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College football Week 1 schedule and predictions

By Nicholas Ian Allen

ATLANTA, GA - DECEMBER 31: Head Coach Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide team take the field during the 2016 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl at the Georgia Dome on December 31, 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - DECEMBER 31: Head Coach Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide team take the field during the 2016 Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl at the Georgia Dome on December 31, 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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The first full week of the 2017 college football season is here, and we preview and predict the the top games on the Week 1 schedule.

Last Saturday gave us a nice appetizer, but Week 1 of the 2017 college football season – which features games from Thursday to Monday, including 24 of the Top 25 teams from the preseason AP Poll – is the main course.

College football is here. Finally.

National championship contenders Ohio State and Oklahoma State both kick off their seasons Thursday night in underrated matchups against a pair of teams that went to bowl games last year, while 2016 College Football Playoff participant Washington and Big Ten title contender Wisconsin see their first action under the Friday night lights.

Saturday’s slate of games is absolutely loaded with 15 games featuring ranked teams, highlighted by a pair of Top 25 matchups at neutral sites. No. 11 Michigan and No. 17 Florida are set to square off in Dallas in the early afternoon. The two blueblood programs are loaded with question marks, but both are talented enough to compete for championships.

And speaking of championships, No. 1 Alabama and No. 3 Florida State begin the season where every FBS program hopes to end its campaign: Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, the home of the College Football Playoff National Championship Game. The Crimson Tide and Seminoles are both loaded with talent and evenly matched, which should give us a taste of what to expect if the teams meet again later in the season with the title on the line.

But, wait – there’s more! The third Top 25 matchup of the weekend is set for Sunday night when No. 22 West Virginia and No. 21 Virginia Tech renew their rivalry. Finally, Tennessee and Georgia Tech play the second game of the weekend at the new Atlanta stadium, putting an exclamation point on the first full – and we mean full – weekend of college football.

Top 25 Week 1 Schedule Kickoff Time and TV Info (Eastern)

Thursday, Aug. 31

  • Tulsa Golden Hurricane at No. 10 Oklahoma State Cowboys, 7:30 p.m., FS1
  • No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes at Indiana Hoosiers, 8:00 p.m., ESPN

Friday, Sept. 1

  • No. 8 Washington Huskies at Rutgers Scarlet Knights, 8:00 p.m., FS1
  • Utah State Aggies at No. 9 Wisconsin Badgers, 9:00 p.m., ESPN

Saturday, Sept. 2

  • Kent State Golden Flashes at No. 5 Clemson Tigers, 12:00 p.m., ESPN
  • Akron Zips at No. 6 Penn State Nittany Lions, 12:00 p.m., ABC
  • Maryland Terrapins at No. 23 Texas Longhorns, 12:00 p.m., FS1
  • Bethune-Cookman Wildcats at No. 18 Miami Hurricanes, 12:30 p.m., ACC Network
  • UTEP Miners at No. 7 Oklahoma Sooners, 3:30 p.m., FOX
  • No. 11 Michigan Wolverines vs. No. 17 Florida Gators, 3:30 p.m., ABC
  • Stony Brook Seawolves at No. 19 South Florida Bulls, 4:00 p.m., ESPN 3
  • Western Michigan Broncos at No. 4 USC Trojans, 5:15 p.m., Pac-12 Network
  • Appalachian State Mountaineers at No. 15 Georgia Bulldogs, 6:15 p.m., ESPN
  • Central Arkansas Bears at No. 20 Kansas State Wildcats, 7:10 p.m., ESPN 3
  • Georgia Southern Eagles at No. 12 Auburn Tigers, 7:30 p.m., SEC Network
  • No. 16 Louisville Cardinals vs. Purdue Boilermakers (in Indianapolis), 7:30 p.m., Fox
  • No. 3 Florida State Seminoles vs. No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide (in Atlanta), 8:00 p.m., ABC
  • BYU Cougars vs. NO. 13 LSU Tigers (in New Orleans), 9:30 p.m., ESPN
  • Montana State Bobcats at No. 24 Washington State Cougars, 10:30 p.m., FS1

Sunday, Sept. 3

  • No. 22 West Virginia Mountaineers vs. No. 21 Virginia Tech Hokies (in Landover, MD), 7:30 p.m., ABC

Monday, Sept. 4

  • No. 25 Tennessee Volunteers vs. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (in Atlanta), 8:00 p.m., ESPN
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