Big Opening Games of the 2009 College Football Season

Sep 3, Oregon @ Boise State

The college football season kicks off with a colorful combination of Oregon’s always intense jerseys and Boise State’s blue field.  This should be one wildly entertaining game, provided the High-Def broadcast isn’t too much on the retinas.

Sep 5, Maryland @ Cal

This is a pretty interesting season opening matchup for both programs, and I must say I’m surprised Maryland would make the trek to Berkeley so soon out of the gates. On the flipside, I guess when your yearly goal is to be bowl eligible at seasons end, taking a tough road game early on makes sense as barometer of where you stand. Neither team talent wise looks to have any serious influence on a conference title challenge this year (or any year for that matter). Gut feeling, Cal feeds off the home crowd, and its slightly better athleticism runs out to a two TD win.

Sep 5, Nevada @ Notre Dame

This game has upset written all over it.  Notre Dame always likes to schedule a lightweight before they get into the Michigan – Michigan State thing, but this year they might’ve picked the wrong opponent.  The game has shades of last year’s matchup with San Diego State, but I think the Wolfpack can execute at the right time and make the plays they need to take this game.  There’s also a strong likelihood that Jimmy Claussen could pick apart this defense in a blowout, but until then, I’ll be keeping a close eye on this score.

Sep 5, Georgia @ Oklahoma State

Georgia was great last year….Oklahoma St. was decent. Georgia’s coach is not quite as crazy as Oklahoma St. Coach. SEC Teams always destroy in these matchups. It’s the first big non-conference game of the year, but I still have Georgia by 21.

Sept. 5, Brigham Young vs. Oklahoma.*

It’s pretty tough to pick against the Sooners. With a seasoned duo of Bradford and Gresham passing up millions in the NFL to come back and play, they must be out to prove something. I think this will be close for a half at most. I hope we see a battle, but to be honest with you I think this one’s going to be a blowout on neutral ground.

Sep 5, Alabama vs. Virginia Tech.*

A great early season match-up of two highly talented and ranked teams with realistic goals of winning their respective conferences.  Alabama is coming off a banner conference season that ended with a terrible stumble to the finish line.  They lost their conference championship game to eventual National Champions Florida, then lost the Sugar Bowl to a serious underdog in Utah.  The underclassmen left over from last year will be aiming to correct their painful losing streak after starting the season 12-0.  The Hokies are by far the overwhelming favorites to win the ACC-Coastal over Georgia Tech as well as the overall Conference title this year.  The Hokies will begin as a preseason top-10 team due to a perennially strong defense and the emergence of QB Tyrod Taylor.  Should be interesting to see where these teams start the season in the polls, as each has been ranked as high as #6 in preseason polls.

Sep 6, Colorado State @ Colorado

These in-state rivals will again kick-off the season for bragging rights, and Colorado will be looking to extend their series win streak to three.  The Buffs will be looking to get off to a strong start to their season, after a disappointing 2-6 finish in conference capped by a 58-0 loss at Mizzu and a seat at home during bowl season.  For the Rams it was an up and down season as they showed great fortitude to win their final three games and finish above .500. They won the New Mexico Bowl by scoring 3 times in the 4^th quarter to win a shootout by 5 over Fresno St., mainly behind Gartrell Johnson’s record setting 285 rushing yards, 375 combined yards, and two TDs… both of which came in the fourth quarter.

Sept. 7, Miami @ Florida State

The Seminoles look to win their third consecutive against their ACC rivals. The Canes have a very rough first month, and they don’t start things off easy for them  as they face a rowdy labor day crowd. Florida State should be able to continue their win streak capping off the three day weekend.

(* No Home Team)