The opening weekend of the college football season is almost here, and what better way to spend it than by watching 16 games involving SEC teams, whether you are lounging on your couch or viewing on the go via your favorite mobile device?
Now that fall camp is over, we’ve learned a few things about each conference team, and now we’ve rated all 16 games in terms of watchability.
These rankings are subjective but also account for league and national impact along with how exciting and how close the games will be. Games are ranked on a 1-to-5 star scale, with 5 being the most watchable game and 1 being the least.
5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
These games are the cream of the crop for a loaded Week 1 slate:
Texas at Ohio State (Saturday, Noon ET, FOX)
While every Week 1 has some big games, few rate as high as this one — No. 1 vs. No. 3, defending national champ versus favorite to be this year’s national champ. This feels like a CFP preview. Texas QB Arch Manning and Ohio State QB Julian Sayin have their chance to claim an early Heisman Trophy lead, the nation’s two top conferences vie for superiority, it’s all here. This is a close the blind, lock the door, pretend nobody’s home kind of game.
LSU at Clemson (Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET, ABC)
In any normal week, this would be the must-see game and it’s still got a chance to be the best action in Week 1. While 2 more or less unknown QBs battle in Texas-OSU, this Garrett Nussmeier vs. Cade Klubnik battle is the real deal. This could be an absolute shootout and feels almost certain to be a “last team that has the ball” kind of game.
Auburn at Baylor (Friday, 8 p.m. ET, FOX)
While each of the 2 games above are fascinating, this one is probably more important. It’s hard to imagine Hugh Freeze and Auburn having a good season in the SEC after losing to Baylor. But Sawyer Robertson and the Bears present a substantial challenge. For a nonconference game, this one is about as big as it gets for the Tigers.
4 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐
This game is just a notch below the 5-star matchups:
South Carolina vs. Virginia Tech (Sunday, 3 p.m. ET, ESPN)
South Carolina tends to be more aggressive in early scheduling than most SEC teams and this is no exception. Conventional wisdom is that the Gamecocks take a step back this season. Tech hasn’t been explosive under Brent Pry, but it did reach a bowl a season ago and gave Miami a great battle. The LaNorris Sellers Heisman hype could either get a big boost or get throttled down.
3 stars ⭐⭐⭐
These matchups are firmly middle-of-the-road this weekend:
Tennessee vs. Syracuse (Saturday, Noon ET, ABC)
The Tennessee opener could be more interesting than it’d like. Syracuse does have to more or less start over at QB in the post-Kyle McCord era, but this team was a handful a season ago. Meanwhile, they Joey Aguilar era will be one that the rest of the SEC will keep an eye on. Does Josh Heupel‘s QB whisperer touch help finish him or will the Vols fade? The first clues will likely come against the Orange.
Alabama at Florida State (Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC)
The Tide have big expectations for Year 2 of the Kalen DeBoer era and justifiably so. Ryan Grubb will upgrade the offense for Ty Simpson and Year 2 of Ryan Williams should be epic. Meanwhile, Florida State is off a miserable season and has plenty to prove. There’s more talent on that team than a year ago, but it still doesn’t seem like it’ll prove too difficult for Alabama.
Kentucky vs. Toledo (Saturday, 12:45 p.m. ET, SECN)
Kentucky is coming off a miserable 2024 season and is breaking in 7th year QB Zach Calzada. But Toledo was 8-5 a year ago and MAC teams can hang around and make things ugly. Ask Mississippi State or Pitt last year as the Rockets beat both of those teams. QB Tucker Gleason was solid a year ago and RB Chip Trayanum was on Kentucky’s roster a year ago. The Wildcats’ 2025 hopes could get buried early.
2 stars ⭐⭐
Mississippi State at Southern Mississippi (Saturday, Noon ET, ESPN)
The Bulldogs come off a brutal season in 2024, but the road trip to face a Southern Miss team with a new coach and a 1-11 mark last year shouldn’t be too difficult. The Golden Eagle program has been strong, but not on the basis of this squad. Like Kentucky, State’s season probably can’t survive a loss, but this shouldn’t be much of a matchup.
Georgia vs. Marshall (Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN)
The Bulldogs start the Stockton era, but they do so against a Marshall team that had its roster gutted from last year’s SBC title. The 10-3 team lost its coach, its 3 QBs who played last year, and its top 5 rushers and receivers, as well as its top 9 tacklers. If this was last year’s Marshall team, it’d be a much better game. As it is, Stockton and Georgia will get some work throwing against air.
Texas A&M vs. UTSA (Saturday, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN)
The Texas A&M quest to rise up the SEC ladder opens against a decent UTSA squad. A season ago, the Roadrunners won 7 games and they return most of their offensive playmakers. Defensively, though, this team has been stripped of most returnees and Marcel Reed’s season should get off to a good start. A&M’s defense might be bit more tested by QB Owen McCown (3,424 yards and 25 TDs last year).
Ole Miss vs. Georgia State (Saturday, 7:45 p.m. ET, SECN)
The Rebels open the Austin Simmons era and will show the first clues as to their viability as a CFP squad. Georgia State was 3-9 a year ago, but it is worth noting that one of those wins came over Vanderbilt. Ole Miss is a markedly superior team, but Simmons and the Rebels’ CFP potential raise this game a notch in the watchability scale.
1 star ⭐
And finally, here are the 1-star games for this weekend’s slate:
Missouri vs. Central Arkansas (Thursday, 7:30 p.m. ET, SECN)
The Tigers’ quest for a third straight 10-win season opens against an FCS team that went 6-5 a season ago. Suffice it to say that unless your focus of Week 1 is seeing how Mizzou‘s new offensive players wear their uniforms, there’s not going to be much to learn here. The Beau Pribula vs. Sam Horn battle is about the only story to watch here.
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Arkansas vs. Alabama A&M (Saturday, 4:15 p.m. ET, SECN)
Arkansas opens up against an Alabama A&M team that opened last season with a 73-3 loss to a 5-7 Auburn squad. Taylen Green should have a very, very good day, but it won’t prove much.
Oklahoma vs. Illinois State (Saturday, 6 p.m. ET, ESPN+)
Oklahoma opens up with an Illinois State team that won 10 games and reached the FCS playoffs a year ago, but also lost 40-0 to Iowa. The John Mateer experience will be a story to watch, but there’s not much to learn with this matchup.
Florida vs. Long Island (Saturday, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN+)
DJ Lagway’s health will get a confirmation in an easy one against a 4-8 FCS squad. A season ago, the Sharks fell to TCU 45-0 in Week 2. Should be plenty of snaps for the Florida reserves in this one.
Vanderbilt vs. Charleston Southern (Saturday, 7 p.m. ET, ESPN+)
The second year of Diego Pavia opens against a 1-11 FCS team. As bad as Florida State was, it blasted Charleston Southern 41-7 to end the 2024 CSU season. This one will be a snoozer for Vanderbilt.
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Joe Cox is a columnist for Saturday Down South. He has also written or assisted in writing five books, and his most recent, Almost Perfect (a study of baseball pitchers’ near-miss attempts at perfect games), is available on Amazon or at many local bookstores.
