPN+
Stephen F. Austin at Troy: 7 p.m., ESPN+
Bethune-Cookman at Memphis: 7 p.m., ESPN+
Army at Louisiana- Monroe: 7 p.m., TBD
Northern Arizona at Arizona: 7 p.m., Pac-12 Network
Texas-San Antonio at Houston: 7 p.m., FS1
Texas Tech at Wyoming: 7:30 p.m., CBS
West Virginia at Penn State: 7:30 p.m., NBC
North Carolina vs. South Carolina (Charlotte, N.C.): 7:30 p.m., ABC
Middle Tennessee at Alabama: 7:30 p.m., SEC Network
Northwestern State at Louisiana-Lafayette: 7:30 p.m., ESPN+
Toledo at Illinois: 7:30 p.m., Big Ten Network
South Alabama at Tulane: 8 p.m., ESPNU
Old Dominion at Virginia Tech: 8 p.m., ACC Network
Western Illinois at New Mexico State: 9 p.m., ESPN+
Incarnate Word at Texas-El Paso: 9 p.m., ESPN+
Sam Houston at Brigham Young: 10:15 p.m., FS1
Idaho State at San Diego State: 10:30 p.m., CBS Sports Network
Coastal Carolina at UCLA: 10:30 p.m., ESPN
Sunday, Sept. 3
Northwestern at Rutgers: 12 p.m., CBS
Oregon State at San Jose State: 3:30 p.m., CBS
LSU vs. Florida State (Orlando, Fla.): 7:30 p.m., ABC
Monday, Sept. 4
Clemson at Duke: 8 p.m., ESPN
Of all of these games, I’ve focused on one (bold in CAPS) – for now – that you should jump on today. We’ll get to more and more point spreads/games as the season gets closer.
The odds I’m using are from FanDuel Sportsbook, one of our favorite sports betting sites among many, including DraftKings Sportsbook and BetMGM.
Boise State at WASHINGTON -16
A decade ago this spread might have seemed silly, but the Chris Petersen days are a distant memory and the Broncos’ program simply isn’t nearly as good as it once was.
Washington, meanwhile, is my pick to win the extremely competitive Pac-12 this season over favorites USC, Utah and Oregon.
Why?
Because this Huskies team is loaded on both sides of the ball and could have four first-round draft picks – edge rushers Zion Tupuola-Fetui and Bralen Trice, wide receiver Rome Odunze and, crucially, top-notch quarterback Michael Penix Jr. – in next year’s NFL Draft.
That’s crazy. Plus, Washington’s schedule is reasonable and the Huskies could have a shot at making the four-team CFP.
So the Huskies – who finished 11-2 last season, capped off with a 27-20 win over Texas in the Alamo Bowl – will be eager to get off to a quick start with a style-points pummeling of Boise State in Week 1. I think that happens in Seattle where Washington will by 20 points or more.
Book it.
