Last weekend marked the comfortable launch of the 2023 school football season.
Navy-Notre Dame was touted as the most productive game and was a marvel at halftime. Reigning Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams shined in a San Jose state loss, but only Pac-12 subscribers can watch him on his way to work.
College football returns for good this weekend, with games to be played Thursday through Monday.
There is only one meeting between the top two 25 teams in Week 1 and this year it will receive treatment during prime time on Sunday night. five LSUs and No. 8 Florida State converge in Orlando for a bout that can have a big effect on the race for the school football playoffs. The other essential match is also an ACC-SEC clash, since the No. North Carolina 21 will face South Carolina in Charlotte on Saturday.
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Spread: USL -2. 5 (-110) | Florida 2. 5 (-110)Moneyline: LSU (-18) | Former Soviet Union (110)Total: 56. 5 – More (-110) | Less than (-110)Game Information: Sunday September | 19:00 ET | ABCEmplazament: Camping World Stadium | Orlando Florida
The Seminoles beat the Tigers in an instant harvest in New Orleans a year ago. The final score of 24-23 does not tell the full story of a wild final quarter in which the two groups escaped in the final minutes only for Jayden Daniels to lead a 99-yard streak that he would have forced had it not been for an extra point attempt blocked with zeros on the clock.
After 4 consecutive seasons of loss, Florida State won 10 games with Mike Norvell and earned its highest preseason rating since 2017. On the contrary, the loss of LSU caused disorder to Brian Kelly in his first year in Baton Rouge. Instead, the Tigers turned around and won. 10 of their next 12 games to finish first in the SEC West and land in the top five preseason for the first time since 2016.
FSU quarterback Jordan Travis threw for 31 touchdowns, more than 3,500 total yards and led a career-high 20 offense (36. 1 points per game) in his junior season in a red jersey. He now returns as a candidate for Heisman with his main catcher, Johnny Wilson. , and the team’s top running back, Travis Benson, through his side. The Seminoles also finished in the top 20 defensively (19. 7 points per game), thanks in large part to defensive end Jared Verse, a top 10 draft. Choose who chose to return for their junior year wearing a red jersey. Norvell also took advantage of the movement portal to bolster both units, adding receiver Keon Coleman, tight end Jaheim Bell, defensive end Braden Fiske and cornerback Fentrell Cypress. .
Daniels recorded his most productive crusading as a passer (2,900 yards, 17 touchdowns, 3 interceptions) and running back (885 yards, 11 touchdowns) in his first year at LSU. Malik Nabers is back after surpassing 1,000 yards in reception at the time. year and the maximum of the initial offensive. The Tigers can keep the maximum offensive team with a maximum of 25 points (34. 5 points per game), but their defense got away from home the maximum of 40 points (23. 7 points per game). with game) and allowed 30 or more problems on 4 occasions, adding the worst 50 of the season. in Georgia in the SEC championship.
Overtaking peaked for the Tigers (8-6) and Seminoles (7-6) a season ago and, as the year progressed, they did so at an increasingly high pace for both teams. As of Week 7, the over was 7-1 in LSU games and 5-2 in FSU games. Given the point of offensive skill in the box (Heisman’s applicants under the projected first- and half-round receivers at his disposal), the over turns out to be the smart play here.
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Spread: North Carolina -2. 5 (-120) | South Carolina 2. 5 (-105)Moneyline: UNC (-138) | SC (110)Total: 64. 5 – More (-110) | Under (-110)Match information: Saturday 2 September | 7:30 pm. Eastern Time | ABConterment: Bank of America Stadium | Charlotte, North Carolina
The Tar Heels and Gamecocks ended the 2022 season in opposite directions. After a 9-1 start, UNC lost its last 4 games of the year and lost twice as the house favorite. Meanwhile, an average South Carolina disappointed the No. 1 of the time. 5 Tennessee 63-38 and followed up with a 31-30 win over No. 8 Clemson in the normal season finale. Shane Beamers’ team fell to Notre Dame in the Gator Bowl, 45-38, but finished the year in 19th place. in the final classification of the CFP.
These systems last met at the Dukes Mayo Bowl in 2021, when Beamer capped his first season in Colombia with a 38-21 victory over the Mack Browns Tar Heels.
North Carolina starts 2023 ahead of South Carolina, which is just outside the AP Top 25 in the preseason poll, and quarterback Drake Maye is one of the main reasons. He finished tenth in Heisman’s voting a season ago and is regarded as the second-best quarterback of the class of 2024 after Caleb Williams. Maye had forty-five touchdowns and more than 5,000 yards of offense in his sophomore year in the red jersey, but his two best targets, Josh Downs and Antoine Greene, went to the NFL. Nate McCollum and Devontez Walker were drafted to upgrade that production loss as a wide receiver, however, Walker’s prestige is doubtful as he awaits a resolution from the NCAA on his appeal after he was denied the immediate eligibility waiver after his second transfer.
With Maye in center, the UNC offense had little trouble scoring (34. 5 points per game), however, a mediocre defense (31 points allowed per game) resulted in some narrow shots, such as a 63-61 shootout at Appalachian State, and in the end doomed the team. The section.
Former consistent Gamecocks quarterback Spencer Rattler endured a resurgence of the crusade in Colombia after being benched and then traded from Oklahoma. He finished with more than 3,000 yards through the air and 21 total touchdowns; 11 of those touchdowns and more than 1,000 yards through the Rattlers have come. in their last 3 games. Receiver Antwane Wells Jr. returns for his senior year as the most productive option on offense after an All-SEC crusade. The offense had its ups and downs (six problems against Florida and a peak season of ’63 unlike Tennessee the following week) but still finished as an above-average unit (32. 2 problems per game). The same can’t be said for South Carolina’s defense (27. 5 problems allowed per game), which also lost a lot of production. in the lead.
The Gamecocks have a real chance to marvel Saturday in Charlotte. South Carolina has what it takes to maintain speed with North Carolina on offense and the strength of its defense is secondary, which can restrict Maye. Team Beamers won 4 times as an oppressed in 2022 and did so twice in hostile environments.
College football record: 1-1
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