Week 1 college football watchability tiers spotlight must-see slate
USA TODAY Sports divides Week 1’s 43 FBS games into four viewing tiers: Tier 1 must-see matchups (Colorado at Georgia Tech; Boise State at Oregon; Baylor at Auburn; Clemson at LSU; Wisconsin at Notre Dame; Louisville at Mississippi; SMU at Florida State) anchor the slate; Tier 2 commercial-break backups include Toledo at Michigan State, Miami at Stanford, USC vs. Fresno State, North Texas at Indiana, and Alabama vs East Carolina; Tier 3 track-the-box-score games feature Oklahoma vs Texas-El Paso, Liberty vs James Madison, Oregon State vs Houston, Coastal Carolina at West Virginia, Ohio at Nebraska, among others; Tier 4 check-your-phone-before-bed options cover late-night or lower-stakes FBS/FCS entries like Massachusetts at Rutgers, Akron at Wake Forest, Alabama-Birmingham at Illinois, and a long list of FCS pairings. The guide notes the Week 1 slate spans 43 FBS games (and 47 against FCS) and serves to help fans plan viewing through Labor Day weekend.
