Ranking the Top 50 Must-Watch College Football Games of 2015
It's never too early to plan your weekends for this fall, is it?
If those plans happen to involve camping out in front of the TV to watch college football, then you're in luck. While many kickoff times and channel slots haven't been set yet, we do have the full rundown available for the 2015 college football season. And with that, we can start blocking out chunks of time that will be occupied with tracking all the action.
The 2015 campaign has one fewer week during the regular season, but that just means the action is more packed in. Every week from early September until early December has at least one big game on the schedule, and some are just overflowing with potentially big matchups.
These are the 50 must-see games of 2015 (regular season only), ranked in order of their national appeal as well as how much they should impact the playoff race.
50. Toledo vs. Arkansas (in Little Rock, Arkansas)
1 of 50
When: Sept. 12, time TBD
TV: TBD
Arkansas only won seven games in 2014, but the way the Razorbacks finished, they went into the offseason as one of the hottest and most feared teams in the country. As a result, Bret Bielema's team is a trendy dark-horse pick to challenge for the SEC West title and possibly get a sniff at the playoffs.
But before the Hogs dive into the meat of their schedule, they face a potential pitfall in the form of Toledo, which happens to have one of the best running backs in the country at its disposal.
Kareem Hunt ran for 100 or more yards in every game he played in 2014-15, including a 271-yard, five-touchdown performance against Arkansas State in the GoDaddy Bowl in January.
Arkansas stifled some stout run games last year, holding Alabama to 66 yards and limiting LSU to 34, so it should be up to the challenge, but stranger things have happened early in the season when teams with lofty expectations overlook lesser opponents.
49. Boise State at Utah State
2 of 50
When: Oct. 16, 9 p.m. ET
TV: CBS Sports Network
During the BCS era, the only reason to pay attention to the non-power conferences was to see if there was a team out there that could "bust" into the big bowls and earn an invite. But unless it was unbeaten, there was no chance that would happen.
Not anymore. Thanks to the automatic bid awarded to the highest-rated team from outside the power leagues into a College Football Playoff-affiliated bowl, there's far more interest in what goes on in those lesser conferences. Boise State grabbed the first of these bids in 2014, parlaying that into a Fiesta Bowl win over Arizona, and the Broncos are among the top contenders again this season.
But for Boise to repeat that feat, it will need to handle a tough road slate that includes an early trip to BYU and back-to-back games against Mountain West teams that won 10 games in 2014. The second half of that road trip is at Utah State, which will get Boise just six days after it visits Colorado State.
48. Ole Miss at Memphis
3 of 50
When: Oct. 17, time TBD
TV: TBD
When Memphis and Ole Miss agreed to a four-game series back in 2012, one that would begin in 2014 and feature a pair of home games for each team, the motives for each team were obvious. Memphis jumped at the chance to play a power-conference program, especially one willing to come to the Liberty Bowl, while Ole Miss wanted to maintain a presence in a critical recruiting area.
"The Memphis community is a priority," Ole Miss athletic director Ross Bjork said at the time, per Kevin Kelley of FBSchedules.com.
Little did anyone know how big the second game in that quartet could end up being.
Both teams were coming off 2-10 records in 2011 and had new coaches in place. Memphis had hired Justin Fuente for his first head-coaching gig, while Ole Miss lured Hugh Freeze away from Arkansas State after one season in charge of that program.
Now the schools are coming off breakthrough seasons in 2014, with Memphis winning 10 games and claiming a share of its first conference title since the early 1970s and Ole Miss having reached nine wins for the first time since 2009.
47. Clemson at Louisville
4 of 50
When: Sept. 17, 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Florida State has dominated the ACC the last three years, but with so many of its recent stars now in the NFL, there's an air of vulnerability to the Seminoles, on which many other teams in the conference are hoping to capitalize. Clemson is considered one of the best challengers to FSU's crown, but Louisville shouldn't be counted out.
And since the Cardinals get Clemson to come to Papa John's Stadium in the third week of the season, they have a chance to set the tone for the entire ACC season.
Pitting two programs that have been known for both dynamic offenses and stifling defenses against each other, this is one of the more underrated "big" games of 2015.
46. Texas at Baylor
5 of 50
When: Dec. 5, time TBD
TV: TBD
Baylor spent decades at or near the bottom of college football's top level, but since Art Briles took over the program in 2008, the Bears have been on a nearly constant rise. That includes asserting themselves as one of the new powers in the Big 12 and the Lone Star State, pushing old-guard Texas to the side.
The Longhorns have dropped four of five to Baylor, after having won every meeting from 1998 to 2009.
Of all the games on this list, this one has the chance of being the biggest blowout. Baylor led FBS in scoring last season, at 48.2 points per game, while Texas struggled to move the ball and has another young offensive unit set to hit the field this fall.
But sometimes numbers don't have nearly as much importance as circumstances, which could be the case this time around, especially if Baylor were to beat TCU on the road the week before and still be unbeaten. Since the Big 12 doesn't have a conference title game, this result would serve as the last chance to impress the playoff selection committee, and that could lead to tight play.
45. Washington at Boise State
6 of 50
When: Sept. 4, 10:15 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
The old-coach-gets-to-face-his-former-players storyline is one that never gets old, and it's a big part of the allure for this Week 1 Friday night game between Boise State and Washington. What adds to the intrigue is that Chris Petersen, who helped put Boise on the map before leaving to coach the Huskies in 2014, was instrumental in scheduling this game.
It's the tail end of a home-and-home series that began in 2013, Petersen's final season with the Broncos, when they went to Seattle and were thumped 38-6 by Washington. If Boise were to win this one, it would mean Petersen would have lost at both schools.
44. Georgia Tech at Notre Dame
7 of 50
When: Sept. 19, 3:30 p.m. ET
TV: NBC
For teams that are separated by nearly 700 miles, Georgia Tech and Notre Dame have played quite often over the years. This season's matchup will be the 35th of all time dating back to 1922 but the first since 2007.
That last meeting was one of the Yellow Jackets' few victories in the series, a 33-3 drubbing of the Fighting Irish to open the season. Notre Dame went 3-9 that year, its worst record since 1963, while Tech was 7-6.
Neither coach from that last meeting is still around, as Tech fired Chan Gailey that November, and Charlie Weis was let go by Notre Dame after the 2009 season. In their place, Paul Johnson and Brian Kelly have gone a combined 103-55.
43. Michigan State at Nebraska
8 of 50
When: Nov. 7, time TBD
TV: TBD
Despite winning nine or more games in all seven of his seasons with Nebraska, part of the reason Bo Pelini was let go last November was because of the inability of his teams to win big games.
The loss at Michigan State in 2014 was a prime example, as the Cornhuskers came in with a 5-0 record and an average margin of victory of 26.4 points...and promptly fell behind 27-3 after three quarters. They nearly rallied, ultimately losing 27-22, but the result served as the impetus to later losses to Wisconsin and Minnesota that kept Nebraska from contending for the Big Ten title.
Maybe new Nebraska coach Mike Riley will have better success, and it helps that the game will be in Lincoln, though MSU won there against Pelini's 2013 team.
42. Texas A&M vs. Arkansas (in Arlington, Texas)
9 of 50
When: Sept. 26, time TBD
TV: TBD
The Southwest Conference disbanded in 1996, a few years after Arkansas jumped to the SEC, and then Texas was added to what became the Big 12. The teams got back on each other's schedule in 2009, and now reunited in the SEC, they're annual combatants in the ultra-tough West Division.
But to keep the ties to the old SWC, the games were played in Arlington, Texas, from 2009 to 2011 as well as last season. They're scheduled to remain there through at least 2020, and if they keep being like the 2014 version, there's no reason to move them.
Last year saw Arkansas jump out to a 28-14 lead before A&M scored twice in the fourth quarter to force overtime. The Aggies then won in OT to remain unbeaten and extend the Razorbacks' SEC losing streak to what was then 13 games and would ultimately reach 16 straight conference losses.
41. Texas at Notre Dame
10 of 50
When: Sept. 5, 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: NBC
Two of the winningest programs in FBS history, Notre Dame and Texas have only met 10 times and not since 1996. This will be just the fourth meeting in South Bend and the first one played at night.
Texas hasn't won at Notre Dame since 1934, one of the Longhorns' two victories in the series along with the 1970 Cotton Bowl triumph that gave Texas a national championship.
National title hopes aren't high for Texas this year, but they are for the Fighting Irish, who bring back most of last year's team and could be better than the 2012 team that went unbeaten before getting thumped by Alabama in the BCS championship game.
40. Missouri at Georgia
11 of 50
When: Oct. 17, time TBD
TV: TBD
The SEC East Division title goes through...Missouri? Odd as that sounds, both geographically and from a historical standpoint, that's been the case the past two seasons, as the division's newest member has claimed the last two championships.
Mizzou managed to do so last year despite getting shut out at home by Georgia, because that was its only conference loss while the Bulldogs had two setbacks. The season before, the Tigers upset Georgia in Athens.
39. Oklahoma at Oklahoma State
12 of 50
When: Nov. 28, time TBD
TV: TBD
With a name like Bedlam, every game in the Oklahoma-Oklahoma State series is going to be one that's highly anticipated. And considering most results end up making this rivalry's nickname fit perfectly, there's no reason not to check this one out every year.
Just take the last two outings as examples, both of how thrilling the final moments can be and how quickly things can turn.
In 2013, OK State needed a win to lock up the Big 12 and a spot in the Cotton Bowl, yet visiting Oklahoma scored with 19 seconds left to spoil the Cowboys' conference title plans. And last season, OK State forced overtime on Tyreek Hill's 92-yard punt return in the final minute of regulation and then eeked out the OT victory on the road to become bowl-eligible.
38. Ole Miss at Mississippi State
13 of 50
When: Nov. 28, time TBD
TV: TBD
The Egg Bowl is always big in Mississippi, regardless of the teams' records. In many years, the game has had bowl eligibility on the line for one or both teams, but last season, it looked for a while like the outcome could impact the SEC West and national championship pictures.
That was before both Ole Miss and Mississippi State tailed off during the latter half of 2014—before the state stopped being the center of the college football universe, as was the case during the teams' respective 7-0 and 9-0 starts, which included MSU getting ranked first in the nation for several weeks.
Each team has to rebound from key personnel losses from a year ago, but the foundation that's been built by Ole Miss' Hugh Freeze and MSU's Dan Mullen should make it so the 2015 version is somewhere in the middle between determining champions and securing bowl bids.
37. Florida vs. Georgia (in Jacksonville, Florida)
14 of 50
When: Oct. 31, 3:30 p.m. ET
TV: TBD
While the expectations getting placed on new Florida coach Jim McElwain range from overly optimistic to personnel-influenced pessimistic, there's one place where it all comes together: the World's Biggest Outdoor Cocktail Party.
It's not called that anymore, but the annual tussle between Florida and Georgia in Jacksonville is still one of the biggest parties around, not to mention a key game for both programs. Florida's turbulent 2014 season was saved by the Gators being able to roll over the Bulldogs, and that result also served as a reminder of Georgia's recent shortcomings at the SEC and national level.
This year's game is being played on Halloween, but so far, there are no plans to have the teams dress as Jekyll and Hyde.
36. Stanford at USC
15 of 50
When: Sept. 19, 8 p.m. ET
TV: ABC
Since Stanford and USC both play Notre Dame each season, but not until later in the year, it forces them to get started with Pac-12 play earlier than others. For the third time in the last four years, that means they'll open the conference slate against each other, which gives the winner an early boost and puts the loser under the gun right away.
Last year saw USC slide into Palo Alto and slip out with a surprisingly low-scoring victory, a result that would be indicative of Stanford's down year that was plagued by offensive struggles. USC ended up squandering the momentum that victory provided by losing the following week at Boston College, one of a handful of frustrating losses for the talented Trojans.
Stanford lost the last time it played at USC but won the previous three trips to the Los Angeles Coliseum dating back to a massive upset of the Trojans in 2007 that signaled the beginning of the program's turnaround under Jim Harbaugh.
35. TCU at Oklahoma
16 of 50
When: Nov. 21, time TBD
TV: TBD
The Oklahoma-TCU rivalry is a relatively new one but one that's quickly ramping up in intensity. Last year's win by the Horned Frogs at home served as somewhat of a coming out party for them, setting the stage for an 11-1 season and a push toward playoff contention, while also establishing that the Big 12 no longer belonged to just the old guard.
In a strange twist for Oklahoma, it gets to potentially play the role of spoiler in this one, being the hunter for once instead of the hunted. This game comes just six days before TCU hosts Baylor in what is already being billed as the Big 12's unofficial conference title game.
34. Wisconsin vs. Alabama (in Arlington, Texas)
17 of 50
When: Sept. 5, 8 p.m. ET
TV: ABC
Alabama's official home field is Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, but Atlanta's Georgia Dome and AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, have become unofficial second and third homes for the Crimson Tide because of their frequent trips to the SEC title game and fondness for opening their schedules with neutral-site games against power-conference opponents.
The Tide beat West Virginia in Atlanta to open the 2014 season, beating Virginia Tech there to start 2013. In 2012, it was Michigan, in Texas, and next year, Alabama will open against USC in Arlington.
This will be Wisconsin's second straight year beginning the season against an SEC opponent in such a locale. The Badgers fell to LSU in Houston last August.
33. USC at Notre Dame
18 of 50
When: Oct. 17, 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: TBD
Notre Dame doesn't play Michigan anymore, ending that series after this past season. It was a side effect of the affiliation with the ACC that locked up four or five of the Fighting Irish's game slots for each year through 2025.
Thankfully, Notre Dame held on to its longstanding series with USC, which dates back to the 1920s and has alternated between mid-October and late November depending on where the game is played. This year it's back in South Bend, which has been the site of some of the best matchups between the programs but where USC had won five straight before Notre Dame claimed the 2013 meeting at home.
Besides being on the road, USC is at a distinct disadvantage when it heads east, because that means having to step out of Pac-12 play for a nonconference game. The Trojans will have hosted Washington nine days earlier, then return home to play a tough Utah team.
32. Oklahoma vs. Texas (in Dallas)
19 of 50
When: Oct. 10, time TBD
TV: TBD
The Red River Shootout doesn't have the same shine to it that it once did, partly due to Texas slipping down the national ranks the last few years. But outside perception doesn't matter as much to this game as the local feel does, and that's still as strong as ever.
One of the main non-food attractions at each year's Texas State Fair, for one Saturday in October the old Cotton Bowl Stadium in Dallas gets transported back in time to the days when Oklahoma and Texas were routinely two of the top programs in the country. One side of the stands is crimson and cream; the other half is burnt orange and white.
Oklahoma has won four of the last five, but Texas still has a 60-44-5 advantage in the all-time series.
31. Ole Miss at Alabama
20 of 50
When: Sept. 19, time TBD
TV: TBD
Ole Miss might have stumbled down the stretch in 2014, losing four of six after a 7-0 start, but it will always have the Alabama win. As long as the Crimson Tide are as good as they've been, being able to knock them off will automatically count as one of the crowning achievements for any team's season.
Last year's 23-17 Rebels win was part of a wild Saturday across college football in early October, with 11 ranked teams losing, including four of the top six in the Associated Press poll. But only this one involved Katy Perry diving into crowds at bars and resulted in a goal post getting cut up into souvenir pieces for all of Oxford to share.
Now comes the real test for Ole Miss, which ended a 10-game skid to Alabama: beating the Tide in Tuscaloosa. That hasn't happened for the Rebels since 1988.
30. Arizona State vs. Texas A&M (in Houston)
21 of 50
When: Sept. 5, time TBD
TV: TBD
The Pac-12 and SEC are the two toughest conferences in FBS, top to bottom, yet they have had very little interaction with each other the past few seasons. The last meeting between teams from those leagues was to open the 2013 season, when Auburn held off Washington State at home.
There will be no bowl games that automatically pit Pac-12 and SEC teams against each other in 2015 either, unless they end up meeting in a playoff or one of the CFP-affiliated games. Yet at least this season we have one result that can be used for bragging rights, thanks to this one-off meeting in Houston's NRG Stadium, which is one of the marquee games of the first weekend.
ASU last played in Texas in 2013, losing to Notre Dame in Arlington, Texas, but hasn't faced an SEC opponent since losing both ends of a home-and-home to Georgia in 2011-12. A&M has never played a Pac-12 team since joining the SEC, its last clash with that league coming in 2006 when the Aggies represented the Big 12 in the Holiday Bowl and lost to California.
29. UCLA at Arizona
22 of 50
When: Sept. 26, time TBD
TV: TBD
Head coach Rich Rodriguez is 26-14 in his three seasons with Arizona, and he has a win over nine different Pac-12 teams. That does not include UCLA, the biggest thorn in the Wildcats' side during their strong three-year run.
Each loss in the past three seasons has been of a different kind of pain too. In 2012, it was a 66-10 blowout in Los Angeles; the following year, it was at the hands of a secret weapon known as Myles Jack. The freshman linebacker was unleashed as a running back and ran over Arizona in Tucson.
Last season, it was a surprisingly strong defensive effort by the Bruins, who held Arizona to just 255 yards in a 17-7 road loss.
Who knows what is in store this time around. One safe assumption is that the game will have strong Pac-12 South implications.
28. Alabama at Texas A&M
23 of 50
When: Oct. 17, time TBD
TV: TBD
Just erase last year's game between Alabama and Texas A&M from your memory. That might sound easy for everyone who isn't an A&M fan, since the Aggies were crushed, 59-0, in Tuscaloosa during their lowest point in a very roller-coaster 2014 season.
It's a safe bet that none of the A&M players who are still around from last year will have forgotten that beating, and with the game being played in College Station this year, there's plenty of motivation to get revenge.
Kyle Allen only saw mop-up duty in that game, taking over as the Aggies' starting quarterback the following contest. From there, he asserted himself, despite being a true freshman, and his play late in 2014 has A&M expecting a bounce-back year both overall and against the Crimson Tide.
27. Notre Dame at Clemson
24 of 50
When: Oct. 3, time TBD
TV: TBD
Notre Dame isn't a program that's afraid to play all over the country, having an annual game in California and scheduling contests throughout the Northeast. One place the Fighting Irish haven't spent much time, though, is in the South. But thanks to their scheduling agreement with the ACC, that's changing.
Last year, Notre Dame played at Florida State, a classic contest that pitted a pair of unbeaten teams against each other in a game that went down to the final play. It's very likely we'll be seeing the same thing this year with Notre Dame's visit to Clemson, the first meeting between the schools since 1979.
Expect both teams to be unbeaten when they meet in Death Valley.
26. Arizona State at UCLA
25 of 50
When: Oct. 3, time TBD
TV: TBD
Mike Bercovici had the opportunity to transfer to another program a few years ago after he failed to beat out Taylor Kelly for Arizona State's starting quarterback job, but he stuck with the Sun Devils and waited patiently for an opportunity. That came in 2014 against UCLA, but despite throwing for 488 yards and three touchdowns in his debut, he was also picked off twice.
One of those was returned for a touchdown by UCLA's Ish Adams, one of several long plays the Bruins had in a resounding 62-27 win at ASU.
Now Bercovici is the full-time starter while UCLA is the one with the inexperienced quarterback, either junior Jerry Neuheisel or true freshman Josh Rosen.
25. Oklahoma at Tennessee
26 of 50
When: Sept. 12, time TBD
TV: TBD
A year ago, Tennessee's young but promising lineup wasn't ready for prime time when it went to Oklahoma and lost handily to the Sooners. Now older, wiser and far more confident, the Volunteers get the return match at home and look to use a potential win over Oklahoma as a springboard into the national title conversation.
Tennessee is coming off its first winning season since 2009, doing so despite playing more than 20 true freshmen. Oklahoma was a veteran team last year but struggled to an 8-5 record. And while it will have plenty of experience again this year, the normally lofty expectations coming out of Norman have been put on hold until we see whether the Sooners can thrive in their return to the Air Raid offense that was so successful for them in the past.
24. Wisconsin at Nebraska
27 of 50
When: Oct. 10, time TBD
TV: TBD
Michigan State and Ohio State might be the class of the Big Ten, but the West Division isn't chopped liver. Last year, it had five teams go to bowl games, though only Wisconsin managed to come out with a victory (over Auburn in the Outback Bowl) while Nebraska fell to USC in the Holiday Bowl.
It's a clean slate for both programs in 2014, as each is under new leadership. Nebraska sent Bo Pelini and his seven consecutive seasons with at least nine wins packing, replacing him with Oregon State's Mike Riley, and that opening impacted Wisconsin's coaching situation as well, since Gary Andersen left the Badgers after just two seasons to go to OSU.
Paul Chryst returned from Pittsburgh to coach the program for whom he played quarterback (and for whom he was the offensive coordinator from 2006 to 2011).
23. UCLA at Stanford
28 of 50
When: Oct. 15, 10:30 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Stanford and UCLA's football story goes back long before the Pac-12 joined the conference title game scene, but it's been amplified quite a bit by it since then.
The teams met for the 2012 championship, won by Stanford. A week before, the Cardinal downed the Bruins in the regular-season finale, and last year, UCLA's home loss to Stanford cost it the South Division title and a chance to win its first league title since 1998.
It's been all Stanford over the last seven meetings, winning by an average of nearly 18 points per game.
22. Michigan State at Michigan
29 of 50
When: Oct. 17, time TBD
TV: TBD
Michigan State has spent much of its football history as the little brother to Michigan in terms of in-state bragging rights, with the Spartans winning half as many games as the Wolverines in the series. That all changed after Mark Dantonio took over MSU, as his teams have claimed six of the past seven meetings.
Could another shift be in store with the latest coaching change, this time with the Wolverines hiring former quarterback Jim Harbaugh? Or will it be a while before Michigan gets back in control of the series that saw it win 15 of 20 games from 1988 to 2007?
21. Florida State at Georgia Tech
30 of 50
When: Oct. 24, time TBD
TV: TBD
It was Oregon that ultimately dealt the knockout punch that ended Florida State's 29-game win streak last season in the Rose Bowl, but Georgia Tech deserves some credit for weakening the Seminoles a few weeks earlier with a series of body blows landed during the ACC title game.
Tech racked up 331 rushing yards in its 37-35 loss to FSU, one of several teams to take the defending national champions to the wire before falling late. It was the second time in three years they met for the ACC championship, both won by the Seminoles, but now they get to square off in the regular season for the first time since 2009.
The Yellow Jackets won that game, 49-44 in Tallahassee, as well as the season before in Atlanta. Before that, Tech hadn't beat FSU since 1975.
This year's clash will feature plenty of new faces, as FSU and Tech return only a combined 24 starters, but the Seminoles' pro-style offense and Tech's triple-option run attack will look quite familiar.
20. Arizona at USC
31 of 50
When: Nov. 7, time TBD
TV: TBD
Arizona has reached a level of success under Rich Rodriguez that no other coach in program history has managed so early in his tenure. The Wildcats are coming off their best season since 1998 and their first major bowl appearance since 1993-94, but there's one area where they still have yet to show success under Rodriguez: on grass.
Natural playing surfaces have stymied the Wildcats' uptempo attack, as they lost seven of their last eight games on grass. Three of Arizona's four losses in 2014 were on grass, including the Fiesta Bowl and the Pac-12 title game, and in 2013 they fell to USC on the Los Angeles Coliseum's freshly cut lawn.
Arizona has actually dropped two in a row to USC, falling at home to the Trojans in 2014 a week after its big win at Oregon, when Casey Skowron missed a potential go-ahead field goal in the final seconds just moments after making one that didn't count because USC coach Steve Sarkisian had called timeout to ice the kicker.
19. Oregon at Arizona State
32 of 50
When: Oct. 29, 10:30 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
A cross-division clash that has been absent from the Pac-12 schedule since 2012, the lack of having Oregon on its slate the past two years probably hasn't caused Arizona State to shed too many tears, since it hasn't beaten the Ducks in more than a decade.
ASU is a program on the rise under Todd Graham, but in order for the Sun Devils to truly get national respect, they will need to show they can beat the best in their own conference. Arizona showed that last year, shocking the Ducks on the road and parlaying that into a Fiesta Bowl appearance, and ASU could do the same (or better) if can beat Oregon for the first time since 2004.
This is one of two major interdivisional road games for Oregon, which a few weeks later has to visit USC.
18. Clemson at South Carolina
33 of 50
When: Nov. 28, time TBD
TV: TBD
When Clemson and South Carolina met last year, it marked the first time since 2010 that neither team had either 10 wins or a chance to get to that point with a victory. It also marked Clemson's first victory in the series since 2008, taking back control of a series it had dominated for so long before Steve Spurrier took over South Carolina.
The Palmetto State battle is one of those great ACC-SEC clashes on the final week of the regular season that might not get much attention outside of the region, but locally it's second to none. It also tends to produce some of the best sound bites thanks to the tendency of Spurrier and Clemson's Dabo Swinney to not mince words when describing each other.
"The war of words between Steve Spurrier and Dabo Swinney over the years has elevated the proceedings from national afterthought to comedy gold," ESPN.com's Alex Scarborough and David M. Hale wrote.
17. Oregon at Stanford
34 of 50
When: Nov. 14, time TBD
TV: TBD
When Colorado and Utah joined the Pac-12 in 2011 to expand the league to 12 teams, it created two divisions with six teams on either side. However, only two teams have really mattered in the North Division, as Oregon and Stanford have dominated.
From 2011-14, the Ducks and Cardinal went a combined 43-5 against Pac-12 North competition, with four of those losses coming to each other. Last year's 45-16 win by Oregon marked the first time the Ducks had beat the Cardinal since 2011, with the losses the previous two years keeping them out of the hunt for a national title.
Oregon and Stanford have also won every conference title since the league expanded, with Oregon claiming last year's championship as well as in 2011.
16. LSU at Alabama
35 of 50
When: Nov. 7, time TBD
TV: TBD
LSU might be going through an extended period of mediocrity—at least compared to its past exploits—the last few years, while Alabama has remained among the top five teams in the country on an annual basis. But none of that seems to matter when the Tigers and Crimson Tide meet, nor does the locale, as since 2001, the road team has come out on top nine times during the regular season.
Last year's game in Baton Rouge was another of the classic meetings, with LSU taking a 13-10 lead with 50 seconds left only to see Alabama march down the field (in what had previously been an offensively challenged game) to force overtime and then win it in the extra session.
LSU last won in Tuscaloosa in 2011, claiming the infamous 9-6 overtime result that featured no touchdowns and served as the precursor to Alabama's shutout win in the BCS title game two months later.
15. Florida State at Florida
36 of 50
When: Nov. 28, time TBD
TV: TBD
Will Muschamp was only able to knock off Florida State once in his four seasons in charge of Florida, which only partly contributed to his short tenure with the Gators. Jim McElwain could have an even shorter lease as Florida's new coach, but being able to pull off a first-season win over the Seminoles would do wonders for his job security.
Florida State is 4-1 against Florida under Jimbo Fisher, who has made many in Tomahawk Nation completely forget about predecessor Bobby Bowden's long legacy. Fisher has had a record 29 players drafted into the NFL in the past three seasons, and while that could mean FSU will be thin on experience this year, it also continues to make the Seminoles an attractive place for recruits interested in playing in the pros.
Florida had a healthy share of players get drafted this past year as well, so when the Gators and 'Noles meet in The Swamp in late November, it could almost resemble an NFL preseason game with the amount of future pro talent on the field.
14. Georgia at Georgia Tech
37 of 50
When: Nov. 28, time TBD
TV: TBD
Rivalry games are often given nicknames, many of which are associated with the trophy awarded to the winner. There's no hardware associated with the Georgia-Georgia Tech game—just plenty of "Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate" that has been amplified on Georgia's end after it lost in overtime at home to the Yellow Jackets last season.
That loss likely kept Georgia out of a spot in the Peach Bowl in 2014 while it helped propel Georgia Tech to an Orange Bowl bid. This time around, the outcome could impact each team's shot at a playoff invitation.
13. Arizona at Arizona State
38 of 50
When: Nov. 21, time TBD
TV: TBD
Last year marked the first time since 1975 that both Arizona and Arizona State were ranked when they met for the Territorial Cup. It was also the first time ever that the winner would play for the Pac-12 championship, a distinction that was assured after UCLA lost at home to Stanford earlier that day.
Expect the former to be a strong possibility again this season, with the latter less so only because this game isn't on the final week of the schedule like in most years.
Both schools are in the midst of their best three-year run since 1973-75. Arizona has won 26 games in Rich Rodriguez's first three seasons, and it's been a similar level of success for ASU, which in Todd Graham's first three years has won 28 games to nearly match the 30 victories the Sun Devils had under Frank Kush in the mid-1970s.
12. Michigan at Utah
39 of 50
When: Sept. 3, 8:30 p.m. ET
TV: Fox Sports 1
No offense to Utah, but you're only a fraction of the reason this season opener ranks so highly on the list. If not for Michigan's hiring of Jim Harbaugh in the offseason, this Big Ten/Pac-12 clash wouldn't have anywhere near the national interest it's sure to garner.
"Fox Sports 1 will treat the game as a big event," Ken Fang of Awful Announcing wrote. "Expect Fox Sports to throw its resources for Michigan-Utah with perhaps an on-field set, an extended pregame show and other programming leading up to the game."
That's not being done because of the Utes' great fanbase, led by the Mighty Utah Student Section, or because of the great views surrounding Rice-Eccles Stadium or even because of Utah running back Devontae Booker. It's all about Harbaugh, the ex-Michigan quarterback who is being looked at as the Wolverines' savior.
11. Georgia at Auburn
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When: Nov. 14, time TBD
TV: TBD
It isn't just known for being the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry, a game that has been played nearly every year since 1892; it's a series that rarely produces a stinker. Last year's 34-7 Georgia home win was an exception, as more often the games have classic finishes like with 2013's nickname-worthy "Prayer at Jordan-Hare."
That game saw Georgia rally from down 20 points to take a 38-37 lead in the final minutes, only to see Auburn score the winning touchdown on a fourth-down pass from Nick Marshall that Georgia safety Josh Harvey-Clemons tipped into Ricardo Louis' hands for a 74-yard score.
Auburn would go on to play for the national title that year, while Georgia would come up short in its bid for a second straight SEC East Division crown.
10. Oregon at USC
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When: Nov. 21, time TBD
TV: TBD
Oregon and USC haven't met since 2012, which wasn't a bad thing for the Los Angeles Coliseum scoreboard since the teams nearly broke it last time out. The Ducks beat the Trojans, 62-51, that year in a game that featured more than 1,300 yards of offense, with Oregon's Kenjon Barner rushing for 321 yards and five touchdowns and then-freshman Marcus Mariota tossing four TD passes.
That's the most points ever scored against USC, a number that Arizona State tied in 2013.
Both teams are under new leadership of a sort, as Steve Sarkisian has come back from coaching Washington to take over USC, and Mark Helfrich has risen from offensive coordinator to replace Chip Kelly with the Ducks. Those great offensive minds should give us a whale of a contest this time out, one that could be the first of two meetings if the teams win their divisions and play two weeks later in the Pac-12 title game.
9. Ohio State at Virginia Tech
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When: Sept. 7, 8 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
It's fitting that Ohio State's journey to defend its national championship begins on the road and against the team who unknowingly turned the Buckeyes into a hungry, desperate team a year ago. Throw in that the game is being played on Labor Day, and you've got all the makings of a high-drama affair.
Just what we like on this very 'Merica of holidays.
OSU looked lost when it fell at home to an unsuspecting Virginia Tech team last September, its first regular-season defeat in more than two seasons, and quarterback J.T. Barrett looked very much like a redshirt freshman in getting sacked seven times and throwing three interceptions.
But that punch in the mouth did both he and the Buckeyes plenty of good, as from there on out they were unstoppable in rolling to 13 straight wins and the national title.
Now Virginia Tech gets the Buckeyes in dangerous Lane Stadium, which hasn't been particularly welcoming for the home team the last few years but should be rocking better than it has in a long time.
8. Florida State at Clemson
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When: Nov. 7, time TBD
TV: TBD
Stuck on the same side of the unbalanced ACC, the Clemson/Florida State winner has claimed the Atlantic Division title each of the past six seasons (and won the conference championship the past four). FSU has been the victor the last three times, including last year's overtime triumph at home that came with suspended quarterback Jameis Winston watching in street clothes from the sideline.
Winston is no longer around for the Seminoles, which is one of a handful of reasons why Clemson might be able to finally get back in the win column in this series and make its first trip to the ACC title game since 2011.
Another big reason would be the presence of the Tigers' own dynamic passer, sophomore Deshaun Watson, who came off the bench in last year's meeting and racked up 296 yards of total offense. Assuming Watson is healthy—he has been out since late November with a torn ACL—he should prove to be a major X-factor in this battle for ACC supremacy.
7. Oregon at Michigan State
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When: Sept. 12, 8 p.m. ET
TV: TBD
The most anticipated nonconference game of the 2014 season saw Michigan State go to Oregon, and the contest lived up to the hype. The rematch in East Lansing is also highly anticipated, but it will take a lot to top last year's version.
MSU led at halftime and held a nine-point second-half advantage before quarterback Marcus Mariota and the Ducks took over, scoring the game's final 28 points to win 46-27. That victory enabled Oregon to withstand a shocking home loss to Arizona a few weeks later, as the value of beating the Spartans kept it in the playoff hunt and earned it the No. 2 seed.
Michigan State is hoping for similar value from beating the Ducks this year, especially if it is unable to beat defending national champion Ohio State later in the season.
Mariota is gone, replaced by either backup Jeff Lockie or transfer Vernon Adams, but MSU still has senior Connor Cook piloting its offense.
6. Alabama at Georgia
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When: Oct. 3, time TBD
TV: TBD
While the expansion of the SEC to 14 teams has made the league even more impressive in terms of overall talent, one of the detractors of the larger lineup is that teams from opposite divisions have to wait much longer to face each other. In the case of Alabama and Georgia, if not for conference title games, they wouldn't have met since 2008.
Thankfully, the Crimson Tide and Bulldogs drew each other for a cross-division game in 2015, and it could serve as preview of the SEC championship two months later. That's where they last met, in 2012, with Alabama outlasting the Bulldogs, 32-28, en route to a second straight national title.
The 2008 game, also played in Athens, is one of the more shocking results in SEC history. Georgia was off to a 4-0 start (as was 'Bama) when it hosted the Crimson Tide in a "blackout" game, only to see the Tide race to a 31-0 halftime lead and win 41-30.
5. Michigan State at Ohio State
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When: Nov. 21, time TBD
TV: TBD
While Michigan-Ohio State remains the gold standard among Big Ten rivalries, the two best programs in the country of late have been OSU and Michigan State. MSU robbed the Buckeyes of a shot at playing for the 2013-14 national championship after rolling to the Big Ten title game win that season. Then last year OSU went into East Lansing and thumped the Spartans en route to a national title.
The third meeting in as many years could be the best yet, especially with the amount of talent coming back for both teams.
According to NFL.com's Mike Huguenin, Chase Goodbread and Bryan Fischer, "There likely will be Heisman statements to be made by Michigan State QB Connor Cook, Ohio State TB Ezekiel Elliott and whomever is playing quarterback for the Buckeyes."
MSU players such as Cook and defensive end Shilique Calhoun held off NFL careers for just such games, and their veteran presence will be valuable against an Ohio State team that's nearly the exact same one that steamrolled to 13 straight wins in 2015.
Michigan State has the rare distinction of having won its last game in Columbus, beating the Buckeyes 10-7 in 2011, the year before Urban Meyer took over OSU.
4. UCLA at USC
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When: Nov. 28, time TBD
TV: TBD
Since Jim Mora took over the UCLA program in 2012, he has turned the tables on what had been a USC-dominated battle for bragging rights in Los Angeles. Three straight wins by an average of 16.3 points has firmly put the Bruins in control of the city and knocked longtime power USC down a few pegs in its own backyard.
But with UCLA and USC both projected to be in the playoff hunt in 2015, the next edition of this classic rivalry could be the best meeting in recent memory. Not only will it likely influence who represents the Pac-12 South Division in the conference championship, but it could be the result that makes or breaks a team's postseason hopes.
USC coach Steve Sarkisian, in his second year at the helm of the Trojans, was an assistant with the program under Pete Carroll from 2005-08. During that time he was a part of three USC wins, including a 66-19 romp that was the most lopsided result in the series since 1930.
3. Alabama at Auburn
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When: Nov. 28, time TBD
TV: TBD
The Iron Bowl has long been a national pastime in Alabama, as well as a critical late-season SEC clash, and often has transcended beyond the Southeast in terms of its overall importance. But since 2010, this game has almost always had national championship implications.
Consider: In the past five meetings between Alabama and Auburn, at least one team involved in the game has either been unbeaten or has just one loss, and often both have been in need of a win to remain in the title hunt. It's also become a de facto SEC West Division final, since the winner has played in the SEC title game in six of the previous seven seasons.
The last time it was played at Auburn, in 2013, it resulted in arguably the greatest final play in college football history. Dubbed the "Kick Six," Auburn's Chris Davis fielded a long missed field goal by Alabama and returned it 100 yards for a game-winning touchdown with no time on the clock to give the Tigers a 34-28 victory.
Could we get another thrilling finish this year? That remains to be seen, but what isn't up for debate is that this game will be looked toward for most of the season.
2. Ohio State at Michigan
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When: Nov. 28, time TBD
TV: TBD
Like most rivalry games, even if one or both of the teams happen to be struggling, there's still plenty of drama to be expected when bitter enemies square off. There's even more so when some new blood is added to the conflict, particularly from someone who has managed to crank up the intensity long before the game is played.
Michigan's Jim Harbaugh had reinvigorated Michigan without having yet roamed the sidelines of an official game, becoming one of the most public figures in college football since his hiring in the winter. Among many things, this has served to amp up the anticipation of when the Wolverines and hated foe Ohio State tangle at the end of the season.
Now the annual Ohio State-Michigan game in Ann Arbor doesn't just look like a potential late-season hurdle in Ohio State's national title defense, but also a game with just as many side storylines as ones that relate to the game itself. And speaking of the actual contest, there's the revenge factor associated with Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett, who was pacing toward a possible trip to New York City for the Heisman Trophy ceremony before he broke his ankle against the Wolverines.
1. Baylor at TCU
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When: Nov. 27, 7:30 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Many of the most anticipated games on the college football schedule each year are ones that happen on an annual basis and often at the same time every season. Those are ones we can plan ahead for because we know when they'll be.
Then there was the 2015 version of last year's best regular-season game, between Baylor and TCU. From the moment that epic 61-58 contest was completed, we couldn't wait to see the rematch a season later. And when it was announced that they would play the game on the day after Thanksgiving, it made spending all day shopping on Black Friday a lot less enticing.
Pitting the teams against each other that finished fifth (Baylor) and sixth (TCU) in last season's playoff standings and who are both expected to be in the hunt for a semifinal bid again in 2015, this is essentially an elimination game. A Big 12 title game, if you will, since the conference doesn't have one, making the winner of this contest—especially if that keeps it unbeaten—in a strong position to contend for a national championship.
Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.
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