After a long offseason, college football returns. There are always things to watch every week of the season. Here are 5 things to watch in college football week 1.
1. LSU vs. FSU Rematch
Last season, LSU and Florida State matched in a week 1 game. It was a game with successful historic programs, but there were a lot of questions surrounding them in their current state. Was Mike Norvell on the hot seat after two lackluster seasons? Could Brian Kelly really fit in as a member of the SEC? Although those questions were there leading into the game, what resulted was a wild event. Florida State ended up winning 24-23 in one of the more entertaining games of the season. After that point, Florida State went on to finish 9-3 in the regular season, while LSU did too and won the SEC West. Now, fans can get the rematch with even higher expectations for both programs.
LSU returns 11 starters from last season, but also have several impact transfers joining the fold. Jayden Daniels is back at quarterback after showing real improvement from the start of last season to the finish. Defensively, the Tigers will be without Maason Smith due to a suspension for receiving improper benefits. They still have plenty of talent on that side of the ball including star linebacker Harold Perkins.
Conversely, Florida State has 14 returning starters. Jordan Travis returns at quarterback and will have plenty of skill surrounding him. The defense has Jared Verse, who should make plenty of plays after turning down the 2023 NFL Draft.
This is a game that has big stakes, as both teams could be competing to make the CFP by season’s end.
2. Florida vs. Utah Rematch
In 2022, Utah traveled to Gainesville to take on the Gators. After making the Rose Bowl and having plenty of returning talent, the Utes were projected for another big season. Florida was in a little more precarious spot, as Billy Napier was entering his first season as the head coach of the Gators. The Gators were able to defend their home turf behind a great performance by Anthony Richardson, who used his arm and legs to get the win.
This season, Florida has to travel to Utah to take on the Utes. Cam Rising is back for his third straight season leading Utah. He will be joined by 11 other returning starters, with six total back on offense. That gives the Utes a chance to match their ranking of having the 11th-best scoring offense in the country. Defensively, Cole Bishop is a great safety that can help them stay competitive on that side of the ball as well.
Florida has just seven returning starters and again are in a much more questionable place than Utah. Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz will be starting at quarterback for Florida, where he will have to show a lot of improvement to help improve a unit that ranked 56th in scoring last season. While there a few returning stars on the defense, including Jason Marshall and Princely Umanmielen, there is a lot of key players that need to be replaced.
Utah is favored to win, but Rising is still recovering from a knee injury that could leave him out of the game and totally change the expected outcome. Either way, this is a game to watch Thursday night.
3. Battle for the Carolinas
South Carolina and North Carolina have played plenty over their program’s histories, but even more recently. This includes a matchup in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl in the 2021 postseason, which was the last matchup between the two teams. The Gamecocks won that matchup 38-21.
This season North Carolina will have Drake Maye leading the way after a fantastic redshirt freshman season. With Maye are 12 other returning starters. The offense can put up points, but the defense really struggled last year. For a better season, the defense has to improve drastically from their 101st scoring ranking in 2022.
South Carolina started off the 2022 season poorly, but then got hot late in the year, beating Tennessee and Clemson in the final two weeks of the regular season. Spencer Rattler returns at quarterback and he too started off slowly before really figuring things out late in the season. There is limited returning experience on the team, as only eight starters are returning. They’ll need plenty of players to step up this season.
Week 1 this year, doesn’t have as many of the great games that most years can boast. This game is worth watching though, with two quarterbacks who are intriguing and teams looking to keep some good momentum going from last season.
4. Coach Prime’s Debut
A lot of the offseason headlines surrounded Deion Sanders and Colorado. The Hall of Fame cornerback was coaching at Jackson State before getting hired by Colorado this offseason. He brought in talented recruits and transfers, but showed a lot of players the door on his way in. While Colorado isn’t projected to have a great season, there is still a lot of attention surrounding Sanders and the Colorado program.
The Buffaloes take on the national runner-ups from last season in TCU. The Horned Frogs lost a lot of talent from that team and will be relying on transfers to make a big impact. They still have some talent, but it will be interesting to watch if Colorado can give the Horned Frogs a run for their money. A lot of eyes will be on Travis Hunter, who was a highly-touted recruit that followed Sanders from Jackson State to Colorado. He may play both ways for Colorado in this game, which could make the game and Sanders’s debut even more interesting.
5. Is Clemson’s Offense Fixed?
Clemson has had some down seasons in recent memory, but they still have won double-digit games in each of the last two seasons. The defense has been great; the problem is the offense. They ranked 29th in scoring last season, which is solid for most programs, but not for one that is trying to compete on a national level.
This offseason, the Tigers brought in offensive coordinator Garrett Riley, who helped lead TCU to the CFP last season. They also have highly-touted recruit Cade Klubnik taking over for D.J. Uiagalelei at quarterback, who transferred to Oregon State. With a little bit of the problem being the quarterback play and a lot of the problem being the scheme the last few seasons, there is hope that Clemson could really improve this season. They will get a chance to show off their new offense against Duke, who won nine games last year and returns a lot of talent, on Monday night of week 1.
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