After a long offseason, college football returns this week. There are always things to watch every week of the season. Here are 5 things to watch in college football week 0.
D.J. Uiagalelei started off his career with great expectations. He played a little bit as a freshman in relief of Trevor Lawrence and did solidly. The next two years at Clemson didn’t go according to plan. He then transferred to Oregon State for last season. In all, he has passed for 8,319 yards, 57 touchdowns and 24 interceptions.
Heading into this season, Uiagalelei transferred to Florida State. The Seminoles are coming off a regular season when they were undefeated. There are a lot of new faces at Florida State via the transfer portal, but they’ll need a starting quarterback to play well. Uiagalelei will need to live up to his potential for Florida State to reach their ceiling and he’ll want to get off to a hot start against Georgia Tech in week 0.
Last season, Georgia Tech exceeded expectations winning seven games. It was Brent Key’s second season in charge and now they will be looking to build on it in 2024. Winning four of their last six games to finish last season gives them momentum and they will be looking to keep it going in week 0.
The good news for Georgia Tech is the amount of good players they have returning from last season. Haynes King is back at quarterback and Jamal Haynes will be next to him in the backfield at running back. King has plenty of talented receivers and some experience up front to help. The Yellow Jackets return seven starters on defense. With all of that, there is the chance they can pull off the upset over Florida State in week 0.
SMU joined Cal and Stanford in joining the ACC for this season. That will give them plenty of more competition this season, but they also have a team that can do well. The Mustangs won 11 games last season and will be looking to make some headlines in what will be their first time in a major conference since their Pony Express days.
In week 0, SMU plays Nevada. While they are about four touchdown favorites and the game shouldn’t be in doubt, it will be worth watching. Quarterback Preston Stone passed for 3,197 yards, 28 touchdowns and six interceptions in his first season as a starter. He brings back six other starters on offense and six on defense. A good start to the season could help the Mustangs build up steam that could help them compete in the ACC.
When FCS teams play FBS teams, the FBS teams are usually favored. They are a higher subdivision and usually have more resources. In week 0, Montana State of the FCS is being favored over New Mexico of the FBS. The Bobcats are projected to finish near the top of the FCS this season. Quarterback Tommy Mellott will need to stay healthy for Montana State to possibly win a championship this season.
New Mexico will have a new look in 2024, as Bronco Mendenhall, the former BYU and Virginia head coach takes over. They won four games last season and only bring back five total starters. Some help comes in from the transfer portal, but they are going through massive changes. Montana State is actually favored in this game, so New Mexico can use it as motivation.
Hawaii hired Timmy Chang, the former record-breaking quarterback as their head coach two seasons ago. He has gone 8-16 so far. Chang has been trying to get the offense back to its former glory, but it has been a long process. Last season, the offense ranked 106th in the country at 21.4 points per game.
The Warriors play Delaware State of the FCS in week 0, which gives them a chance to get their offense rolling. Quarterback Brayden Schager brings a lot of experience back after having passed for 6,505 yards, 41 touchdowns and 29 interceptions in his career. He’ll have some good targets and a few returning offensive linemen to help him. The Warriors offense should be much better in 2024 and it starts with the game against Delaware State.
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