Eighty-six FBS games are scheduled for Week 1 of the 2018 college football season. Four of them are receiving significantly more national attention than the other 82: Michigan at Notre Dame, Washington vs. Auburn, Virginia Tech at Florida State, and Miami (FL) vs. LSU.
While your eyeballs must be glued to the screen and butt cheeks stapled to the couch for the entirety of each of those three blockbuster games, don't forget about the other 82, several of which deserve your undivided attention.
Here are five games you can't allow to get lost in the shuffle of the 86-game Week 1.
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San Diego State at Stanford
Date: Friday, Aug. 31
Time: 9:00 p.m. ET
TV: FS1
For non-diehards, this is the only can't-miss game on Friday night. And the 9:00 p.m. ET kickoff is friendly to those outside the Pacific and Mountain time zones.
San Diego State is one of only two Group of Five teams with a strong enough schedule to earn warrant serious consideration for a College Football Playoff berth if they go undefeated. Their quest starts with a road game vs. Stanford, whom they beat, 20-17, last year in San Diego.
You'll see the best running backs in the nation in Bryce Love and another running back who will have a monster year in Juwan Washington.
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Ole Miss vs. Texas Tech
Date: Saturday, Sept. 1
Time: 12:00 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
You hate points? Find a different game.
Both Ole Miss and Texas Tech lost their starting quarterbacks but have two replacements more than capable of lighting up scoreboards in Jordan Ta'amu (Ole Miss) and, assuming he wins the job, Jett Duffey (Texas Tech).
This game will be played in Texas Tech's state but it's a true neutral-site game that's almost exactly equidistant from the two schools.
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James Madison at NC State
Date: Saturday, Sept. 1
Time: 12:00 p.m. ET
TV: ESPNU
Ranked as the sixth-most-likely FCS-FBS upset by our FCS crew, James Madison at NC State is the premiere FCS-FBS game of Week 1 — and maybe the season.
Third-year head coach Mike Houston leads a loaded Dukes team that features big-time talent across the field, especially at running back, where Cardon Johnson and Georgia Tech transfer Marcus Marshall will test a rebuilt NC State defensive line.
The matchup to watch is Ryan Finley vs. a James Madison secondary that's a heck of a lot better than some Power Five groups.
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Northern Illinois at Iowa
Date: Saturday, Sept. 8
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
TV: BTN
You hate points? Here's your game.
While Nate Stanley and Noah Fant lead a Hawkeyes' offense capable of scoring, this game will struggle to hit 50 points, especially if Sutton Smith picks up where he left off. The Huskies' defensive end and All-America candidate had 29.5 tackles for loss last year, or almost as many as the entire East Carolina team (39).
For what it's worth, Northern Illinois won in Iowa City in 2013.
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Boise State at Troy
Date: Saturday, Sept. 1
Time: 6:00 p.m. ET
TV: ESPNews
I've been pumping this game for months. Veterans Memorial Stadium will be on fire for a game that might play a huge role in the Group of Five's chase for a New Year's Six bowl, and maybe (although unlikely given their schedule), playoff consideration for Boise State.
Get your multi-device setup figured out early, because you're watching the second half of this game and the first half of Michigan-Notre Dame simultaneously.
