College Football for five straight days! It’s time to crunch the numbers and provide our data driven predictions for week 1 of the 2023 college football season.
What's Inside
Week 1 College Football Storylines
- LSU and Florida State – this is the biggest game of the weekend as the winner here becomes a legit College Football Playoff contender and the loser will need to run the table to have a shot.
- Deion’s Debut – Coach Prime’s first game with the Colorado Buffaloes is against the rebuilding national runner up TCU.
- How does Northwestern perform following the tumultuous offseason that led to their head coach Pat Fitzgerald being dismissed from the program on the eve of fall camp?
- How does Utah handle starting the season without Cam Rising?
Week 1 College Football Predictions
Thursday
| TEAM | WIN% | SCORE |
| Kent St | 9.0% | 11 |
| UCF | 91.0% | 45 |
| NC State | 65.2% | 29 |
| UConn | 34.8% | 16 |
| Florida | 32.1% | 21 |
| Utah | 67.9% | 35 |
| Nebraska | 46.5% | 21 |
| Minnesota | 53.5% | 24 |
Friday
| TEAM | WIN% | SCORE |
| Central Michigan | 28.8% | 19 |
| Michigan St | 71.2% | 37 |
| Miami OH | 18.8% | 10 |
| Miami | 81.2% | 36 |
| Louisville | 72.9% | 32 |
| Georgia Tech | 27.1% | 13 |
| Stanford | 69.6% | 36 |
| Hawaii | 30.4% | 20 |
Saturday
| TEAM | WIN% | SCORE |
| East Carolina | 8.5% | 11 |
| Michigan | 91.5% | 45 |
| Virginia | 20.4% | 15 |
| Tennessee | 79.6% | 40 |
| Colorado | 44.2% | 24 |
| TCU | 55.8% | 29 |
| Arkansas St | 24.4% | 20 |
| Oklahoma | 75.6% | 41 |
| Utah St | 25.5% | 14 |
| Iowa | 74.5% | 34 |
| Ball St | 18.0% | 10 |
| Kentucky | 82.0% | 37 |
| Bowling Green | 39.7% | 22 |
| Liberty | 60.3% | 30 |
| Fresno St | 55.5% | 28 |
| Purdue | 44.5% | 24 |
| Louisiana Tech | 27.6% | 26 |
| SMU | 72.4% | 44 |
| Northern Illinois | 31.3% | 19 |
| Boston College | 68.7% | 35 |
| Akron | 36.8% | 22 |
| Temple | 63.2% | 33 |
| Ohio St | 86.2% | 43 |
| Indiana | 13.8% | 13 |
| Boise St | 34.3% | 23 |
| Washington | 65.7% | 36 |
| Rice | 4.5% | 12 |
| Texas | 95.5% | 50 |
| Buffalo | 4.6% | 6 |
| Wisconsin | 95.4% | 44 |
| UMass | 10.1% | 9 |
| Auburn | 89.9% | 42 |
| USF | 36.3% | 27 |
| Western Kentucky | 63.7% | 38 |
| Cal | 69.9% | 37 |
| North Texas | 30.1% | 21 |
| Nevada | 8.0% | 12 |
| USC | 92.0% | 47 |
| New Mexico | 7.3% | 7 |
| Texas A&M | 92.7% | 42 |
| Army | 73.0% | 37 |
| UL-Monroe | 27.0% | 18 |
| Washington St | 70.8% | 37 |
| Colorado St | 29.2% | 20 |
| Texas St | 20.5% | 13 |
| Baylor | 79.5% | 38 |
| UTSA | 60.1% | 37 |
| Houston | 39.9% | 28 |
| Middle Tennessee | 14.4% | 16 |
| Alabama | 85.6% | 45 |
| West Virginia | 25.9% | 19 |
| Penn St | 74.1% | 40 |
| North Carolina | 56.7% | 34 |
| South Carolina | 43.3% | 29 |
| Toledo | 32.7% | 17 |
| Illinois | 67.3% | 31 |
| Texas Tech | 72.4% | 33 |
| Wyoming | 27.6% | 14 |
| South Alabama | 48.7% | 27 |
| Tulane | 51.3% | 28 |
| Old Dominion | 26.6% | 13 |
| Virginia Tech | 73.4% | 33 |
| Sam Houston St | 24.8% | 14 |
| BYU | 75.2% | 35 |
| Coastal Carolina | 27.9% | 24 |
| UCLA | 72.1% | 42 |
Sunday
| TEAM | WIN% | SCORE |
| Northwestern | 45.8% | 19 |
| Rutgers | 54.2% | 23 |
| Oregon St | 74.0% | 39 |
| San Jose St | 26.0% | 19 |
| LSU | 54.4% | 29 |
| Florida St | 45.6% | 25 |
Monday
| TEAM | WIN% | SCORE |
| Clemson | 64.3% | 33 |
| Duke | 35.7% | 21 |
Best Bets for Week 1 College Football
1 – LSU -2.5 against Florida State – Basically betting the winner of this neutral site game in Orlando. I think Jayden Daniels takes a step forward in year 2 under Brian Kelly and the Bayou Bengals win this game.
2 – Hawaii +3.5 against Stanford – I like Hawaii having played week 0 along with Stanford having a new coach to win this game outright.
3 – South Carolina +2.5 against North Carolina – I think the Gamecocks in a minor upset to open up the season. UNC’s defense will be stretched in a game that should be a shootout.
4 – North Texas +6.5 against Cal – It’s always a huge game when a Group of 5 team hosts a Power 5 team. Cal wins this game but it goes down to a field goal.
5 – UConn +14.5 against NC State – This is a huge game for UConn. The stadium will be electric for this game as UConn feels their in position to make a run to get bowl eligible this year. It starts with a strong performance tonight. I think UConn stays within one score of the Wolfpack.
Check back weekly for SportsFormulator’s data driven college football predictions!