ESPN College Gameday 2020: Week 1 Schedule, Location, Predictions and More

There's nothing quite like beginning a Saturday with ESPN's College Gameday, the kickoff show that sets the stage for a full day of college football action. It's a tradition for fans across the country to tune in as the show creates an electric atmosphere at the campuses where they hold their weekly events.

And although the coronavirus pandemic isn't going to allow for the usual crowds, the show is still planning on going on the road for the 2020 season. Just not this week.

This Saturday, the first College Gameday of the year comes from ESPN studios in Bristol, Conn., from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. ET. The destination for the Sept. 12 show, which will be its first road trip of the season, will be announced as ACC and Big 12 teams begin play that weekend.

The only conferences that will be in action this weekend for the first week of the 2020 season are the AAC, Conference USA and the Sun Belt.

Here's a look at the full slate of Week 1 games that College Gameday will be previewing from the studio, along with predictions for each contest.

Week 1 Schedule, Predictions

Picks in bold

Saturday, Sept. 5

Eastern Kentucky at Marshall, 1 p.m. ET, ESPN

Middle Tennessee at Army, 1:30 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network

SMU at Texas State, 4:30 p.m. ET, ESPN

Houston Baptist at North Texas, 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN3

Arkansas State at Memphis, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN

Stephen F. Austin at UTEP, 9 p.m. ET, ESPN3

Monday, Sept. 7

BYU at Navy, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN

2020 Season Preview

With each Power Five conference either delaying the beginning of its season or postponing it all together, the 2020 season is off to a bit of a slow start. But things should start to pick up in the weeks to come.

Next week, ACC and Big 12 teams will begin play. The SEC will follow soon after, as its teams will get the season underway the weekend of Sept. 26. However, the schedules will look a bit different than previously expected.

ACC teams are playing 11 games, 10 of which will be against conference opponents. Big 12 teams will play 10 games, nine against conference opponents. Meanwhile, the SEC is planning a 10-game schedule against only conference teams.

The Big Ten and Pac-12 each opted to postpone its football season, but it's not clear if/when games will be played, either later this year, early in 2021 or not at all.

It's going to look a lot different on Saturdays this fall, but that's been the case for much of the sports world in 2020.

Although not all the top college football programs will be playing, the College Football Playoff appears to still be going on as expected, as a member of the selection committee recently told Dennis Dodd of CBSSports.com that they're "moving forward with the plan as originally scheduled."

The Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl (this year's CFP semifinal games) are scheduled for Jan. 1, while the College Football Playoff National Championship is slated for Jan. 11 in Miami.

Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney believes it's the right decision for the 76 FBS teams that will be playing a season this fall, rather than pushing back the CFP in case the Big Ten and/or Pac-12 begin playing later in the year.

"We're ready to roll," he said, according to ESPN's David M. Hale. "That would be something I wouldn't be in favor for. It'd be hard to start in November and then push the season into February."

There aren't any likely College Football Playoff contenders in action this weekend, but there should still be some solid matchups to get the season underway.

SMU is traveling to take on Texas State on Saturday afternoon, and Mustangs redshirt senior quarterback Shane Buechele is likely to have a big season as he looks to further boost his NFL draft stock.

After spending his first three seasons at Texas, the 22-year-old transferred to SMU and had a big 2019 season, earning first-team All-AAC honors.

The best game of the opening week will likely be the Monday night matchup between Navy and BYU. The Midshipmen have plugged in a new starting quarterback (Dalen Morris) in their triple-option offense, and they could work their way into the AP Top 25 poll with a strong start to the season.

So, it may look different without fans in the stands and some of the atmosphere missing, but the 2020 college football season is here. Even if it's off to a bit of a slow start.