Aaron E. Martinez, Austin American-Statesman
College football is still over three months away, but it’s never too early to check out some potential “games of the weeks”. Today we will be going from Week 0 – Week 4 and deciding what game is the game of the week for that week.
Week 0: Florida State vs Georgia Tech (Dublin, Ireland)
Starting off overseas for this 2024-2025 college football season, as the Florida State Seminoles are coming off a season where they felt very disrespected. The Seminoles believed they deserved to be in the college football playoffs but were left out by the committee. Not many games to choose from this week, but seeing college football grow in other countries is a great sign for the sport.
Week 1: Clemson vs Georgia (Atlanta, Georgia)
Although College Gameday announced they’ll be going to Texas A&M vs Notre Dame, this game seems a lot bigger to me. The Bulldogs missed the playoffs for the first time in two seasons last year and are going to be hungry to get back in. Starting off with a top-25 win against the Clemson Tigers will be a huge start. For Clemson and Dabo Swinney, it seems as if they are on borrowed time now, it seems as if the Tigers’ dynasty that once was, is long gone now. But this is a game that turns everything around, seems like a win could really excel coach Swinney and his team to a great year, but starting off with a loss might tell the story for the rest of the year and be bad news for Swinney going forward.
Week 2: Texas at Michigan
The Longhorns first Big Ten opponent as a member of the SEC is going to be the defending National Champions in the Michigan Wolverines, in the Big House. If you would’ve told Texas this last year, I’m sure their reactions would’ve been much different, but with Michigan losing nearly every starter, this game may favor Texas a bit more. A win over Michigan would be a huge tone-setter for the inaugural SEC season for the Longhorns. As for Michigan, this may be a tell-all for this season, is their newly shaped roster ready to compete, only time will tell.
Week 3: Alabama at Wisconsin
The 2024 season will be the first season since 2006 that the Alabama Crimson Tide will not be led by legendary, Hall of Famer coach Nick Saban and it’s safe to say Kalen DeBoer has ginormous shoes to fill as head coach. On the other side, Luke Fickell took over the Wisconsin program back in 2022 and is looking to make his first big impression in the talented Big Ten. The Badgers will be the first Power 5 opponent of the Crimson Tide’s season and Coach DeBoer is going to need a win to satisfy that fan base for the time being.
Week 4: Tennessee at Oklahoma
Another newcomer in this powerhouse that is the SEC, the Oklahoma Sooners welcome the Tennessee Volunteers to Norman, Oklahoma in Week 4. With Alabama in a potential rebuilding year, numerous SEC teams seem to be gearing up at just the right time to give Georgia a run for their money in the conference, and Tennessee seems to be one of those. A team that will most likely be led by redshirt-freshman quarterback, Nico Iamaleava, a guy that many Volunteer fans were high on out of high school, now is his chance to win them over for good. As for the Sooners, this will be their first conference game as a member of the SEC, and what better way to set the tone than to welcome in a potential SEC championship game contender and knock them off early.
For MORE college football content, check out the following links:
–The Tennessee Volunteers Are a Dark Horse SEC Contender for 2024
–Ohio State vs Oregon Will Be the College Football Game of the Year
