By next week, most football fans will be fixated on their NFL fantasy squads, the Sunday betting lines and just opening week in general.
Thanks to the NCAA schedule, however, we have a wonderful appetizer on this long weekend — to go along with the CFL’s three traditional Labour Day rivalries.
A dynamite Week 1 schedule in the college ranks is highlighted by a Saturday matinee featuring star quarterback Arch Manning and his top-ranked Texas Longhorns against the third-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes — the defending national champs — at the famous Horseshoe in Columbus, Ohio.
It’s one of three opening-week tilts featuring a pair of top-10 teams — No. 4 Clemson hosts No. 9 LSU on Saturday night at Death Valley before No. 10 Miami entertains No. 6 Notre Dame on Sunday night.
The final game of the week also is a doozy. Bill Belichick will make his debut as coach of North Carolina when the Tar Heels host TCU in a standalone Monday nighter.
Once again, there will be a 12-team College Football Playoff this year.
To get you ready for all the action, here’s a look at some of the top storylines for the 2025 season.
Arch Madness
Rarely has we seen so much hype about a college quarterback.
Arch Manning, grandson of Archie and nephew of Peyton and Eli, certainly has the bloodlines of a winner.
Many think he has the tools to be the next great Manning, as Arch is the Heisman Trophy betting favourite. If he leaves Texas after this season, he likely will be in the running to be the No. 1 overall pick in next year’s NFL Draft.
It’s worth remembering, though, that Manning threw just 95 passes in his first two years at Texas. Last year, he was behind Miami Dolphins seventh-round pick Quinn Ewers on the Texas depth chart.
Manning will get tested in a hurry. More than 100,000 fans will be cheering on a Buckeyes squad featuring star safety Caleb Downs, one of the most important players on last year’s national championship squad, as Ohio State battles Texas.
Offensively, the Buckeyes might have the most dangerous player in college football in sophomore wide receiver Jeremiah Smith, ranked No. 1 in the NCAA by ESPN in its list of the top 100 players this season.
Belichick is back
After a year dabbling in the broadcasting ranks, Bill Belichick returns to coaching at a new level with the NFL seemingly not interested, at least for now, in giving the New England Patriots legend another shot.
The 73-year-old Belichick signed a five-year deal to coach at a school far more known for basketball success than football.
UNC hasn’t been any better than 8-4 since 2015.
Little is known about this year’s Tar Heels, who lost more than 50 players to the transfer portal and brought in just over 40 new ones. Most aren’t picking UNC to be anything more than a middling team in the ACC under the six-time Super Bowl-winning head coach.
Regardless of how good the Tar Heels are, they are sure to be in the spotlight.
The other quarterbacks
There’s no guarantee Manning will be the top-rated quarterback for the 2026 NFL Draft.
It’s a deep QB class, with several intriguing names.
ESPN’s Field Yates has said he sees a little bit of Josh Allen in South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers. Clemson’s Cade Klubnik threw for 36 touchdowns and rushed for seven more last season. Drew Allar returns to a strong Penn State team after pulling himself out of last year’s draft.
Others to watch include LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier, UCLA’s Nico Iamaleava, Arizona State’s Sam Leavitt, Florida’s DJ Lagway and Miami’s Carson Beck, a high-profile transfer from Georgia coming off a season-ending knee injury.
Don’t forget about the youngster
Freshman Bryce Underwood has been named QB1 for the No. 14 Michigan Wolverines.
The Michigan native was ESPN’s top recruit in the 2025 recruiting class, making a late switch to stay in home state rather than go to LSU.
Underwood, just the fourth true freshman to start at QB for the Wolverines, doesn’t lack confidence.
“I feel like nobody’s seen a freshman like me,” he said in an interview with the Big Ten Network.
What can Indiana do for an encore?
The surprising Indiana Hoosiers were one of the great stories of the season last season, finishing 11-1 and reaching the College Football Playoff under brash, first-year head coach Curt (“Google me”) Cignetti and Canadian quarterback Kurtis Rourke.
The latter is now recovering from injury with the San Francisco 49ers after finding huge success as a transfer in his last year of college.
Cignetti has gone to the transfer portal again to find his new starting quarterback,
Fernando Mendoza — previously a California Golden Bear.
Mendoza could put himself in the running to be a very high pick in next year’s NFL Draft. Time will tell if he can achieve as much success as Rourke under Cignetti.
Can ‘Bama bounce back?
Alabama missed the 12-team CFP under first-year head coach Kalen DeBoer, which is not exactly an expected result for the Crimson Tide.
Alabama opens the season as No. 8 in the national rankings, playing out of the always-loaded SEC.
Sophomore wide receiver Ryan Williams might be the second-best player at his position behind Ohio State’s Smith. Alabama also has one of the top offensive linemen in the country in six-foot-seven, 366-pound tackle Kadyn Proctor.
Ty Simpson, Alabama’s backup QB the past two seasons, has earned the starting job this year.
Who’s going to win it all?
Very tough to say.
Six teams got first-place votes in the first AP rankings of the year — Texas, Penn State, Ohio State, Clemson, Georgia and Oregon.
Texas edged out Penn State 25-23 in first-place votes.
Best game each week
Week 1: Texas at Ohio State, Saturday, noon ET / 9 a.m. PT — No. 1 vs. No. 3. The defending champs vs. Arch Manning in an iconic venue. Doesn’t get better than this.
Week 2: Michigan at Oklahoma, Saturday, Sept. 6, 7:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. PT — Underwood should get his first real test against the 18th-ranked Sooners.
Week 3: Florida at LSU, Saturday, Sept. 13, 7:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. PT — Two top-ranked quarterbacks battle it out at the NCAA’s other Death Valley.
Week 4: Illinois at Indiana, Saturday, Sept. 20, time TBD — Indiana’s Big Ten Conference opener against No. 12 Illinois should be the first chance to see whether the Hoosiers have a shot to be a national power again.
Week 5: Alabama at Georgia, Saturday, Sept. 27, 7:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. PT — Two SEC powerhouses square off in what will be a top-10 battle if the pre-season rankings hold.
Week 6: Boise State at Notre Dame, Saturday, Oct. 4, 3:30 p.m. ET / 12:30 p.m. PT — Excluding independent Notre Dame, Boise State was the best team outside the power conferences last season. Let’s see how the Broncos do in South Bend.
Week 7: Oklahoma at Texas, Saturday, Oct. 11, 3:30 p.m. ET / 12:30 p.m. PT — The latest edition of the Red River Rivalry at the Cotton Bowl. Texas won 34-3 last year.
Week 8: Louisville at Miami, Friday, Oct. 17, 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT — A big day for Ottawa. Louisville has a pair of defensive linemen from Canada’s capital (Wesley Bailey and Rene Konga), while Miami has one (Akheem Mesidor). All three are top CFL Draft prospects and could attract NFL interst.
Week 9: Alabama at South Carolina, Saturday, Oct. 25, time TBD — Figures to be a key SEC showdown.
Week 10: Penn State at Ohio State, Saturday, Nov. 1, time TBD — Ohio State won 20-13 on the road in this game between Big Ten heavyweights last season.
Week 11: Stanford at North Carolina, Saturday, Nov. 8, time TBD — Belichick takes on fellow former NFL coach Frank Reich, the interim head coach under new football boss Andrew Luck at Stanford.
Week 12: Texas at Georgia, Saturday, Nov. 15, time TBD — Two top-five pre-season teams lock horns. It’s a rematch of last year’s SEC championship, won 22-19 by Georgia in OT.
Week 13: Arizona State at Colorado, Saturday, Nov. 22, time TBD — Expectations aren’t nearly as high for famous Colorado coach Deion Sanders this season following the departures of QB Shedeur Sanders and receiver/defensive back Travis Hunter. This is one of his team’s toughest games on the schedule.
Week 14: Ohio State at Michigan, Saturday, Nov. 29, noon ET / 9 a.m. PT — The rivalry simply known as “The Game” resumes. Visiting Michigan stunned Ohio State last year before the Buckeyes bounced back to win the national title.
Week 15: Conference championship games, Friday, Dec. 5, and Saturday, Dec. 6.
Week 16: Army vs. Navy, Saturday, Dec. 13, 3 p.m. ET / noon PT — Navy was an impressive 10-3 last year and beat Army 31-13 in the annual clash. This year’s game is in Baltimore.
Bowl games: Dec. 13-Jan. 20
College Football Playoff
Round 1: Dec. 19 (one game at host school), Dec. 20 (three games at host schools)
Quarterfinals: Cotton Bowl, Dec. 31, in Dallas, 7:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. PT; Orange Bowl, Jan. 1, in Miami Gardens, Fla., noon ET / 9 a.m. PT; Rose Bowl, Jan. 1, in Pasadena, Calif., 4 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. PT; Sugar Bowl, Jan. 1, in New Orleans, 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT
Semifinals: Fiesta Bowl, Jan. 8, in Glendale, Ariz., 7:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. PT; Peach Bowl, Jan. 9, in Atlanta, 7:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. PT
Final: Jan. 19, in Miami Gardens, Fla., 7:30 p.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. PT
