1/7
Quarterback Sam Hartman (10) will make his debut for the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame against Navy this Saturday in Dublin. This is an exciting event that marks the start of the college football season, with other notable games involving Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams and the USC Trojans.
Ten games are scheduled for Saturday as part of college football’s annual Week 0 opening weekend. The highly anticipated Notre Dame-Navy matchup will kick off at 2:30 p.m. EDT at Aviva Stadium, with live coverage on NBC.
During a news conference in Notre Dame, Ind., Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman expressed his anticipation for the game, saying, “I’m expecting to see a very aggressive, talented football team that plays extremely hard. They’ve shown that on film and we are looking forward to the challenge.”
Following the Notre Dame-Navy game, there will be several other exciting matchups throughout the day. Mercer will face North Alabama at 3:30 p.m., which will be broadcasted on ESPN. The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) will then play against Jacksonville State at 5:30 p.m., televised on CBS Sports Network. New Mexico State will host UMass at 7 p.m. on ESPN, while Ohio will face San Diego State at the same time on FS1. Albany will play Fordham in another 7 p.m. game, available for streaming on FloFootball.com. Vanderbilt and Hawaii are set to battle at 7:30 p.m. on SEC Network, and Jackson State will face South Carolina State at the same time on ABC. Following these matchups, Caleb Williams and the USC Trojans will host San Jose State at 8 p.m. on the Pac-12 Network. The nightcap will feature Louisiana Tech and Florida International at 9 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.
Notre Dame enters the game as the No. 16 team in the country and is favored to win by 20.5 points against Navy. On the other hand, USC holds the largest point spread of 30.5 as they face San Jose State.
It’s important to note that the season is just getting started, and the top-ranked teams like No. 1 Georgia, No. 2 Michigan, No. 3 Ohio State, and No. 4 Alabama will begin their campaigns on September 2. Additionally, No. 5 LSU and No. 8 Florida State will face each other on September 3, marking the first matchup between ranked teams this season.
Navy quarterback Tai Lavatia expressed his gratitude for the opportunity to face Notre Dame, saying, “It’s a blessing. Not a lot of people get the opportunity to do what we are about to do. I think it’s a very important game to show what we are all about.”
Who to watch
Caleb Williams, the reigning Heisman Trophy winner, is expected to continue his dominant form this season. However, there are other talented quarterbacks to keep an eye on, such as Jayden Daniels of LSU, Quinn Ewers of Texas, Jordan Travis of Florida State, and Cade Klubnik of Clemson. Players like Drake Maye from North Carolina, Sam Hartman from Notre Dame, Michael Penix Jr. from Washington, J.J. McCarthy from Michigan, Bo Nix from Oregon, and Carson Beck from Georgia are also expected to have standout performances this season.
Aside from quarterbacks, there are several other top college prospects to watch out for. Players like Marvin Harrison Jr. from Ohio State, Jared Verse from Florida State, Joe Alt from Notre Dame, Bralen Trice from Washington, and Brock Bowers from Georgia are highly regarded and could potentially make a splash in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Schedule
All times are in EDT
Saturday
Navy vs. Notre Dame at 2:30 p.m. on NBC
Mercer vs. North Alabama at 3:30 p.m. on ESPN
UTEP vs. Jacksonville State at 5:30 p.m. on CBSSN
UMass vs. New Mexico State at 7 p.m. on ESPN
Ohio vs. San Diego State at 7 p.m. on FS1
Fordham vs. Albany at 7 p.m. streaming on FloFootball.com
Hawaii vs. Vanderbilt at 7:30 p.m. on SEC Network
South Carolina State vs. Jackson State at 7:30 p.m. on ABC
San Jose State vs. USC at 8 p.m. on Pac-12 Network
Florida International vs. Louisiana Tech at 9 p.m. on CBSSN
