And now it’s really on.
A terrific Week 1 of the college football season gets going on Thursday night with a slew of Big Ten teams stepping into the spotlight, along with a big Group of Five battle, and the return of Scott Frost to UCF.
Below (scroll down for all of them) are the Week 1 Thursday Expert Picks for Boise State at USF, Ohio at Rutgers, East Caroilna at NC State, Jacksonville State at UCF, Buffalo at Minnesota, Nebraska vs Cincinnati, and Miami University at Wisconsin.
Sep 28, 2024; West Lafayette, Indiana, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers quarterback Dylan Raiola (15) throws a pass against the Purdue Boilermakers during the first quarter at Ross-Ade Stadium.
© Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images
Boise State at USF
Game Time: 5:30 PM ET
TV: ESPN
Consensus Line: Boise State -6.5
– Game Preview, Prediction
Big Game Ben: Boise State
E: Boise State*
Nathan Erbach: Boise State
Pete Fiutak: USF
John Kennedy: Boise State
Jackson Langendorf: Boise State
Andrew Margolick: Boise State
Jake Margolick: Boise State
Doug Millen: Boise State
Johnny Rosenstein: Boise State*
Joshua Schulman: Boise State*
Nick Shepkowski: Boise State
Clucko the Chicken: USF
CONSENSUS PICK: Boise State
Ohio at Rutgers
Game Time: 6:00 PM ET
TV: BTN
Consensus Line: Rutgers -15.5
– Game Preview, Prediction
Big Game Ben: Rutgers
E: Rutgers
Nathan Erbach: Rutgers*
Pete Fiutak: Rutgers
John Kennedy: Rutgers
Jackson Langendorf: Rutgers*
Andrew Margolick: Rutgers*
Jake Margolick: Rutgers*
Doug Millen: Rutgers*
Johnny Rosenstein: Rutgers*
Joshua Schulman: Rutgers*
Nick Shepkowski: Rutgers
Clucko the Chicken: Rutgers
CONSENSUS PICK: Rutgers*
Nov 30, 2024; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina State Wolfpack linebacker Sean Brown (0) reacts after recovering a fumble in the first quarter at Kenan Memorial Stadium.
© Bob Donnan-Imagn Images
East Carolina at NC State
Game Time: 7:00 PM ET
TV: ACC Network
Consensus Line: NC State -14
– Game Preview, Prediction
Big Game Ben: NC State*
E: NC State
Nathan Erbach: NC State
Pete Fiutak: NC State
John Kennedy: NC State *
Jackson Langendorf: NC State
Andrew Margolick: NC State
Jake Margolick: NC State
Doug Millen: NC State*
Johnny Rosenstein: NC State*
Joshua Schulman: NC State
Nick Shepkowski: NC State*
Clucko the Chicken: NC State
CONSENSUS PICK: NC State
Jacksonville State at UCF
Game Time: 7:00 PM ET
TV: ESPN+
Consensus Line: UCF -18.5
– Game Preview, Prediction
Big Game Ben: UCF
E: UCF*
Nathan Erbach: UCF
Pete Fiutak: UCF
John Kennedy: UCF*
Jackson Langendorf: UCF
Andrew Margolick: UCF
Jake Margolick: UCF
Doug Millen: UCF
Johnny Rosenstein: UCF*
Joshua Schulman: UCF
Nick Shepkowski: UCF*
Clucko the Chicken: UCF
CONSENSUS PICK: UCF
Buffalo at Minnesota
Game Time: 8:00 PM ET
TV: FS1
Consensus Line: Minnesota -17.5
– Game Preview, Prediction
Big Game Ben: Minnesota
E: Minnesota
Nathan Erbach: Minnesota*
Pete Fiutak: Minnesota
John Kennedy: Minnesota
Jackson Langendorf: Minnesota*
Andrew Margolick: Minnesota*
Jake Margolick: Minnesota*
Doug Millen: Minnesota*
Johnny Rosenstein: Minnesota*
Joshua Schulman: Minnesota
Nick Shepkowski: Minnesota*
Clucko the Chicken: Buffalo
CONSENSUS PICK: Minnesota*
Nebraska vs Cincinnati
Game Time: 9:00 PM ET
TV: ESPN
Consensus Line: Nebraska -6.5
– Game Preview, Prediction
Big Game Ben: Nebraska*
E: Nebraska*
Nathan Erbach: Nebraska*
Pete Fiutak: Nebraska
John Kennedy: Nebraska
Jackson Langendorf: Nebraska
Andrew Margolick: Nebraska
Jake Margolick: Nebraska*
Doug Millen: Nebraska
Johnny Rosenstein: Nebraska*
Joshua Schulman: Nebraska
Nick Shepkowski: Nebraska
Clucko the Chicken: Cincinnati
CONSENSUS PICK: Nebraska
Miami University at Wisconsin
Game Time: 9:00 PM ET
TV: BTN
Consensus Line: Wisconsin -17
– Game Preview, Prediction
Big Game Ben: Wisconsin*
E: Wisconsin
Nathan Erbach: Wisconsin*
Pete Fiutak: Wisconsin
John Kennedy: Wisconsin*
Jackson Langendorf: Wisconsin
Andrew Margolick: Wisconsin*
Jake Margolick: Wisconsin
Doug Millen: Wisconsin*
Johnny Rosenstein: Wisconsin
Joshua Schulman: Wisconsin
Nick Shepkowski: Wisconsin*
Clucko the Chicken: Miami University
CONSENSUS PICK: Wisconsin*
Consensus Line from BetMGM, Caesars, DraftKings, and FanDuel. Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.