This Weekend in College Football: Week 1

As usual, all times Eastern and all predictions wrong.

Saturday

7:30: Georgia Tech vs. Boston College (@Dublin, Ireland; ESPN2): And here we are, my team, right here off the top, leading off the season, yet on the one weekend a year I can't really watch. There's not a whole lot that could have gone a lot worse for us last year. The beginning of a new season of any sport is always an opportunity for unfettered optimism. I know this, and yet, I find myself not too worried about this Tech. Sure, a lot of it is from the "well, it sure as hell can't be worse" perspective, but there's also the old college football saying "the best thing about freshmen is that they eventually becomes sophomores", and this is a team that can definitely be applied to.
BC are, of course, not slouches themselves. They had a legitimately great defense last year coupled with an unbelievably incompetent offense. This game could well be a chess match, and for those of you able to watch it, just keep that in mind.
Note: the rest of the picks are going to be pretty rapid fire, I just ran out of time. Sorry.

Noon:

• Oklahoma vs. Houston (@Houston, TX; ABC): Going with the Sooners, but it's hard to understate the importance of this game. Surprised it's at 11:00am locla time.
• Hawaii @ Michigan (ESPN): Michigan.
• Missouri @ West Virginia (FS1): West Virginia.
• Western Michigan @ Northwestern (ESPNU): They may well row the boat across Lake Michigan, but... yeah. Northwestern.
• South Alabama @ Mississippi State (SEC): Miss State.

2:00: Rutgers @ Washington (Pac12): Washington.

3:30:

• Louisiana State @ Wisconsin (@Green Bay, WI; ABC): LSU, but it'd be really funny the other way around, right?
• California-Los Angeles @ Texas A&M (CBS): UCLA.
• Miami @ Iowa (FSN): Iowa (since this is the MAC Miami)
• Texas State @ Ohio (CBSS): Ohio.

4:00: Louisiana Tech @ Arkansas (SEC): Arkansas.

5:30: North Carolina vs. Georgia (@Atlanta, GA; ESPN): Georgia, but whoo boy, it'd be create if the Tar Heels could do it.

7:00: San Jose State @ Tulsa (CBSS): Tulsa.

7:30:

• Southern Mississippi @ Kentucky (ESPNU): Kentucky.
• Massachusetts @ Florida (SEC): Florida.

8:00:

• Southern California vs. Alabama (@Arlington, TX; ABC): Alabama.
• Fresno State @ Nebraska (BTN): Nebraska
• New Mexico State @ Texas-El Paso (beIN): UTEP.

9:00: Clemson @ Auburn (ESPN): Clemson.

10:30:

• Brigham Young vs. Arizona (@Glendale, AZ; FS1): Arizona.
• Northern Illinois @ Wyoming (CBSS): NIU.

Sunday

7:30: Notre Dame @ Texas (ABC): Notre Dame

Monday

8:00: Florida State vs. Mississippi (@Orlando, FL; ESPN): FSU.