10. Sept. 16: Florida at Tennessee
The SEC East has been one of the worst divisions in the Power 5 for the past few years, but the division is still loaded with talent and good coaches. Tennessee and Florida are two strong teams, and this early game will determine the pecking order in the division for the early portion of the season. Jim McElwain really took off in his third year at Colorado State, so what will his third season at Florida have in store? On the other side of the field, a loss — which will lead to Tennessee being really behind the 8-ball in the SEC East race — will put Butch Jones on the hot seat.
9. Date TBA: Temple at South Florida
I wanted to put USF somewhere on this list, because USF is definitely a team that we get excited about watching. USF has a good new coach and one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the country. Trust me, there will be some serious Heisman buzz for Quinton Flowers before 2017 is over. The Bulls don’t play any good teams in the non-conference this year, so the choice was between the Temple and Tulsa games as ones to look forward to. USF will be a very good team this coming season, and a New Year’s Six bid is not unlikely. Even if the Bulls suffer an upset or two, though, make sure to watch them in 2017.
8. Date TBA: Miami (Fla.) at Florida State
Florida State is on this list three times, and all of these are in the best eight. Not only should the Seminoles — even without Dalvin Cook — be one of the nation’s best teams in 2017, but they play several high-profile games as well. Mark Richt had a fine year with Miami in 2016, but he was brought in to win championships, not win nine games a year. This rivalry game against Florida State, whenever it turns out to be, will tell us whether The U is close to being back on top of the college football world.
7. Sept. 16: Texas at USC
Charlie Strong was not particularly successful as a coach at Texas, but he did a fine job recruiting. The cupboard is loaded for new coach Tom Herman, who has already proven that his team gets up big-time for big games and that he can do a lot very early. He took Houston to the Peach Bowl in his first season. In his first season at Texas, he will get a shot at a Top 5-10 USC team in Week 3.
6. Sept. 9: Auburn at Clemson
Auburn will have a little bit of hype coming into 2017, but it’s hard to get too excited about any SEC team not named Alabama. Auburn has talent, but just lost their offensive coordinator. Clemson, meanwhile, is coming off a national championship, but will have to replace the best quarterback in school history, along with several key defensive players. This will be our chance to see just how well Dabo Swinney can reload or if he’ll be stuck with a rebuilding year.
5. Sept. 2: Michigan vs. Florida (in Arlington, Texas)
It’s the first time the Gators will leave the state for a non-conference game since 1991. That alone should make this exciting. This is also a matchup of two very good coaches in Year 3 of their respective tenures. Michigan has to replace basically its entire defense, which was the bedrock of the Wolverines’ success the past two years under Harbaugh. Predictions for Michigan this season will range from being a Playoff contender to being a mediocre fringe Top 25 team. This opening game in JerryWorld will tell us which of those two is closer to being right.
4. Oct. 28: Penn State at Ohio State
Like I said in the intro, it’s really hard to look forward right now to games this late in the season. First of all, Penn State plays Michigan the week before. It’s entirely possible that the Nittany Lions enter this game with two or three losses, which could really take the luster off this matchup. Still, it’s hard not to be excited about this game, which will involve two preseason Top 10 teams who will be expected to compete for the Big Ten crown. It’s not quite November, but it’s likely that this game will set the stage for how the selection committee will look at the Playoff front-runners.
3. Date TBA: Florida State at Clemson
We don’t yet know when in the season it will be, but this should be the game that determines the ACC. Yes, Lamar Jackson is back at Louisville and will still be explosive, but the Cardinals’ end to the season makes it very difficult to look forward to any of their 2017 games. Sure, Louisville eviscerated Florida State in 2016, but it would be surprising to see that again. These two should be the class of the ACC, and the winner of this game very likely has an inside track to the Playoff.
2. Sept. 9: Oklahoma at Ohio State
A Week 2 matchup of preseason Top 5-10 teams? What more could anyone ask for? (Well, maybe the No. 1 game on this list.) Ohio State dominated the game in Norman last season, and the Sooners travel to Columbus to try and return the favor. Quarterback Baker Mayfield returns to lead one of the country’s highest-powered offenses. J.T. Barrett regressed in 2016, but Kevin Wilson will be the new offensive coordinator to try and unlock the potential that Barrett has always shown. Just like this past season, this game could very well create a Playoff opportunity for the winner.
1. Sept. 2: Florida State vs Alabama (in Atlanta)
What more could we want than a Week 2 matchup of Top 5-10 teams? How about a Week 1 matchup of Top 5 teams? In fact, Alabama and Florida State could very well be the top two preseason teams going into next season — maybe Top 3, with Ohio State in between them. This will be one of the most-hyped opening week games we’ve seen in a long, long time. It’s impossible not to be excited for it already. The anticipation for this game will probably start building in February, and hopefully looking forward to it will make this long offseason feel like a short wait.
Rest of the list in the link
Top 20 college football games to look forward to next season
The SEC East has been one of the worst divisions in the Power 5 for the past few years, but the division is still loaded with talent and good coaches. Tennessee and Florida are two strong teams, and this early game will determine the pecking order in the division for the early portion of the season. Jim McElwain really took off in his third year at Colorado State, so what will his third season at Florida have in store? On the other side of the field, a loss — which will lead to Tennessee being really behind the 8-ball in the SEC East race — will put Butch Jones on the hot seat.
9. Date TBA: Temple at South Florida
I wanted to put USF somewhere on this list, because USF is definitely a team that we get excited about watching. USF has a good new coach and one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the country. Trust me, there will be some serious Heisman buzz for Quinton Flowers before 2017 is over. The Bulls don’t play any good teams in the non-conference this year, so the choice was between the Temple and Tulsa games as ones to look forward to. USF will be a very good team this coming season, and a New Year’s Six bid is not unlikely. Even if the Bulls suffer an upset or two, though, make sure to watch them in 2017.
8. Date TBA: Miami (Fla.) at Florida State
Florida State is on this list three times, and all of these are in the best eight. Not only should the Seminoles — even without Dalvin Cook — be one of the nation’s best teams in 2017, but they play several high-profile games as well. Mark Richt had a fine year with Miami in 2016, but he was brought in to win championships, not win nine games a year. This rivalry game against Florida State, whenever it turns out to be, will tell us whether The U is close to being back on top of the college football world.
7. Sept. 16: Texas at USC
Charlie Strong was not particularly successful as a coach at Texas, but he did a fine job recruiting. The cupboard is loaded for new coach Tom Herman, who has already proven that his team gets up big-time for big games and that he can do a lot very early. He took Houston to the Peach Bowl in his first season. In his first season at Texas, he will get a shot at a Top 5-10 USC team in Week 3.
6. Sept. 9: Auburn at Clemson
Auburn will have a little bit of hype coming into 2017, but it’s hard to get too excited about any SEC team not named Alabama. Auburn has talent, but just lost their offensive coordinator. Clemson, meanwhile, is coming off a national championship, but will have to replace the best quarterback in school history, along with several key defensive players. This will be our chance to see just how well Dabo Swinney can reload or if he’ll be stuck with a rebuilding year.
5. Sept. 2: Michigan vs. Florida (in Arlington, Texas)
It’s the first time the Gators will leave the state for a non-conference game since 1991. That alone should make this exciting. This is also a matchup of two very good coaches in Year 3 of their respective tenures. Michigan has to replace basically its entire defense, which was the bedrock of the Wolverines’ success the past two years under Harbaugh. Predictions for Michigan this season will range from being a Playoff contender to being a mediocre fringe Top 25 team. This opening game in JerryWorld will tell us which of those two is closer to being right.
4. Oct. 28: Penn State at Ohio State
Like I said in the intro, it’s really hard to look forward right now to games this late in the season. First of all, Penn State plays Michigan the week before. It’s entirely possible that the Nittany Lions enter this game with two or three losses, which could really take the luster off this matchup. Still, it’s hard not to be excited about this game, which will involve two preseason Top 10 teams who will be expected to compete for the Big Ten crown. It’s not quite November, but it’s likely that this game will set the stage for how the selection committee will look at the Playoff front-runners.
3. Date TBA: Florida State at Clemson
We don’t yet know when in the season it will be, but this should be the game that determines the ACC. Yes, Lamar Jackson is back at Louisville and will still be explosive, but the Cardinals’ end to the season makes it very difficult to look forward to any of their 2017 games. Sure, Louisville eviscerated Florida State in 2016, but it would be surprising to see that again. These two should be the class of the ACC, and the winner of this game very likely has an inside track to the Playoff.
2. Sept. 9: Oklahoma at Ohio State
A Week 2 matchup of preseason Top 5-10 teams? What more could anyone ask for? (Well, maybe the No. 1 game on this list.) Ohio State dominated the game in Norman last season, and the Sooners travel to Columbus to try and return the favor. Quarterback Baker Mayfield returns to lead one of the country’s highest-powered offenses. J.T. Barrett regressed in 2016, but Kevin Wilson will be the new offensive coordinator to try and unlock the potential that Barrett has always shown. Just like this past season, this game could very well create a Playoff opportunity for the winner.
1. Sept. 2: Florida State vs Alabama (in Atlanta)
What more could we want than a Week 2 matchup of Top 5-10 teams? How about a Week 1 matchup of Top 5 teams? In fact, Alabama and Florida State could very well be the top two preseason teams going into next season — maybe Top 3, with Ohio State in between them. This will be one of the most-hyped opening week games we’ve seen in a long, long time. It’s impossible not to be excited for it already. The anticipation for this game will probably start building in February, and hopefully looking forward to it will make this long offseason feel like a short wait.
Rest of the list in the link
Top 20 college football games to look forward to next season
