Week 2 Football: What to Watch

Welcome to Week 2 of the 2021 college football season - and Week 1 of the NFL. If you’re looking for some good football before Saturday this week, well... you’re SOL, my friend. Gonna have to settle for NBC fawning over Tom Brady for three house Thursday night. There are no FBS games on Thursday, and just a bunch of few unexciting match ups on Friday... although at least they do have a regional flare to them.

Coastal Carolina has never lost to Kansas, having taken down the Jayhawks on the road in each of the last two Septembers. Kansas was the favorite in 2019, the game was an even in 2020, but the Chanticleers are 25-point (twenty-five point) favorites in this one in Conway, SC. Wow.

Also on Friday night, NC A&T will look to take down Duke. If the Blue Devils lose this one, it may be time to start wondering when David Cutcliffe hangs it up. The North Dakota vs Utah State game will probably be the best one of the night, if that tells you anything about the lineup.

Saturday is just an absolute slew of games, and get your breakfast beer ready because the first one starts at 11:00am with Illinois at Virginia. WKU-Army is at 11:30am, in case you need a second pre-noon kickoff.

The big game in the noon slot is Oregon @ Ohio State. The Johnny Majors Bowl between Tennessee and Pitt is also at noon, as is Shane Beamer led South Carolina and their graduate-assistant-turned-starting-QB as they head to Greenville to take on ECU.

Bailey Hockman gets to lead a team into Blacksburg for the second straight season, except this time he’ll be hoping to leave town with a win rather than a back up role in hand.

Rutgers vs Syracuse. Woof. Although this has to be the first time the Scarlet Knights are favored in a game versus a P5 opponent in, what, six years? Has to be. I’m not looking it up though. You can get that Rutgers football on your hands.

The big mid-day game - although it doesn’t start until 4:30pm - is Iowa vs Iowa State. College Gameday will be there. What a year for the state of Iowa and sports, huh? First the Field of Dreams game for MLB and now College Gameday?

We’ll all be intently watching the NC State vs Mississippi State game in the primetime spot (hope you like the sound of cowbells), but also in that same timeslot is Texas at Arkansas and Appalachian State making the return trip to Miami looking for revenge on their 45-10 loss from 2016.

Go Fightin’ Charlie Cobbs!

Also, we finally get true late night football this Saturday! Should be some great games to get you reaching for that Sunday morning caffeine.

Rankings for SP+ Ratings and Sagarin Ratings listed, respectively, ahead of each team’s name.

Thursday

[NFL] Cowboys @ Buccaneers - 8:20pm - NBC

Friday

120/113 Kansas @ 26/55 Coastal Carolina - 7:30pm - ESPN2

FCS/172 North Carolina A&T @ 111/108 Duke - 8:00pm - ACCN

FCS/109 North Dakota @ 104/86 Utah State - 9:00pm - CBSSN

119/132 UTEP @ 58/36 Boise State - 9:30pm - FS1

Saturday

80/78 Illinois @ 33/48 Virginia - 11:00am - ACCN

86/93 Western Kentucky @ 73/94 Army - 11:30am - CBSSN

69/51 South Carolina @ 92/112 East Carolina - 12:00pm - ESPN2

23/20 Oregon @ 3/3 Ohio State - 12:00pm - FOX

27/43 Pittsburgh @ 43/50 Tennessee - 12:00pm - ESPN

FCS/153 Kennesaw State @ 79/96 Georgia Tech - 12:00pm - ESPN3

FCS/214 Norfolk State @ 63/37 Wake Forest - 12:00pm - ACCNX

14/12 Florida @ 116/134 South Florida - 1:00pm - ABC

94/102 Middle Tennessee @ 24/30 Virginia Tech - 2:00pm - ACCNX

70/56 Rutgers @ 83/75 Syracuse - 2:00pm - ACCN

8/4 Texas A&M @ 75/66 Colorado - 3:30pm - FOX

36/33 Boston College @ 129/210 UMass - 3:30pm -

72/65 California @ 30/24 TCU - 3:30pm - ESPNU

98/90 Air Force @ 123/120 Navy - 3:30pm - CBS

12/10 Iowa @ 19/15 Iowa State - 4:30pm - ABC

FCS/204 South Carolina State @ 6/6 Clemson - 5:00pm - ACCN

29/19 NC State @ 60/59 Mississippi State - 7:00pm - ESPN2

16/9 Texas @ 45/57 Arkansas - 7:00pm - ESPN

42/35 Appalachian State @ 25/34 Miami - 7:00pm - ESPNU

FCS/131 SE Louisiana @ 109/101 Louisiana Tech - 7:00pm - ESPN3

FCS/170 Eastern Kentucky @ 74/88 Louisville - 7:00pm - ACCNX

39/89 Liberty @ 47/73 Troy - 7:00pm - ESPN+

35/61 Memphis @ 84/87 Arkansas State - 7:00pm - ESPN+

93/117 Georgia State @ 22/39 North Carolina - 7:30pm - ESPN3

59/27 Missouri @ 38/28 Kentucky - 7:30pm - SECN

FCS/163 Jacksonville State @ 49/72 Florida State - 8:00pm - ACCN

20/38 Washington @ 7/17 Michigan - 8:00pm - ABC

81/107 San Diego State @ 88/104 Arizona - 10:00pm - PAC12

11/23 Utah @ 44/79 BYU - 10:15pm - ESPN

90/52 Stanford @ 9/8 USC - 10:30pm - FOX

103/121 Hawaii @ 85/81 Oregon State - 11:00pm - FS1