2026 College Football Week 1 Preview

We’ve finally made it! The first Saturday of the 2026 college football season is one sleep away. Do whatever you need to do to get a good night’s rest tonight and get your workout and chores done early in the morning because we’ve got 12 hours of nonstop action for the first time in 9 months. You’re gonna want to be caulked to your couch.

For a week 1 spread, it’s not the strongest slate in the world, but do we really care that much since it’s been so long? I’ll speak for the collective and say not really.

The preview for this week will be fairly short as I have not fully thought through everything I want to talk about in this weekly post. For now, we’ll give you coverage on 5 spotlight games as well as underdogs of the week from myself and Cheech. If you have suggestions on what you’d like to see in the weekly preview, I’d be happy to hear them in the comment section to get some ideas.

For now, see below for the aforementioned game previews for the week. And take some time to soak it in. We’ve waited patiently for college football to be back. We only get 13 of these Saturdays every year. Let’s make em count!

Games of the Week

Baylor vs Auburn

Each of these teams comes into 2026 with refreshed rosters and hope to forget the woes of 2025. Dave Aranda has tabbed Florida-transfer DJ Lagway in a last ditch effort to save his job. Both were disasters last year and 2 wrongs make a right, right? I have much more optimism on what Auburn has done this offseason starting with the overall portal class (9th compared to 36th for Baylor, according to 247) and ending with bringing in a superior coach and quarterback duo in Alex Golesh and Byrum Brown. The Tigers especially bolstered the D-line and should have considerable depth there to rotate and keep guys fresh all game. That should allow them to control the line of scrimmage and pressure Lagway into the same mistakes we saw from him last year. I think Brown lights up defensive guru Aranda for over 300 yards and 4 touchdowns and announces to the college football world that Auburn football is back on the right track.

Predictions

David Tomlinson: Auburn 41 – Baylor 21

Cheech Jones: Auburn 31 – Baylor 24

Clemson at LSU

The second leg of the Death Valley series sees LSU trying to make it a sweep with 2 different head coaches. As opposed to last year in South Carolina, the Bayou Bengals come in as the heavy favorite as pundits have soured on the Clemson program after an incredibly disappointing 2025. The matchup to watch for me in this one is Sam Leavitt driving Lane Kiffin’s offense for the first time against what Clemson fans are hoping is a much improved Tiger defense. Dabo finally got off his high horse this offseason and jumped in the portal, looking to particularly improve the secondary by bringing in dudes like Elliott Washington from Penn State. The new additions will get tested here early against one of the top offensive minds in the sport. Clemson will need to control time of possession and keep the ball out of Leavitt’s hands in this one to stay afloat, so it’s key the secondary plays well. On offense, Chris Vizzina finally gets the reins and will do his best to get the ball out to playmakers Bryant Wesco and TJ Moore in the passing game. I think it will be tough sledding though for the Clemson offense under the lights in the Bayou, and LSU will ultimately have too many opportunities on offense. The real Death Valley debate ends with a resounding statement from the home team.

Predictions

David Tomlinson: LSU 35 – Clemson 20

Cheech Jones: LSU 38 – Clemson 13

UCLA at California

Countless similarities abound between these once upon a time annual rivals: school system, colors, mascot, 1st year head coaches, potential star Poly quarterbacks, etc, etc. But most notably, both schools have been hyped as potential sleeper teams in their respective conferences. Unfortunately for one of them, most of that hype is going to be left in the preseason. I think both teams’ strength here lies on the offensive side of the ball. The Bruins should have a balanced triple threat attack of Iamaleava through the air and on the ground, and star running back Wayne Knight toting the rock. On the other hand, I could see the Bears going more air raid heavy behind former Tampa Bay Buccanneers’ pass game specialist and new OC Jordan Somerville and Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele’s rocket arm. JKS has a bevy of new options he can distribute the ball to this year headlined by Rutgers transfer Ian Strong and Ohio transfer Chase Hendricks on the outside and Dorian Thomas at tight end. I think this game comes down to a couple of factors: can Nico Iamaleava return to form under the new regime and can Tosh Lupoi scheme up defenses to stop the Bruins’ attack. Ultimately, I trust Chesney’s head coaching experience in this one, and I think the Bruins keep the preseason hype train rolling into the season.

Predictions

David Tomlinson: UCLA 37 – Cal 34

Cheech Jones: UCLA 28 – Cal 24

Wisconsin vs Notre Dame

The Shamrock series heads to Lambeau Field in 2026 where the spurned Irish look to rebound from a narrow CFP miss last year. Looking for even more of a bounce back are Luke Fickell’s Badgers who have been a shell of themselves the last 3 to 4 years. Fickell brings in dual threat Old Dominion transfer Colton Joseph to be his quarterback (let’s all pray for his good health this season and that he’s not struck by the Wisconsin QB injury curse). I like Joseph’s prospects for a solid season this year, but… not against this defense. The Irish secondary, accentuated by all-world junior CB Leonard Moore, may be the best overall unit in the country and with Joseph’s average arm, I think the Badgers are limited to trying to do their work on the ground, which won’t end well. Preseason Heisman favorite CJ Carr should have no problem carving up a mediocre Wisconsin defense in a solid week 1 performance and leads Notre Dame to a dominant victory.

Predictions

David Tomlinson: Notre Dame 35 – Wisconsin 13

Cheech Jones: Notre Dame 35 – Wisconsin 10

Louisville vs Ole Miss

Our 3rd and final neutral site preview game of the week has the Cardinals and Rebels meeting in Nashville (please let this trend die, each and every one of these games would be better on college campuses with packed out student sections). Jeff Brohm and his squad are definitely going to have their work cut out for them on Labor Day, especially on the defensive side of the ball trying to stop the 3-headed monster of quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, running back Kewan Lacy, and wide receiver Deuce Alexander. New OC John David Baker has high expectations to keep this offense as potent as last year’s Lane Kiffin and Charlie Weis Jr. version, and I think he can get it nearly there. Brohm comes prepared with his own firepower on offense, particularly the Browns in the backfield, Isaac and Keyjuan. I think Louisville’s best chance at winning this game is wearing the Rebs down with their run game, controlling the clock, and limiting Ole Miss’s possessions. Ultimately though, I think Pete Golding’s team goes up early, and the Cardinals are forced into catch-up mode where greener QB Lincoln Kienholz can’t keep pace with the more experienced Chambliss.

Predictions

David Tomlinson: Ole Miss 34 – Louisville 23

Cheech Jones: Ole Miss 35 – Louisville 34

David’s Underdog of the Week

South Dakota State 27 – Northwestern 16

The FCS #2 team heads into Evanston to play at Northwestern’s ramshackle lean-to confines for one of its final appearances. While the views are great, the venue doesn’t offer anything in terms of a home-field advantage. But per usual, we should be in for a messy, weird game on the shores of Lake Michigan where points will be at a premium. The Jackrabbits already have a win under their belt in 2026 with a 70-7 smashing of Stetson last weekend. This pick comes down to quarterbacks for me where I trust veteran Chase Mason’s ability to perform in key moments more than Aidan Chiles who is… bad. Keep an eye out for Northwestern wide receiver Griffin Wilde in this one who transferred from South Dakota State this year and is a stud. If Chiles has any hope of being average, a lot of that will be due to Wilde’s ability.

Cheech’s Underdog of the Week

Boston College 24 – Cincinnati 20

I am taking the Boston College Eagles to upset the Cincinnati Bearcats. UC is essentially replacing every skill position group on offense, including QB Brendan Sorsby, its top three rushers, and its top five receivers. I’m betting on the experience of Bill O’Brien to have Boston College ready to pull off the upset.