2018 College Football Week 1 Sure Losers

With the arrival of Labor Day weekend comes the opening games in the college football season, and we’re right around the corner from some spectacular sports betting matchups. The first week of the season usually shows some teams ironing out some kinks, as they have only been practicing and scrimmaging against each other since the turn of the calendar to 2018 in most cases. We’ve found some matchups that should be promising for you, as we have identified some factors that are likely to prove decisive in the outcome of the 2018 College Football Week 1.

2018 College Football Week 1 Sure Losers

“Your attitude in the morning when you wake up dictates how your day’s going to go.”

Thank you to @T13Strachan for your inspiring message to our TEAM about perseverance and overcoming adversity.#PoweredByTheT pic.twitter.com/YMBNk7UBLG — Tennessee Football (@Vol_Football) 20 de agosto de 2018

Tennessee (+10) at West Virginia (3:30 pm ET)

It looked like Tennessee might turn into an SEC contender a couple of seasons ago, but they never really emerged from the shadow of Georgia in the SEC East, let alone that of Alabama, Auburn and LSU in the SEC West, and now they are in the midst of another rebuilding campaign. They head to West Virginia to open their season, and they face a Mountaineer team that has a devastating offense, particularly at home, and Will Grier returns at quarterback, considered by many to be the best signal-caller in the nation. The Mountaineers have a somewhat leaky defense, but Tennessee has a reputation for starting out their seasons slowly, so I like West Virginia to cover.

Michigan (-1) at Notre Dame (7:30 pm ET)

One of the signature rivalries in all of college football is renewed in the opening week of the season as the Wolverines head to South Bend to take on the Fighting Irish. Michigan does have Shea Patterson, a graduate transfer, to take over what had been an iffy quarterback situation, but he will have to face a feisty Irish defense in his first game at the helm. Notre Dame was looking solid for a playoff spot last year until they went to Miami (FL) and got routed. Even so, Notre Dame returns stacked on both sides of the ball, and while a lot of Michigan fans like to put down money on their team, I don’t see the Wolverines winning on the road here. Give me Notre Dame to cover.

Miami (FL) (-3) at LSU (7:30pm ET)

The Hurricanes are ranked eighth in the nation coming into this contest, but they open in one of the toughest football environments anywhere as they head to Baton Rouge to take on LSU. Ed Orgeron is on the hot seat at LSU already, as Alabama and Auburn seem to have left LSU behind in the SEC West, and with the departure of quarterback Danny Etling to the NFL, the Tigers will have a new quarterback to work in — and a new tailback to replace Derrius Guice. However, LSU is an intimidating place to play, and the Tigers always have a bruising defense. With that said, Miami has talent and speed on both sides of the ball, and they have the skill players to eke out a win. Give me Miami to cover in the 2018 College Football Week 1.

Virginia Tech (+7) at Florida State (8:00 pm ET)

Willie Taggart has brought his high-octane offense with him from Oregon to lead the Florida State attack, and standout quarterback Deondre Francois is said to be caught up on the offense and ready to lead the Seminoles into the regular season. These are the same Seminoles who were driving in the fourth quarter at Clemson last year, with a chance to take the lead, when things fell apart late. Virginia Tech has moved on from the Frank Beamer era with some success, but they visit a Florida State team that has designs on moving past Miami and Clemson in the ACC and could have the personnel and coaching to do so if things line up correctly for them. As far as handling Virginia Tech goes, give me Florida State to cover in the 2018 College Football Week 1.