Week 0 is in the books and now it’s time for the real thing to start! College football is back, this is not a drill, not a hoax, and not a scam. We are ready to sit on our couches for hours on end watching the best sport in the world. Without further ado, here are our top three games of the 2023 college football Week 1.
5. LSU vs 8. Florida State
Who remembers this epic game last year which began our season with a bang as LSU missed an extra point to tie the game and the Noles went on to win in epic fashion. As you can tell by these rankings, both the Tigers and Seminoles are highly thought of coming into the season. While the SEC is packed with talent, the ACC seems to be open for the taking so the pressure certainly sits with Floria State and coach Mike Norvell. The “rebuild” is definitely over in Tallahassee and these fans are hungry to watch some competitive football and to have another winning team. The Tigers are led by QB Jayden Daniels who many penciled in as their Heisman favorite this season so the pressure will be building for him in this first game. I would imagine that plenty of these Tigers still have a bad taste in their mouths over what happened a year ago. Prediction: LSU 28 FSU 24
21. University of North Carolina vs South Carolina
Don’t sleep on the Gamecocks. Shane Beamer’s team had a strong 2022 season with QB Spencer Rattler reviving his career and putting himself back on the map and back in NFL draft discussions after the success that he had in the offense. South Carolina was third in the SEC East, and they took down both Clemson and Tennessee in a couple of really impressive games. UNC is another team gunning for an ACC championship after falling short last season and we must give credit to QB Drake Maye. Like Daniels, Maye is a guy that is getting lots of Heisman hype and beyond that, he is being talked about as the second overall draft pick after USC’s Caleb Williams in next year’s NFL draft. This is our first shot at seeing him play in what will be his final season and it should be fun. However, give me the Gamecocks to play the spoiler. Prediction: UNC 35 South Carolina 40
Colorado vs 17. TCU
For months, we have heard about Deion Sanders and how he has reignited a sense of excitement into the fan base at Colorado. On top of that, the program announced they’ll join the Big 12 next season. This is our first chance to see him, as the Buffs will face a team that played in a National Championship earlier this year. TCU would like to get that taste out of their mouths and the Horned Frogs will have to do it without the core of their group from a year ago. I don’t expect some crazy upset, as this Colorado team is still a long way away from being a true menace, but it will be fun to see future conference foes battle it out in a game that has a lot of anticipation building around it. Prediction: Colorado 17 TCU 38