Full Week 1 college football TV schedule, plus the best games to watch all weekend

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Full Week 1 college football TV schedule, plus the best games to watch all weekend

The first week of the college football season is finally here. There will be real, live games on Thursday night.

Personally? I would walk over hot coals to watch the 2008 Auburn-Mississippi State game live right about now, but for our more discerning viewers, let's get a handle on which games will probably give you the best return for your valuable time.

This season, we'll be grouping games together by time slot -- Lunch, Afternoon, Evening, and Night -- and ranking those games in tiers by anticipated relative viewing quality: Best option, Plan B, Keep it in mind, and Break in case of emergency. Personal fandom obviously can make a difference, but this is trying to be as objective as possible.

Note: All times shown are Eastern.
Thursday
6 p.m. ET North Carolina at 6 South Carolina ESPN
6 p.m. ET Liberty at Kent State ESPN3.com
6:30 p.m. ET Presbyterian at Wake Forest ESPN3.com
7 p.m. ET Illinois State at Ball State ESPN3.com
7 p.m. ET Tulsa at Bowling Green ESPNU
7 p.m. ET Indiana State at Indiana Big Ten Network
7 p.m. ET UNLV at Minnesota Big Ten Network
7 p.m. ET Akron at UCF ESPN3.com
7:30 p.m. ET Western Carolina at Middle Tennessee
7:30 p.m. ET Southern Utah at South Alabama ESPN3.com
7:30 p.m. ET Towson at UConn ESPN3.com
7:30 p.m. ET UT-Martin at Chattanooga CSS
8 p.m. ET Utah State at Utah FOX Sports 1
9:15 p.m. ET Ole Miss at Vanderbilt ESPN
10 p.m. ET Sacramento State at San Jose State KLIV
10:30 p.m. ET Rutgers at Fresno State ESPNU
11 p.m. ET 24 USC at Hawaii CBSSN
Afternoon and evening shifts

Best options: North Carolina at South Carolina, Ole Miss at Vanderbilt

North Carolina at South Carolina
Announcers: Rece Davis, Jesse Palmer, David Pollack, and Samantha Ponder
Odds: South Carolina -12.5
Weather: Mostly sunny with possible thunderstorms, high in the mid-90s.

The Tar Heels and Gamecocks get the season started on a really nice note. South Carolina could be a national title contender if things break the right way, and at the very least the Tar Heels are intriguing and could make some noise in the ACC. These border rivals don't get together that often, so let's all enjoy the show. Also, Clowney comin'!

Ole Miss at Vanderbilt
Announcers: Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen, and Maria Taylor
Odds: Vanderbilt +3.5
Weather: Mostly sunny, high in the mid-90s.

An SEC conference game on the first night of the season? Gods be praised. It should be a pretty good one too. Both teams are trying to claw their way up the conference pecking order, and a loss on the first night of the season is a real bad way to go about doing so. Vanderbilt's had better results than Ole Miss over the past several years, but the Rebels have program momentum after a bumper recruiting class this past February.

Plan B: Tulsa at Bowling Green, Utah State at Utah

Three of the four teams in these two games can make a compelling case towards darkhorse conference title status. The fourth is Utah. These games should be entertaining, at the very least.

Break in case of emergency: UNLV at Minnesota, Akron at UCF

I don't know about this, guys.
Night shift

Best option: Rutgers at Fresno State

Announcers: Dave Flemming, Mike Bellotti, and Lewis Johnson
Odds: Fresno State -10
Weather: Sunny with a high of 100.

The general public may not be up on them right now, but Fresno State could be really good this year, and Rutgers should be pretty decent too. This has the makings of a very competitive game, so Irish up your coffee a little and stay up for this one.

Plan B: USC at Hawaii

USC enters 2013 on a mission to restore its reputation as a top football program, and they get to start that task by beating up on Hawaii, who is led by Norm Chow, one of the architects of their mid-2000s dynast-[REDACTED].
Friday
7 p.m. ET Morgan State at Army CBSSN
7 p.m. ET Samford at Georgia State ESPN3.com
8 p.m. ET FAU at Miami ESPNU
8 p.m. ET Western Mich at Michigan State Big Ten Network
8 p.m. ET Texas Tech at SMU ESPN
8:30 p.m. ET Southern at Houston ESPN3.com
8:30 p.m. ET NDSU at Kansas State FOX Sports 1
10 p.m. ET NAU at Arizona Pac-12 Network
Evening shift

Best option: Texas Tech at SMU

Announcers: Carter Blackburn, Danny Kanell, and Allison Williams
Odds: SMU +5.5
Weather:

Kliff Kingsbury is back at his alma mater as head coach, and the Red Raiders should have ample supplies of fun this season. SMU's losing a lot from last year, but no one has ever accused June Jones teams of being dull. Tech should be able to handle this pretty easily, but tune in if you like points.

Plan B: Florida Atlantic at Miami

Miami is getting a lot of preseason hype. Why not check in and see how Stephen Morris and the Canes look against FAU? Win or lose, at least you'll get to see Carl Pelini act like he has rabies.

Keep it in mind: Western Michigan at Michigan State

Maybe Michigan State's offense will be watchable this year. No? Maybe? I don't know. Consider this an experiment against a young and energetic Western Michigan team.

Break in case of emergency: North Dakota State at Kansas State

The two-time defending FCS playoff champs are probably outclassed against the Wildcats, but hey, they could make things interesting against a KSU team that's replacing a huge chunk of their offensive production.
Night shift

Your only option: Northern Arizona at Arizona

HARD EDGE.
Saturday (!)
12 p.m. ET Buffalo at 2 Ohio State ESPN 2
12 p.m. ET Massachusetts at 23 Wisconsin Big Ten Network
12 p.m. ET Villanova at Boston College ESPN News
12 p.m. ET Purdue at Cincinnati ESPNU
12 p.m. ET Elon at Georgia Tech ESPN3.com
12 p.m. ET SIU at Illinois Big Ten Network
12 p.m. ET William & Mary at West Virginia FOX Sports 1
12:21 p.m. ET Toledo at 10 Florida SEC Network, ESPN3.com
12:30 p.m. ET FIU at Maryland RSN, ESPN3.com
12:30 p.m. ET Louisiana Tech at NC State ACC Network, ESPN3.com
1 p.m. ET Rice at 7 Texas A&M ESPN
3 p.m. ET Colgate at Air Force ROOT Sports
3:30 p.m. ET Miss State Houston 13 Oklahoma State ABC/ESPN 2
3:30 p.m. ET Temple at 14 Notre Dame NBC
3:30 p.m. ET Central Mich at 17 Michigan Big Ten Network
3:30 p.m. ET NIU at Iowa Big Ten Network
3:30 p.m. ET Penn State East Rutherford Syracuse ABC/ESPN 2
3:30 p.m. ET BYU at Virginia ESPNU
4 p.m. ET Nicholls State at 3 Oregon FOX Sports 1
4 p.m. ET Louisiana at Arkansas FSN, ESPN3.com
4 p.m. ET NC Central at Duke ESPN3.com
5:30 p.m. ET 1 Alabama Atlanta Virginia Tech ESPN
6 p.m. ET EWU at 25 Oregon State Pac-12 Network
6 p.m. ET Howard at EMU ESPN3.com
6 p.m. ET Austin Peay at Tennessee PPV, ESPN3.com
7 p.m. ET ULM at 16 Oklahoma FSN (PPV)
7 p.m. ET APBU at Arkansas State ESPN3.com
7 p.m. ET Washington State at Auburn ESPNU
7 p.m. ET Old Dominion at East Carolina FOX College Sports
7 p.m. ET Miami-Ohio at Marshall CBSSN
7 p.m. ET Murray State at Missouri PPV
7 p.m. ET Idaho at North Texas
7 p.m. ET McNeese State at USF ESPN3.com
7 p.m. ET Texas State at Southern Miss
7 p.m. ET UAB at Troy ESPN3.com
7 p.m. ET Kentucky Nashville WKU ESPN News
7:30 p.m. ET Wofford at Baylor FSN
8 p.m. ET New Mexico State at 15 Texas Longhorn Network
8 p.m. ET Wyoming at 18 Nebraska Big Ten Network
8 p.m. ET 5 Georgia at 8 Clemson ABC
8 p.m. ET Northern Iowa at Iowa State Cyclones.tv
8 p.m. ET UTSA at New Mexico KKOB
8 p.m. ET EIU at San Diego State Mountain West Network
8 p.m. ET Jackson State at Tulane WMTI
9 p.m. ET 12 LSU Arlington 20 TCU ESPN
9 p.m. ET Appalachian State at Montana ESPN3.com
10 p.m. ET Nevada at 21 UCLA Pac-12 Network
10 p.m. ET 19 Boise State at Washington FOX Sports 1
10:30 p.m. ET 22 Northwestern at California ESPN 2
Lunch shift

Best option: Rice at Texas A&M

Announcers: Dave Pasch, Brian Griese, and Tom Luginbill
Odds: Texas A&M -26.5
Weather: Partly cloudy with a high in the upper-90s.

The Aggies are going to crush Rice, but tune in to see if Johnny Manziel's SELFISHNESS has made him complacent and hurt his game. (Pssst ... I bet it didn't.)

Plan B: Purdue at Cincinnati

The Bearcats figure to be one of the better teams in the AAC this year, and the Boilermakers are marking their first game of the Darrell Hazzell era. It may sound weird to say about a Purdue-Cincinnati game, but this is probably going to be kind of fun.

Keep it in mind: Louisiana Tech at N.C. State, Buffalo at Ohio State, Toledo at Florida

Florida and Ohio State shouldn't have much trouble dispatching Toledo and Buffalo, respectively. Louisiana Tech lost a TON from last year's team that led the nation in scoring, but they should give a good test to the Wolfpack in their first game of the Dave Doeren era. And hey, maybe something goes sideways and we have an upset on our hands.

Break in case of emergency: Villanova at Boston College

I wouldn't, personally.
Afternoon shift

Best options: Mississippi State at Oklahoma State, Alabama vs. Virginia Tech

Here we go.

Mississippi State vs. Oklahoma State
Announcers: Bob Wischusen, Rod Gilmore, and Quint Kessenich
Odds: Oklahoma State -12.5
Weather: Mostly sunny with a high in the mid-90s.

Alabama vs. Virginia Tech
Announcers: Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman, and Shannon Spake
Odds: Alabama -20
Weather: It's generally pretty nice inside domes.

The Bulldogs and Cowboys will get together in Houston, and Oklahoma State can inject themselves much more centrally into the national conversation with a convincing win over an SEC squad. On the other sideline, a win over a big name Big 12 team would go a long way for Dan Mullen, who some think has hit his ceiling in Starkville. There is a lot at stake here, and that's just lovely to see on the first Saturday of the season.

The other headliner here features Alabama, of course. The Tide are significant favorites over Virginia Tech in the Georgia Dome, and it's tough to go against them here. Frank Beamer has proven himself to be an excellent coach, and Virginia Tech is a great program, but they just don't have the horses to run with Alabama for 60 minutes. I'm not sure anyone does.

Plan B: Penn State vs. Syracuse, Temple at Notre Dame

Two old Northeast rivals renew acquaintances at MetLife Stadium, and both Penn State and Syracuse are going through some changes. The Nittany Lions have a new quarterback and razor thin depth, but the Orange are starting a new quarterback of their own, as well as breaking in a new head coach. There could be some early hiccups, but this could be a good one.

Temple may be out of their depth against Notre Dame. But since it's Notre Dame, it's on TV and a lot of people are going to watch. Despite the bad taste in everyone's mouth from the BCS title game, the Fighting Irish are still a good team, and well worth some of your time as an impartial viewer.

Keep it in mind: BYU at Virginia, Central Michigan at Michigan, Louisiana-Lafayette at Arkansas

BYU heads east to play Virginia, and a couple of bigger teams in Michigan and Arkansas play what should be overmatched opposition. Try to remember the channel numbers because hey, something weird could happen.

Break in case of emergency: Northern Illinois at Iowa

Keep your remote handy, you may want to switch over in the 4th quarter to see if the plucky Hawkeyes can upset the big bad Huskies.
Evening shift

Best option: Georgia at Clemson, LSU vs. TCU

Georgia at Clemson
Announcers: Brent Musberger, Kirk Herbstreit, and Heather Cox
Odds: Clemson +1.5
Weather: Scattered thunderstorms with a high in the mid-80s.

LSU vs. TCU
Announcers: Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge, and Holly Rowe
Odds: LSU -4.5
Weather: In a dome, so again, pretty nice.

It doesn't get much better than a pair of marquee non-conference matchups on Saturday night. Both of these games will affect the national championship picture, especially if Clemson and/or TCU lose. Georgia and/or LSU can probably overcome a loss and still make the BCS title game if things break the right way, but it's tough to see a one-loss Big 12 or ACC team making it to the title game. High stakes!

Plan B: Washington State at Auburn

Things didn't exactly go well for Mike Leach in his first year at Washington State, and he's got a challenging trip to Auburn to open his second year at the helm. The Tigers were pretty rough last year too, but hopes are high for a fast turnaround with Gus Malzahn in charge.

Keep it in mind: Wyoming at Nebraska

Bo Pelini might get really mad again!

Break in case of emergency: New Mexico State at Texas

Not sure how many of you have Longhorn Network, so this may not even apply.
Night shift

Best option: Boise State at Washington

Announcers: Gus Johnson, Charles Davis, and Kristina Pink
Odds: Washington -3.5
Weather: Sunny with a high in the mid-70s.

Boise State opens its season with yet another matchup against a major conference foe, this time at Washington. The Huskies aren't at full strength, but could be trouble if Boise isn't prepared. Unfortunately for them, the Broncos are usually pretty dang prepared for season-openers.

Plan B: Northwestern at Cal

Northwestern is going to be really fun this year. Sonny Dykes is installing the BEAR RAID in Berkeley. It usually takes a little time for offenses like that to get in sync, but there is a strong possibility of points here.

Keep it in mind: Nevada at UCLA

This could actually be really fun. The Bruins won the Pac-12 South last year, but they could be in for some regression in 2013. Nevada and that offense could be a handful.
Sunday
11:45 a.m. ET MVSU Orlando Florida A&M ESPN
3:30 p.m. ET Ohio at 9 Louisville ESPN
6 p.m. ET Colorado Denver Colorado State CBSSN
8 p.m. ET Bethune-Cookman at Tennessee State ESPN3.com

Best option: Ohio at Louisville

Announcers: Joe Tessitore, Matt Millen, and Maria Taylor
Odds: Louisville -20.5
Weather: Isolated thunderstorms with a high around 90.

The Cardinals might have the best shot in the country at going undefeated, but opening the season against Ohio is no gimme. Why not tune in and see what Teddy Bridgewater has in store for us?

Plan B: The other games

Like you have anything else to watch?
Monday

Your only option: Florida State at Pitt

Announcers: Rece Davis, Jesse Palmer, David Pollock, and Samantha Ponder
Odds: Pitt +10.5
Weather: Scattered thunderstorms, high in the upper 70s.

Welcome to the ACC, Pitt. The Panthers' first game in their new conference is against last year's champs and a strong pick to repeat. At least Pitt has this game at home, although the Panthers are not exactly renowned for their ferocious home field advantage.
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• NCAA clears Johnny Manziel

• How to stop Jadeveon Clowney: actual coaches build a game plan

• Why we love college football: a beautiful SB Nation longread

•Bama-Oregon title game, plus all 34 other bowl projections

•The conference megapreview series begins: ACC | Big Ten | SEC

The college football schedule is littered with viewing options. Some are better than others, so let's walk you through your options.