The 2024 college football season continues with an exciting lineup of games on Friday night, featuring five Power Four teams making their season debuts, including No. 16 Oklahoma.
Oklahoma takes the field for its first matchup as a member of the SEC, facing Temple at home. This game is particularly significant as it marks the beginning of an important third year for head coach Brent Venables. The Sooners, heavily favored, will look to assert themselves strongly against Temple.
In addition, two new head coaches will be making their debuts: Manny Diaz at Duke and Jonathan Smith at Michigan State. Diaz returns to the ACC after coaching at Miami from 2019 to 2021, where he led the Hurricanes to three consecutive bowl games.
A noteworthy matchup concludes the night as TCU visits Stanford. The Horned Frogs are eager to recover from a disappointing 5-7 season last year, while Stanford aims to return to bowl contention after three straight losing seasons.
Fans should keep an eye on CBS Sports for in-depth coverage of college football throughout the evening. Here’s a look at some expert predictions for the key games happening on Friday of Week 1.
In the game between Temple and No. 16 Oklahoma, scheduled for 7 p.m. on ESPN, the Sooners, ranked in the top 20, are expected to dominate the overmatched Temple team. Expert predictions lean heavily towards Oklahoma, expected to win by a significant margin of 42.5 points.
At the same time, Michigan State, led by first-year coach Jonathan Smith, will face a mid-tier AAC opponent. Despite a challenging prior season, the Spartans are anticipated to perform well, with predictions favoring them to win by 14 points against their opponent.
Wisconsin also enters its match at 9 p.m. against Western Michigan, where predictions suggest that they will secure a comfortable victory by at least 23.5 points, thanks to a talented roster and a stronger defensive lineup.
Lastly, in the late game at 10:30 p.m., TCU takes on Stanford. This matchup is harder to predict due to uncertainties on both sides, but some experts believe Stanford could keep the game close enough to potentially spring a surprise, making them a safer bet with a +9.5 spread.
As the season kicks off, many fans are eager to find out which teams will excel and cover the spread. For confident picks and analysis, SportsLine provides insights from a sophisticated computer model that has yielded substantial profits over time.