Week 1 CFB Picks

The football season is upon us. For the next four months or so, there won't be any weekends without football. Saturdays will be filled to the brim with college football from now until winter. With the return of football comes the return of my weekly (hopefully) picks (or, to put it more accurately, somewhat educated guesses). This week is mostly games that probably won't be very competitive, but there are some enticing matchups on the Week 1 slate. I'll provide a final score prediction and a brief note about each game featuring a ranked team (according to the AP, and then the Playoff Committee, once those rankings start), as well as my "Game of the Week" (highlighted in blue) and "Upset Alert" (highlighted in red), if I see one happening. Let us begin...

(Note: Home Team Listed Last)

Thursday
Charlotte 7, #19 Louisville 49 (7:00 PM, ACC Network)
The 49ers of Charlotte, who compete in Conference USA, went 2-10 last season. They shouldn't pose a threat to the talented Cardinals (look out for quarterback Lamar Jackson in the Heisman race).
Appalachian State 13, #9 Tennessee 34 (7:30 PM, SEC Network)
Yes, I know App State has a bit of a history (they shocked #5 Michigan in 2007), but that is not the norm for the Mountaineers, and it was nine years ago.
Friday
Furman 10, #12 Michigan State 50 (7:00 PM, Big Ten Network)
Furman will have the "honor" of being the first FCS team to take on a ranked FBS team this season. They "get" to play a team that made the College Football Playoff last season.
Northwestern State 17, #23 Baylor 55 (7:30 PM)
Baylor has had off-the-field turmoil this offseason, but the Bears should have no problem with FCS foe N'western State.
Kansas State 14, #8 Stanford 42 (9:00 PM, Fox Sports 1)
This is a Power 5 Conference meeting (Big 12 vs. PAC-12), but the Cardinal, led by Heisman finalist Christian McCaffrey, are much better than the Wildcats.
Saturday
Bowling Green 24, #6 Ohio State 42 (Noon, Big Ten Network)
Ohio State can sometimes cause some consternation in these kinds of games, especially with this team being inexperienced. But they have enough talent to cruise past the Falcons.
Hawaii 21, #7 Michigan 52 (Noon, ABC)
Hawaii already has a loss on the season, falling to Cal 51-31 last Thursday in Sydney, Australia. They'll likely go to 0-2 Saturday after a trip to the Big House.
#3 Oklahoma 38, #15 Houston 32 (Noon, ABC)
I initially went with Tom Herman's Cougars, who beat Florida State in the Peach Bowl last year, to pull the upset, but Baker Mayfield and the Sooners may prove too much.
Rutgers 21, #14 Washington 45 (2:00 PM, PAC-12 Network)
The Huskies seemingly came out of nowhere to be a dark horse pick for the Playoff this year. I'm not sure about that, but they should beat the Knights in new Rutgers coach Chris Ash's debut.
Southeastern Louisiana 3, #21 Oklahoma State 48 (3:30 PM)
Southeastern Louisiana is yet another FCS cupcake, and the Cowboys should have no problem with them (in other words, I know nothing about Southeastern Louisiana, other than the location).
Miami (Ohio) 13, #17 Iowa 32 (3:30 PM, ESPNU)
Iowa starts off another relatively easy schedule (they don't play a ranked non-conference team, and they don't play Ohio State or Michigan State in the Big Ten) with one of the MAC's weaker teams.
#16 UCLA 34, Texas A&M 28 (3:30 PM, CBS)
The Bruins come in with outstanding (and outspoken) sophomore quarterback Josh Rosen, while the Aggies counter with former Oklahoma standout Trevor Knight.
#5 LSU 35, Wisconsin 17 (3:30 PM, ABC)
The Badgers start with a top SEC team for the second straight year. Last time didn't go well (they lost to Alabama 35-17), and this time probably won't go very well either.
UC Davis 12, #24 Oregon 49 (5:00 PM, PAC-12 Network)
Apparently, the name of Oregon's new quarterback is Dakota Prukop. He's probably pretty athletic, but no matter how good he is, the Ducks should roll past UC Davis.
#18 Georgia 24, #22 North Carolina 32 (5:30 PM, ESPN)
I'm just feeling North Carolina here. I don't know why (or what I mean by that), but I'll go with the Tar Heels at home in this ACC-SEC battle.
Massachusetts 10, #25 Florida 38 (7:30 PM, SEC Network)
Florida's Week 1 starter will be the son of Oakland Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio (Luke), and he and the Gators shouldn't have many problems with UMass.
#20 USC 13, #1 Alabama 32 (8:00 PM, ABC)
This is being hyped as a marquee, primetime matchup, but I don't think it'll be all that close. USC does have star receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, but Alabama is Alabama.
South Dakota State 21, TCU 52 (8:00 PM)
Trevone Boykin may be gone, but the Jackrabbits still probably won't strike much fear into the high-powered Horned Frogs.
#2 Clemson 35, Auburn 21 (9:00 PM, ESPN)
Another ACC-SEC battle (and a battle of Tigers), Auburn could give Clemson a scare, but they should come out on top behind Heisman favorite Deshaun Watson.
Sunday
#10 Notre Dame 31, Texas 24 (7:30 PM, ABC)
The Fighting Irish may struggle employing a dual-quarterback system (a la Ohio State, circa 2015), but they have tons of talent, more so than the revenge-minded Longhorns.
Monday
#11 Ole Miss 32, #4 Florida State 28 (8:00 PM, ESPN)
The experience difference between the quarterbacks is pretty large in this one. Ole Miss has Chad Kelly, an accomplished senior, while FSU will start redshirt freshman Deondre Francois.