Not much going on in week zero and its unfortunate that five of the seven evening games are stacked on top of each other in the evening. #13 Notre Dame and Navy will official open the season at 2:30 on NBC in Aviva Stadium in Dublin. We’ll get a first look at Sam Hartman at QB for the Irish after transferring over from Wake Forest. He could help piolet the Irish through a difficult schedule that includes USC, Clemson and Ohio State as an upgrade to the positon from last season. We’ll also get a real look at how fast a game can be completed with the new rule that keeps the clock running after a 1st down. The new rule will align with the NFL and Navy’s running style will be happy to complement what might be one of the quickest games we see all season from kickoff to completion.
The evening slate starts at 5:30 on CBS Sports Network with a Conference USA battle between UTEP and new FBS level member Jacksonville State. The Gamecocks finished just outside the top-25 at the FCS level last season and can win some games in C-USA this season. James Madison had great success after making the move up last year. UTEP should field a team that competes for bowl eligibility this season.
ESPN will air New Mexico State hosting UMass at 7, but Ohio at San Diego State on FS1 at the same time slot is a much better game to keep an eye on. SDSU the #113 offense last season and they’ll have to stop a real QB in Kurtis Rourke who flirted with the transfer portal before returning Ohio. The year-three starter missed the end of last season with an injury and won’t get many games to star once MAC Conference play starts, so this would be a big opportunity to shine. The duel threat is on the peripheral of NFL radars right now.
7:30 SEC Network will air Vanderbilt hosting Hawaii. The Commodores hung a stunning 63 points on Hawaii last season which was a surprising offensive outburst. They would go on to finish 5-7 on the season with wins over Florida and Kentucky. 5 wins equals the previous three seasons win totals combined. Vandy shorted out starting QB last season and freshman AJ Swann settled down and is back to try and lead the team to only its 10th bowl game in school history.
#6 USC will host San Jose State on the Pac12 network at 8 so good luck watching this game. If you are fortunate you should get a chance to see Caleb Williams back and testing out his new offensive pieces. The most important aspect is the defense and whether or not it’s improved. USC giving up 10 points to Rice in its opener last season and was actually an eye opener. SJSU returns a QB and offensive line for the #25 passing offense last season. USC brings in transfers from all corners: Arizona, Georgia, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M to try and make the defense better.
CBS Sports Network will air another C-USA battle on the back end of its double-header between two rebuilding teams in Florida International and Louisiana Tech. FIU had a fleet of important transfers out and LT will be starting former sputtering Boise State QB Hank Bachmeier.
Top Watches
Must Watch – Notre Dame & Navy – 2:30 NBC
Audible – UTEP @ Jacksonville St – 5:30 CBSSN
Underrated – Hawaii @ Vanderbilt – 7:00 SECN
Check-in – San Jose State @ #6 USC – 8:00 PAC12
Small Screen Starlet – Ohio @ San Diego St – 7:00 FS1
Late Night Snack – Pass, unless you’re dying to check out Hank
