College football is underway, and most fans are excited to see just how the first week goes. These games have a lot of pressure behind them, even if ranked teams are playing against unranked ones. The underdogs could come out swinging and give those top-ranked teams a tough game.
No. 1 Ohio State at Virginia Tech: Monday, Sept. 7 at 8 p.m.
The Buckeyes will travel to play the Hokies in their first game of the season. Ranked at No. 1 in the AP Top 25, USA Today Coaches Poll and the NCAA College Football Power Rankings, Ohio State has the clear advantage of beating Virginia Tech in this game.
The Buckeyes finished last season 14-1 overall and 8-0 in their conference the Big Ten. They also took home the national title after beating Oregon 42-20. These two teams met last season in the Buckeyes home opener where the Hokies managed to win 35-21 snapping Ohio State’s 25-game winning streak.
Though Virginia Tech is unranked and Ohio State is at the top spot, you never know what could happen. The Hokies finished last season with an overall record of 7-6 and a losing record in conference play 3-5.
Recently, Ohio State named six players as captains of the 2015 season, including redshirt senior Braxton Miller. Miller was formerly the quarterback before he had a shoulder injury resulting in a surgery. He has switched to receiver for this season and could be a prospect to keep an eye out for on the field. The Hokies have 16 of their starters returning, including sophomore wide receiver Isaiah Ford. Ford received an All-ACC Honorable Mention and had 56 receptions for 709 yards and six touchdowns last season. Against Ohio State, Ford caught two passes for 26 yards in the Hokies' defeat.
Texas at No. 11 Notre Dame: Saturday, Sept. 6 at 6:30 p.m.
The Longhorns will travel to play the Fighting Irish for the fourth time in school history. Notre Dame won their most recent matchup with Texas, a 27-24 road victory in 1996.
The Fighting Irish have the advantage in overall record against the Longhorns 8-2. This is the first time these two teams have met in a season opener. Both teams are on the NCAA all-time wins list, with Notre Dame in second and Texas in third.
Last season, the Longhorns finished 6-7 overall, but 5-4 in their conference. They will return 11 starters including offensive lineman Sedrick Flowers. The senior has started 14 out of 32 career games and was named to the 2015 preseason watch list for the Rotary Lombardi Award. He is also rated sixth-best offensive lineman in his class. Texas will begin its second season under head coach Charlie Strong. Strong spent four seasons with Louisville before being hired by the Longhorns last season.
No. 11 Notre Dame finished last season finished 8-5 overall and won the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl against LSU 31-28. The Fighting Irish will return senior defensive lineman Sheldon Day. Day was recently named a team captain for the second straight season. He has a total of 96 tackles in his three years of collegiate play and was named to the Outland Trophy Watch List in 2014.
No. 20 Wisconsin at No. 3 Alabama: Saturday, Sept. 5 8 p.m.
The Crimson Tide and the Badgers are to play their season opener in AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. The last time these two teams met was in 1928 when Wisconsin won 15-0.
Alabama finished off last season 12-2 and went 7-1 in SEC play. Ranked at No. 3 in the preseason AP Poll, the Crimson Tide are a team to watch especially with some of their starters. They had a league-best five players make the first-team honors for the 2015 Preseason Coaches All-SEC Team including offensive lineman Cam Robinson. As a sophomore, Robinson started all 14 games and is a contender for the Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award. Robinson finished his freshman year with 32 knockdown blocks.
The Badgers went 11-3 overall and 7-1 in conference last season. They made it to the Big Ten championship game against Ohio State, but lost 59-0. Returning redshirt junior Leo Musso shows promise as a top safety for Wisconsin this season. Musso played in 12 games last season and finished with 11 tackles total. He was honored with Academic All-Big Ten in both 2013 and 2014.
These two teams are both big competitors in their conferences and this matchup will be one to watch.
More Like This
Gamecocks salvage win with Row's walk-off
By Bobby Balboni | March 25, 2017