Week 1 of the college football season is here, and it brings a full slate of action spanning five days. Among the action in store for the weekend bonanza are four games on CBS Sports Network, each of which brings intriguing storylines to follow as narratives begin to take shape for the 2022 campaign.
UAB kicks off the action Thursday night as it begins a transition season under interim coach Bryan Vincent against in-state FCS foe Alabama A&M. Then, Saturday brings a triple-header beginning at noon with a game between Delaware and Navy as the Midshipmen look to get back on track after consecutive losing seasons.
Saturday’s final two games involve four Texas teams coming off bowl appearances, each of which have high hopes for the season ahead. At 3:30 p.m., AAC favorite Houston travels to face Conference USA favorite UTSA in a showdown between two teams that enjoyed breakout seasons last year. Finally, North Texas and SMU will cap Saturday’s action as they square off for the ninth consecutive season. As the action heats up around the country, there are sure to be some memorable early-season moments from these four regional matchups.
Here is the full rundown of all the Week 0 action on CBS Sports Network. All times Eastern
Alabama A&M at UAB
Date: Thursday, Sept. 1 | Time: 8 p.m.
Location: Protective Stadium — Birmingham, Alabama
TV: CBS Sports Network [Channel finder]
Live stream: CBSSports.com | Mobile: CBS Sports App
Storylines: It’s a new era for UAB, which has posted five straight winning seasons since restarting its program for the 2017 season. The architect of that reboot, Bill Clark, retired in June, and offensive coordinator Bryan Vincent is serving as the interim coach for the 2022 season. The Blazers were picked to finish second in the Conference USA preseason media poll. Alabama A&M is coming off a 6-5 season and has posted a winning record in all four seasons since coach Connell Maynor took over in 2018.
Delaware at Navy
Date: Saturday, Sept. 3 | Time: Noon
Location: Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium — Annapolis, Maryland
TV: CBS Sports Network [Channel finder]
Live stream: CBSSports.com | Mobile: CBS Sports App
Storylines: Navy is just 7-15 over the past two seasons, failing to reach a bowl in consecutive years since the 2001 and 2002 campaigns. The back-to-back down years have blunted expectations for the Midshipmen, which were picked 10th of 11 teams in the AAC preseason media poll. Delaware finished 5-6 last season, but the Blue Hens were competitive against a series of ranked FCS opponents and do have some history to draw upon in this matchup having upset Navy 59-52 back in 2007.
No. 24 Houston at UTSA
Date: Saturday, Sept. 3 | Time: 3:30 p.m.
Location: Alamodome — San Antonio, Texas
TV: CBS Sports Network [Channel finder]
Live stream: CBSSports.com | Mobile: CBS Sports App
Spread: Houston -4 | Will the Commodores cover? Check out SportsLine’s Week 1 projections
Storylines: The third-ever meeting between these in-state foes shapes up as a battle between preseason conference favorites. Houston narrowly edged Cincinnati and UCF in the AAC media poll and UTSA edged UAB as the Conference USA favorite. Both squads finished 12-2 last season and are embarking on their final season in their current conferences before jumping to more prestigious leagues in 2023. This should be a particularly strong quarterback matchup; both Houston’s Clayton Tune and UTSA’s Frank Harris are proven veterans looking to build off breakout 2021 seasons.
SMU at North Texas
Date: Saturday, Sept. 3 | Time: 7:30 p.m.
Location: Apogee Stadium — Denton, Texas
TV: CBS Sports Network [Channel finder]
Live stream: CBSSports.com | Mobile: CBS Sports App
Spread: SMU -10.5 | Will the Commodores cover? Check out SportsLine’s Week 1 projections
Storylines: This will be the ninth consecutive year that SMU and North Texas have played, and the Mean Green will be looking to use their home field advantage to notch another victory. Both of North Texas’ wins since the renewal of the series in 2014 have come at home, with the last victory coming in 2018. The Mustangs have won three straight but are breaking in a new head coach in Rhett Lashlee, who spent the last two seasons as Miami’s offensive coordinator after holding the same role at SMU in 2018 and 2019. Both squads are picked to finish in the top half of their respective conferences.
Which college football picks can you make with confidence in Week 1, and which big favorite will go down hard? Visit SportsLine to see which teams will win and cover the spread — all from a proven computer model that has returned almost $3,600 in profit over the past six-plus seasons — and find out.
