Biggest Week One Matchups in College Football
Week One has a huge slate of top-25 matchups this week. There could be some upsets that happen and could shift the entire landscape of the season for some teams. Or we could see dominance from those higher ranked and possibly see a pull-away for teams at the top of the rankings. This is everything you need to know about the top matchups heading into Week One of this upcoming season.
#1 Georgia vs #14 Clemson
In this noon kickoff game, we will see the Georgia Bulldogs and the Clemson Tigers facing off at noon on Saturday, with many talking about how this could be the biggest matchup of the week. Georgia’s Kirby Smart is looking to continue off of the historical 42-2 record these Bulldogs have had over the past three seasons and come out strong against Clemson. Quarterback Carson Beck is looking to show the country why he is currently at the top of the Heisman contention going into the season. Georgia believes they were snubbed out of the College Football Playoff last season, and are looking to make a statement in this game. Meanwhile, Dabo Swinney and company for Clemson, are looking to bounce back off of their most disappointing season in the past ten years. The Tigers went 9-4 last season under Swinney, and are looking for quarterback Cade Klubnik and runningback Phil Mafah to light a fire under this offense this season. Georgia’s defense is headlined by Malaki Starks at safety, who brings incredible athleticism and physicality at the position. As for Clemson, they’re looking towards Peter Woods to anchor this defensive front and hopefully stop Georgia’s elite transfer back in Trevor Etienne. Overall, I don’t believe Clemson will be able to keep up with Georgia’s high-powered offense and won’t be able to score on this extremely talented defense. The current spread for this game is -14 in UGA’s favor, but I see Georgia covering it easily.
#8 Penn State vs West Virginia
This could be the most exciting game of the weekend, with the Mountaineers coming off their best winning season under Neal Brown and playing Penn State at home for the first time in over 20 years. James Franklin and the Nittany Lions are looking to have their first run at the College Football Playoff this season following the 12-team expansion, but need to be able to make it out of Morgantown first. Garrett Greene has received a lot of off-season hype around his name and is looking to prove why he could be competing for a spot in New York in December during the Heisman ceremony. Greene led the Mountaineers to a 9-4 record last season, and they easily could produce better numbers this year. Penn State returns Drew Allar at the helm, and he’ll be trying to make his mark by going into Morgantown and beating this long-time rival. Penn State also returns one of the best backfields in the nation, with the two-headed monster of Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen. The Mountaineers have a similar duo in Jahiem White and CJ Donaldson who both had great years last year as well. The defense will play a big part in this game, headlined by Penn State’s Abdul Carter and West Virginia’s Aubrey Burks. This is a game that we could see the Mountaineers upset the Nittany Lions if they can keep them off the scoreboard as well as put up points. The current spread of this game is -8.5 in favor of Penn State, but I could see the Mountaineers winning outright.
#19 Miami vs Florida
This is the first year we’ll see the Gators play every Power Four team in the state this season, and their number one ranked toughest schedule in the country starts with Miami. The Hurricanes were able to bring in Cameron Ward this off-season and he could play a huge factor in Miami being able to put up points. As for some of his weapons, they return wideout Xavier Restrepo and running back Damien Martinez who transferred in from Oregon State. Offensively, Miami looks quite sound. Defensively, they return sophomore phenom Rueben Bain Jr. alongside Akheem Mesidor. We could see this duo in the backfield all game if they play their cards right. As for the Gators, they’ll be looking to Graham Mertz to lead this offense to victory against the ‘Canes. Jordan Castell was arguably the Gator’s best defensive back last season and will be looking to help them on that side of the ball. I do think Gators running back Montrell Johnson is poised for a huge season, and this very well could be the game that leads him to a breakout. Currently, Miami is favored to win, but I don’t see them being able to make it out of Gainesville with a victory.
#7 Notre Dame vs #20 Texas A&M
The Irish lost a lot from either the draft or the transfer portal this season, and are looking to make a statement with why they are ranked in the top ten. The defense, however, returns top safety in the country in Xavier Watts. Howard Cross III will also be anchoring down the defensive front and will look to stop the Aggies’ run game. On the offensive side, Duke transfer Riley Leonard will be looking to keep Notre Dame in the top ten after this week. Leonard had a very good year last year with the Blue Devils and will try to continue that play with this new Irish offense. As for Texas A&M, they lost quite a bit in the portal as well, but are returning some key players to hopefully help them win this game. Conner Weigman will be starting this year as quarterback for the Aggies and could be poised for a breakout year this season. Running back Le'Veon Moss is back for his junior campaign and has also picked up a lot of hype this off-season. Nic Scourton and Shemar Stewart will be the big names to watch for this Aggie defense. I think this will be a defensive slug-fest, and ultimately Notre Dame will escape with a low-scoring victory.
#23 USC vs #13 LSU
Garrett Nussmeier headlines the Tigers’ offense this season and will be looking to do what their Heisman quarterback did last season. CJ Daniels was a top-level receiver last year at Liberty and now will be in this Tigers offense. The real strong suit of the Tigers this year is the offensive line. Will Campbell is rated as the current best offensive tackle in the country and will look to make sure Nussmeier is protected all game. Harold Perkins returns as one of the best linebackers in the nation and is looking to continue that reign this year for LSU. As for the Trojans, Miller Moss will look to fuel this offense this season. Coming off a great bowl game, he was named the starter and ultimately has had a lot of good words said about him this off-season. Zachariah Branch is absolutely electric with the ball in his hands, so keep an eye on him at the receiver position. Bear Alexander has received a lot of praise after transferring in from Georgia and could be huge to this USC defense. However, I don’t see USC beating the Tigers.
