College football season opens with new coaches, eligibility chaos

The grand opening of the college football season has arrived.

There is only one game between two Associated Press Top 25 teams and that comes on Sunday night, with No. 24 Louisville facing No. 9 Mississippi in Music City. But Week 1 is filled with intrigue as a host of top teams kick things off with new coaches, new faces and high hopes. 

Clemson at No. 11 LSU on Saturday night was always going to be a showcase game. Two teams that went 7-6 last season trying to get back in the national championship mix (LSU winning in 2019 and Clemson in 2018 seems so long ago), two outspoken coaches in Dabo Swinney and LSU’s expensive new hire, Lane Kiffin.

The game took on a lot more meaning when the NCAA’s new eligibility rules blew up in courtrooms all over the country and LSU made no secret of its interest in bringing back not just fifth-year players who went to court but players who had signed professional contracts in the NFL’s preseason. The issue lingered late into the week, including the surreal spectacle of the SEC battling LSU in multiple courtrooms.

Who suits up or doesn’t on Saturday night in Death Valley (the LSU version) will be as interesting as the final score.

This year’s Week 1 is light on marquee games and you can expect a lot of lopsided results. No. 1 Ohio State is favored by more than 50 points in its opener against Ball State. No. 6 Indiana (vs. North Texas), No. 8 Texas A&M (vs. Missouri State) and No. 10 Oklahoma (vs. UTEP) are each picked to win by more than 40. Even No. 22 Iowa, a grinder program if ever there was one, is favored by 31-plus against Northern Illinois.

This is the longest weekend of the season in a good way with major college football games Thursday through Monday night. The Sunday lineup includes a weirdly early Apple Cup between No. 17 and Washington State before prime-time showdowns: No. 4 Notre Dame against Wisconsin at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and No. 9 Mississippi against No. 24 Louisville in Nashville, Tennessee. The Labor Day capper sees Mike Norvell and Florida State hosting No. 19 SMU and dynamic quarterback Kevin Jennings.

The next AP Top 25 rankings to sort it all out will be released Tuesday.


(AP Photo Jeff Roberson)