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Leave it up to the scheduling gurus to continually make the opening weekend of NCAA football incredibly dull.
You really have to be a diehard to want to watch North Carolina against James Madison, or Miami (OH) against Marshall. That said, there are still a couple games that may or may not pull their weight.
Wake Forest gets an early season "prove '06 wasn't a fluke" game against Boston College, and the same goes for Clemson against Florida State. Keep an eye on Virginia as well, as they must head out west to take on an up and coming Wyoming squad.
Winners: Wake, FSU, Wyoming
Six teams from the Big East will play Mid-American Conference schools a total of nine times this season.
It’s sort of a one-sided rivalry (the BCS conference went 8-0 against their mid-western counterparts last season) but nonetheless the Big East/MAC challenge begins this week with three games between the two leagues.
No. 16 Rutgers kicks it off tonight, hosting a Buffalo team that has won just 12 times since 1999. The only possible thing that will upset the suddenly faithful Scarlet Knights fans tonight will be the traffic in and out of Piscataway.
On Saturday, No. 3 West Virginia and Pittsburgh will play Western Michigan and Eastern Michigan respectively. The Mountaineers shouldn’t be challenged, but Western Michigan is supposed be the class of the MAC. The Panthers meanwhile, are playing the team picked to finished last in their divisions by MAC coaches.
Game of the Week
Connecticut vs. Duke
The Huskies kick off the Tyler Lorenzen era with a Blue Devils team that has lost 20 straight. Lorenzen was the best Junior College quarterback in the country last year and should help a team that has won just seven times against D-1A competition since winning the Motor City Bowl in 2004.
Article comments
1 - Matthew T. Sussman
Worse news for Ned ... he's relegated to third string.
2 - Josh
I want Cal to destroy UT, but I don't see it. I don't think Cal has a speed advantage and they sure don't have a power advantage. Jackson is a stud and might make a play or two, but Tennessee has guys who can run with him. I don't see him getting open deep that often.
Tedford is such a great coach, maybe he can come up with something. It will take that and a few breaks for Cal to come up with the win.
3 - Jerkwheat
But, but, Phil Steele said Ned was gonna be the starter this year!!! VHT!! POS#3983!!!
Saturday can't get here soon enough
4 - nicolas
wait...phil steele was...WRONG?!!?! i think i need to rewrite my preview now!
5 - Josh
At least Alabama can beat their 1-AA opponents! Michigan should be contracted. That WR for App. St. was something.
The UT/CAL game is going about like I anticipated. CAL has gotten the big plays but their defense is having problems.