College Football 2011: Predicting the Winner of Every Opening Week Game

The wait is almost over, as the college football season kicks off in two days. On September 1st, the first games of the season will get under way, and college football fans can finally stop counting the days and instead enjoy the games.

The first week of the college football season offers up only a few marquee games, as most major programs are looking to see how their team competes against another team and most hope to get a look at the depth on their roster.

Here is a look at each game during the opening week and who will leave with the victory.

Murray State at Louisville

Louisville welcomes in Murray State in the opening week, and like other BCS schools, they have set themselves up with an easy opening game.

The Cardinals have too much talent and depth to lose this game.

Winner: Louisville

Villanova at Temple

The only upside to this game is the fact that it is being played on Thursday night and fans will want to watch anything and everything that has to do with college football. Look for Temple to eventually wear down Villanova late in the game.

Winner: Temple

South Carolina State at Central Michigan

Central Michigan looks to get 2011 off to a good start and welcomes in South Carolina State. The Chips are solid enough on both sides of the ball to start the year 1-0.

Winner: Central Michigan

North Texas at FIU

While this game will not attract many viewers, it still is part of the opening week of college football. FIU looks to make a run at the Sun Belt crown and will get off to a good start, led by its offense, with a victory over North Texas.

Winner: FIU

New Hampshire at Toledo

Last year Toledo ended up finishing second in the MAC, and it has its eyes set on winning the conference this year.

The Rockets have plenty of starting players returning this season and should not have a problem beating New Hampshire.

Winner: Toledo

Fordham at Connecticut

Even without Randy Edsall, the Connecticut Huskies should be in good shape against Fordham. While the offense may take some time to come around, the defense should do enough to help the Huskies earn a comfortable victory.

Winner: Connecticut

Western Carolina at Georgia Tech

Paul Johnson has his hands full this season as he tries to retool his triple-option offense. Luckily for Georgia Tech and its head coach, it starts the season against Western Carolina and should be able to see how well the newcomers have caught on.

Winner: Georgia Tech

North Carolina Central at Rutgers

Greg Schiano and Rutgers have it easy in the first week of the season, as they will be going up against North Carolina Central at home. For the past few years Rutgers has not been on the national map, so Schiano knows he needs a good season in 2011.

Winner: Rutgers

UNLV at Wisconsin

While the game will likely not be in doubt early, this game will draw a lot of attention, as Russell Wilson will be making his first start for Wisconsin. It will be interesting to see how much he adds to the Badgers offense.

Winner: Wisconsin

Mississippi State at Memphis

This is a game that has two teams going in completely different directions. Mississippi State is a rising team in the SEC that could give teams some difficulty all year long, while Memphis is one of the worst teams in the nation.

Winner: Mississippi State

Wake Forest at Syracuse

When Syracuse and Wake Forest meet up in the first week of the season, the Orange will look to continue to build on the momentum they started with last year's 8-5 season.

Behind an offense led by Ryan Nassib, look for Syracuse to outlast Wake Forest.

Winner: Syracuse

Montana State at Utah

Before Utah gets into its Pac-12 conference schedule, it gets to start the season off against Montana State.

The Utes have a solid team returning for 2011 and will have no problem getting through this game.

Winner: Utah

Bowling Green at Idaho

Not a thrilling game, but an important one for Idaho. If the Vandals have hopes of getting to a bowl game, they must win games like this.

Bowling Green was 2-10 last year and is still rebuilding. This is the Vandals' game to lose.

Winner: Idaho

Kentucky vs. Western Kentucky

While Kentucky may be in for a rough year in the SEC, its season should get off to a good start when it takes on Western Kentucky.

Look for the Wildcats defense to help put this away and secure their first victory of the season.

Winner: Kentucky

UC Davis at Arizona State

A critical season will begin on a high note for Dennis Erickson when the Sun Devils face off against UC Davis in the season opener.

Arizona State has way too much talent on offense and defense for this game to stay close past the first or second quarter.

Winner: ASU

Youngstown State at Michigan State

Michigan State starts on the road to a second straight Big Ten title by inviting Youngstown State to Spartan Stadium.

Like most other major college programs, the Spartans can use this opening week game to take a look at their depth and get their season off to a good start.

Winner: Michigan State

TCU at Baylor

This is a trap for TCU. The Horned Frogs will be playing their first game without Andy Dalton and are on the road taking on a much improved Baylor team.

Behind Robert Griffin, look for Baylor to pull the early upset.

Winner: Baylor

Akron at Ohio State

In the first week of the season, Ohio State takes on Akron, and this game will be more interesting then you may think.

The Buckeyes come into this game with a new starter at quarterback and missing players due to suspension. It will be interesting to see the adjustments they have made.

Winner: Ohio State

Miami of Ohio at Missouri

Life with a new quarterback begins this week for Missouri, but in the opening week it should not be much of an issue as the Tigers go up against Miami of Ohio.

Winner: Missouri

Utah State at Auburn

Auburn starts its title defense off by welcoming Utah State. The Tigers will be trying to adjust to the loss of Cam Newton and Nick Fairley and will be giving Michael Dyer plenty of work.

Winner: Auburn

Northwestern at Boston College

While Dan Persa can be a difference-maker, I believe that the home-field advantage will prove to be big for Boston College. As good as Persa can be, the Eagles defense will stand tall and lead BC to a victory.

Winner: Boston College

Indiana State at Penn State

Penn State looks to get 2011 off to a good start, and that should not be an issue, as it starts out at Happy Valley against Indiana State. Chalk this up as another game that will be over by the half.

Winner: Penn State

Tennessee Tech at Iowa

Iowa is another team that will not face much of a challenge in the opening week of the season, as it takes on Tennessee Tech.

The Hawkeyes will have a strong defense to lean on as the offense gets back up to speed with new quarterback James Vandenberg.

Winner: Iowa

Middle Tennessee at Purdue

In a season that may be lacking in highlights for the Purdue Boilermakers, they start the season off at home against Middle Tennessee. We will get an idea if the program is moving in the right direction based on how they handle a game like this.

Winner: Purdue

Kent State at Alabama

There is no good news in this game for Kent State. The Golden Flashes are severely outmatched by Alabama and will be happy to leave this game with the experience and their health.

Winner: Alabama

Appalachian State at Virginia Tech

While Appalachian State has played Cinderella before, the Virginia Tech Hokies will not allow the Mountaineers to sneak up on them this year.

Last year, the Hokies lost to James Madison, which should allow them to go into this game with their eyes wide open.

Winner: Virginia Tech

South Dakota at Air Force

After making a bowl game and having a solid year in 2010, Air Force is back and will get off to another quick start. Both the offense and defense should be able to have their way against South Dakota.

Winner: Air Force

UL Monroe at Florida State

Wrong place, wrong time for UL Monroe, as it has to head on the road to take on Florida State.

The Seminoles are once again stacked with talent and have people excited about the prospect of E.J. Manuel leading the offense.

Winner: Florida State

Chattanooga at Nebraska

Before Nebraska enters its first Big Ten conference game, it must get through its out of conference games, which start with Chattanooga.

The Huskers are clearly the more dominant team and will be able to give a lot of players time on the field and allow the coaching staff to evaluate their depth.

Winner: Nebraska

South Florida at Notre Dame

Football in South Bend kicks off this week against South Florida. While the Bulls are being viewed as an under the radar contender in the Big East, people are talking about Notre Dame and BCS in the same sentence.

Winner: Notre Dame

Minnesota at USC

Last year, when these two teams played in Minnesota, the game remained close, but eventually USC pulled away and won 32-21.

This year, the teams will meet in Southern California, and quarterback Matt Barkley should have his way with the Gophers defense.

Winner: USC

Western Michigan at Michigan

The Brady Hoke era will get off to a good start as Michigan plays host to Western Michigan.

While Western Michigan will certainly struggle to keep up with Michigan's offense, don't be surprised to see it put up some points on the Wolverines defense.

Winner: Michigan

James Madison at North Carolina

Last year James Madison pulled off an upset by taking down Virginia Tech. With an upset like that on the résumé, North Carolina should go into this game well aware of what the Dukes can do.

Winner: North Carolina

Troy at Clemson

Before jumping into ACC play, the Clemson Tigers get their season started against Troy.

The Tigers have more than enough talent to take care of this game early and allow Tajh Boyd to ease into the starting role.

Winner: Clemson

UCLA at Houston

Last year, the UCLA Bruins ended Case Keenum's season early with a knee injury. Keenum is back for a final year at Houston and has to be excited at the prospect of earning a victory over the team that injured him.

Winner: Houston

Arkansas State at Illinois

Ron Zook is heading into a year where the heat is on, and he needs his program to perform. While the outlook on the year isn't great, you can expect Illinois to defeat Arkansas State

Winner: Illinois

Delaware at Navy

Navy was bowl eligible last year, and while it will likely take a small step back this year, going back to a bowl game is certainly not out of the question.

The Midshipmen will get things off to a great start with a victory over Delaware.

Winner: Navy

Southeastern Louisiana at Tulane

Southeastern Louisiana and Tulane is not exactly a game that will draw a large viewing audience, but Tulane will need this victory if it has hopes of becoming bowl eligible.

Winner: Tulane

Sacramento State at Oregon State

Another fairly easy matchup puts Oregon State at home against Sacramento State. The Beavers will be able to use this game as a way to get their offense fine-tuned and see if James Rodgers is up to game speed.

Winner: Oregon State

BYU at Ole Miss

Ole Miss certainly does not have an easy opening week game, as it welcomes in the BYU Cougars.

The Cougars have solid depth and talent and should be able to win this road game.

Winner: BYU

San Jose State at Stanford

These two teams met two years ago, and Stanford won 42-17. When these two teams meet later this week, the scoreboard could be much worse for San Jose State.

Winner: Stanford

Idaho State at Washington State

If Washington State has any hopes of getting to a bowl game this year, it must earn a victory in Week 1 against Idaho State.

While the Cougars defense is still suspect, quarterback Jeff Tuel should put up enough points to earn a victory.

Winner: Washington State

Liberty at NC State

Life without Russell Wilson begins for NC State against Liberty. While the Wolf Pack will certainly miss the playmaking abilities of Wilson throughout the year, this will not be a game where his presence is missed.

Winner: NC State

Colorado State at New Mexico

New Mexico is not a team that is going to strike fear into the heart of most teams, and Colorado certainly has the superior talent in this game. Look for Colorado State to pull away midway through the game and coast to a victory.

Winner: Colorado State

Buffalo at Pittsburgh

Pitt kicks off the 2011 season at home and will welcome in the Buffalo Bulls. Since losing Turner Gill, the Bulls have gone downhill, and this opening week game will continue that trend.

Winner: Pitt

William & Mary at Virginia

Mike London hopes that 2011 goes better than last year, and it needs to start in the first week of the season against William & Mary.

This is yet another game where one team has all the talent and should win easily.

Winner: Virginia

Montana at Tennessee

As the 2010 season came to an end, Tennessee seemed to find its stride and is hoping to ride that momentum into 2011.

When Montana comes to Knoxville to take on the Vols, look for Tennessee to continue to show improvement and win big.

Winner: Tennessee

UL Lafayette at Oklahoma State

Oklahoma State is ready for a season that has a lot of promise. It will get things started against UL Lafayette.

This is another game that should be over early and will allow the Cowboys staff to see the kind of depth they have.

Winner: Oklahoma State

East Carolina at South Carolina

East Carolina has the task of going up against South Carolina in the first week of the season.

South Carolina is offensively loaded and will be tough for any team to slow down. One of the things we will see in this game is if the Gamecocks defense has taken steps towards improvement.

Winner: South Carolina

Missouri State at Arkansas

As the 2011 season begins for Arkansas, it must move on without Ryan Mallett and Knile Davis. While the game against Missouri State will not show how much the Razorbacks miss these two players, it will give them an opportunity to get comfortable being without them.

Winner: Arkansas

Florida Atlantic at Florida

While Florida Atlantic is not a bad team, it will not offer up much of a challenge for the Florida Gators.

The Gators should be able to use this as an opportunity to get everyone back up to game speed and ready to enter a tough SEC schedule.

Winner: Florida

Fresno State at Cal

Pat Hill is pushing Fresno State to be more than a good program. He will have a chance to see if his efforts are paying off as the Bulldogs go on the road to play Cal.

Winner: Fresno State

Northern Iowa at Iowa State

Northern Iowa at Iowa State is another game that will not turn many heads. While the game may not be a marquee matchup, Iowa State will take this as an opportunity to earn a Week 1 victory and get back into the swing of playing football.

Winner: Iowa State

Richmond at Duke

Although Duke football is far away from being a contender in its own conference, it does appear to be becoming more competitive.

Blue Devil fans may not be used to this, but look for Duke to earn a season-opening victory over Richmond.

Winner: Duke

Eastern Washington at Washington

The Huskies get their 2011 season off to a start against Eastern Washington. The talent and depth is slanted Washington's way in this game, and there is no reason why it should not win handily.

Winner: Washington

Indiana at Ball State

While this isn't a marquee matchup, the game between Ball State and Indiana could be a good one.

The game is being played at Ball State, but look for the Hoosiers to eke out a victory.

Winner: Indiana

Charleston Southern at UCF

After last year's outstanding season, UCF is back and looking to get off to a fast start. The Knights should not have an issue taking care of Charleston Southern.

Winner: UCF

Austin Peay at Cincinnati

Last season did not play out the way that Cincinnati had hoped, so it is fortunate enough to start the season against Austin Peay, a game it should win easily.

Winner: Cincinnati

Howard at Eastern Michigan

Ron English continues to try to turn around the Eastern Michigan program. A sign that things are turning is winning the games that it should. When going up against Howard, the Eagles should win and will.

Winner: Eastern Michigan

McNeese State at Kansas

Turner Gill did not get off to the start he had imagined at Kansas, and the bad news is that 2011 may be more of the same for the head coach.

While Kansas could be in for a rocky season, the Jayhawks will start the season 1-0 with a victory over McNeese State.

Winner: Kansas

Eastern Kentucky at Kansas State

Kansas State will get 2011 off to a good start when it takes on Eastern Kentucky.

The Wildcats have a good amount of youth and talent on their roster and will now look to gain them in-game experience.

Winner: Kansas State

Army at Northern Illinois

Northern Illinois had a good season in 2010 and looks to start its 2011 season off right. While Army is continuing to get better, the Huskies will prove to be too much.

Winner: Northern Illinois

Texas State at Texas Tech

Following the trend of small schools who stand no chance is the game between Texas State and Texas Tech.

The Red Raiders have too much talent to lose this game and will use this as an opportunity to see the depth they have.

Winner: Texas Tech

Elon at Vanderbilt

When Vanderbilt gets to conference play, things could get ugly. Until then, Vanderbilt fans can enjoy out-of-conference victories over teams like Elon.

Winner: Vanderbilt

Tulsa at Oklahoma

No question about this one. Oklahoma is at home, and with Landry Jones and the Sooners' explosive offense, they should have this game wrapped up by the half.

Winner: Oklahoma

Oregon vs. LSU

Perhaps the biggest out-of-conference game in the nation will give Oregon another crack at an SEC team.

With the recent suspensions of Russell Shepard and Jordan Jefferson, look for the Ducks to pull out a close victory.

Winner: Oregon

Boise State vs. Georgia

Kellen Moore and Boise State head down to Atlanta and get Mark Richt's season off to a bad start, as the Broncos hand the Bulldogs an opening week loss at home.

Winner: Boise State

Ohio at New Mexico State

New Mexico State and Ohio meet in the first week of the season, and New Mexico State will get off to another rough start.

Despite being on the road, Ohio should be able to get off to a fast start and run away with this game.

Winner: Ohio

Rice at Texas

After a rough season in Austin, the Texas Longhorns will look to get 2011 started on the right foot when they go up against Rice.

The Longhorns are clearly the better team in this matchup and want to get last year's memory out of their minds.

Winner: Texas

Stony Brook at UTEP

Last year, the UTEP Miners became bowl eligible and ended up getting hammered by BYU. If the Miners hope to return to another bowl game, they must earn victories that are well within their reach. Their game against Stony Brook is one of those games.

Winner: UTEP

Weber State at Wyoming

While Wyoming was only able to earn three victories last season, things in 2011 could get worse.

Despite the lack of coverage this game will receive, look for Weber State to pull off the minor upset.

Winner: Weber State

Northern Arizona at Arizona

The bad news for Arizona is that it is starting five new players along the offensive line. The good news is that the Wildcats go up against Northern Arizona and will have a game to try to work out the kinks.

Winner: Arizona

Cal Poly at San Diego State

Despite losing Brady Hoke as its head coach, San Diego State has a chance to have a great season in 2011. In this opening week game, San Diego State should take care of Cal Poly and earn victory number one of many this season.

Winner: San Diego State

Louisiana Tech at Southern Miss

Another game that will not attract much attention is Louisiana Tech at Southern Miss. Southern Miss is coming off a good season and will want to follow that up with an even better 2011.

Winner: Southern Miss

Colorado at Hawaii

Before getting into its conference schedule, Colorado heads out to the islands to take on Hawaii. The Warriors have a strong team on both sides of the ball, and the travel could impact Colorado.

Winner: Hawaii

Marshall at West Virginia

West Virginia will get its season off to a quick start against Marshall. The Mountaineer offense should be ready to go, and quarterback Geno Smith will have a great opening week.

Winner: West Virginia

SMU at Texas A&M

Texas A&M is going to contend for a Big 12 conference title this year, and with its defense you can be confident that it will take care of business against SMU in this opening week game.

Winner: Texas A&M

Miami at Maryland

Week 1 gets off to a quick start for these two as they jump into conference play. Right now Miami is in a state of turmoil, and it is not certain who will be starting for the Hurricanes in Week 1.

Winner: Maryland