5:00 PM- Villanova (FCS) at Temple: Villanova won the FCS championship (you know, in a playoff) last year, a season that included [...]]]> We interrupt our weekend previews to take a look at tonight’s games.  We’ll have more in-depth looks at these weeknight games as the season unfolds, especially when they’re conference games that actually mean something.  Anyway..

5:00 PM- Villanova (FCS) at Temple: Villanova won the FCS championship (you know, in a playoff) last year, a season that included beating Temple in the first week.  Temple really should still be better, considering they’re among the favorites in the MAC, but Villanova is no Southeastern Louisiana.  No line.

8:00 PM- Arizona at Toledo: Arizona is quietly getting some buzz as a contender in the Pac-10, but Toledo is working to get a new QB up and running in an offense that could run with anybody last year.  Meanwhile Arizona has most of their pieces coming back from a pretty good 8-5 team last year.  Line: Arizona by 16.  This is a line where you go “hmm, that sounds about right” and no obvious choice seems to pop out.  But since I’m not sure Toledo’s offense can pick up where it left off last year, I think Arizona wins this one 34-14.

That’s it, just two games.  We’ll be previewing the weekend out west this afternoon.

7:00 PM- Utah State at #8 Oklahoma: Fitting, perhaps, that we move from Sun Belt blowouts on to this game.  I think Utah [...]]]> The weekend is light for the WAC, with three teams playing last night, one off, and the last playing on Monday.  Pity our friends in New Mexico who have to sit this week out.

7:00 PM- Utah State at #8 Oklahoma: Fitting, perhaps, that we move from Sun Belt blowouts on to this game.  I think Utah State should be an improved team this year, but kicking it off at Oklahoma is not a great way to get the ball rolling.  Line: Oklahoma by 33.  Last year Oklahoma posted wins of 64, 45, and 55 points when the opportunities presented themselves, so 33 is certainly within range.  Let’s say 48-7.

7:00 PM- San Jose State at #1 Alabama: SJSU is not going be as good as Utah State, and while I’m not so sure about Alabama as #1, this game will never be in doubt.  Line: Alabama by 38.  Again, we look to last year to see what kind of restraint Saban might use.  Non-BCS wins of 26, 46, and 45 (FCS).  Yeah, I’d say he’ll be more than happy to push the margin close to 50.  56-7.

7:00 PM- Louisiana Tech at Grambling State (FCS) (Neutral Site): Grambling went 8-5 last year.  This game is in the warning zone for an FCS upset- La Tech is coming in with a new coach and wasn’t especially good last year anyway.  No line.

10:00 PM, ESPN2- Cincinnati at Fresno State: This might be a good one.  Fresno loses Ryan Matthews to the NFL but returns a lot of talented players otherwise, and Cincy too is rebuilding a bit after Brian Kelly left for Notre Dame.  Line: Fresno is favored by 2.5.  Before I looked that up, I thought I was going to pick the Bulldogs in an upset, but apparently not.  Still, I think they win it 31-28.

Lots of good stuff lined up for today- Friday night football preview and [...]]]> It was not a pretty night for non-BCS teams across the country last night, particularly those going up against BCS conference schools.  It could have been worse- nobody lost to a FCS school, although some tried.  A quick rundown of last night’s action follows.

Lots of good stuff lined up for today- Friday night football preview and weekend previews for four conferences, at the very least.  Happy College Colors Day.  Flags up!

Conference USA

South Carolina 41, Southern Miss 13- USM looked great in the first four minutes.  They held SC to a 3 & out then drove back to the red zone.  Then the Gamecocks intercepted and never looked back.  The question for USM will be whether their experienced defense is just bad, or if South Carolina finally has an offense.

Tulane 21, Southeastern Louisiana 21- SLU had the ball in Tulane territory on the final drive, but couldn’t get it done and Tulane escapes with a win.  This doesn’t give us much hope that Tulane has turned it around this year.

#2 Ohio State 45, Marshall 7- This went about as expected, but Marshall’s only points came off a blocked FG run for a touchdown, and it would have been nice to see some sort of offensive production, at least against Ohio State’s B team.

Florida Atlantic 32, UAB 31- Things are looking dire in Birmingham, after losing to a 14 point underdog.  UAB led most of the way until FAU ripped off a 38 yard touchdown run to take the lead with minutes to go.  UAB earned a last second field goal attempt, only to see it blocked.

To sum up, CUSA went 0-2 against BCS schools, 0-3 against FBS schools, and dodged a late comeback attempt from a FCS opponent.  A dismal night for the conference.

Sun Belt

The Sun Belt had a better night, with the upset in UAB and a valiant effort from a team missing its star player.

Minnesota 24, Middle Tennessee State 17- Minnesota needed a late touchdown and then a MTSU turnover (a controversial one, I’m told) to seal this one.  Sophomore Logan Kilgore stood in for suspended qb Dwight Dasher admirably, going 13 of 18 with one tipped pick and a td.  It’s not the result the Blue Raiders wanted, but I think they showed that they’re still the team to beat in the Sun Belt.

MAC

Buffalo, Central Michigan and Kent State had little trouble with their FCS opponents, Rhode Island, Hampton, and Murray State, each winning by 31 or more.  Ball State went into the third quarter tied with Southeast Missouri State but eventually put them away 27-10.

Iowa State 27, Northern Illinois 10- Turnovers doomed the Huskies, with DeMarcus Grady throwing three interceptions.  They fought back from a 17-0 halftime deficit and cut the score to 17-10, but that was as close as they would get.  Like MTSU to the south, NIU can still rest knowing that Iowa State is better than most of the MAC.

WAC

Idaho dismantled North Dakota 45-0.  Strong showing from their much-maligned defense, even if it was against FCS competition.  Certainly better than Nevada, who beat Eastern Washington 49-24.  No question Nevada was the better team there, but what are they doing letting EWU score 24?

Southern Cal 49, Hawaii 36- The Pac-10 should be very grateful for Hawaii’s exposure of USC’s defense.  USC spent most of the night going for 2 after their touchdowns, which really makes no sense.  But if it was arrogance, it nearly came back to bite them, but at least all the USC loudmouths who bet into the 21 point spread got waxed.

Mountain West

#24 Utah 27, #15 Pitt 24, OT- Utah escapes a compelling but mistake-riddled overtime showdown and extends their home winning streak to 18.  Their special teams looked really bad, though- a dropped punt, a blocked punt, and some really bad kicks almost handed the win to Pitt on a silver platter.  But an interception on the first play of overtime by true freshman Brian Blechen set the Utes up for the winning field goal.

Last year, the Mid American Conference had an abysmal opening week.  This one should be better, with a ton of FCS games [...]]]> Weekend previews will appear in this space on Thursdays and Fridays, to look at the games happening on Saturday and some Sundays.  Of course, weeknight games will get special attention, with posts of their own.

Last year, the Mid American Conference had an abysmal opening week.  This one should be better, with a ton of FCS games and even some upset potential in the bigger games.  We hit the Ball State, Buffalo, Central Michigan, Kent State and Northern Illinois games from tonight in our earlier posts, and we’ll give Toledo & Temple a once-over tomorrow.  For now, let’s see what the weekend holds for the rest of the MAC. All games are Saturday, all times Eastern, all rankings USA Today, and lines are from Vegas.com and subject to change before kickoff.

*When Army & Navy play a non-BCS team, we’ll just lump them in with their opponents.  When they play against the BCS, I’ll probably include them with the Sun Belt, since they have only 9 teams and are generally in the East.

12:00 PM, ESPN- Miami at #3 Florida: Obviously, this is not a game that many people have the RedHawks penciled in to win.  Keeping it close to halftime will be an accomplishment, but after that it’s tough to compete against the depth of an elite program, especially in the 2 PM Florida heat.  Line: Gators by 36.5.  That’s a lot of points for a team that’s going to probably lead early and get some young players on the field.  I’d take Miami plus more than five touchdowns.

12:00 PM, ESPN2- Western Michigan at Michigan State: These games can be funny sometimes, but again, WMU is likely overmatched in this one.  Line: Michigan State by 23.5.  That’s probably low enough for Sparty to cover, especially since we don’t know what kind of Bronco team will show up.

6:00 PM, espn3 only- Syracuse at Akron: This game has the makings of a fantastically ugly afternoon of football.  Neither team has been very good lately.  Line: Syracuse by 8.5.  I’ve heard people call for the Akron upset, but Syracuse winning by 10 seems a lot more likely.  I think I’d take the Orange there.

7:00 PM- Wofford (FCS) at Ohio: The Wofford Terriers were 3-8 last year.  Ohio should win.  No line.

7:00 PM- Army* at Eastern Michigan: Eastern Michigan has been one of the worst teams in America lately, and Army looks like they’re pretty good this year.  Army’s run at a bowl game probably starts here Saturday.  Line: Army by 9.5.  Until we see otherwise this year, I’ll happily give Eastern Michigan less than 10.

7:00 PM- Bowling Green at Troy: Troy is the big question mark in this game.  They’re depleted, but they also tend to have the best talent in the Sun Belt regardless.  I think Troy is properly the favorite, but Bowling Green beat a better Troy squad last year at this time.  Line: Troy by 14.  Way too many.  I think Troy wins by 7-10 tops.

And with more than half the league being done playing before the sun comes up on Saturday, that’s it.

*When Army & Navy play a non-BCS team, we’ll just lump them in with their opponents.  When they play against the BCS, I’ll probably include them with the Sun Belt, since they have only 9 teams and are generally in the East.

8:00 PM- Florida Atlantic at UAB: This is the only game of the night [...]]]> We’re halfway through looking at just one night worth of football, and we have 14 weeks of this goodness.  Ahh, feels nice, right?  Ok, back to your previews.  Once again, all times eastern, lines from Vegas.com, and rankings are from the coaches poll.

8:00 PM- Florida Atlantic at UAB: This is the only game of the night featuring two non-BCS opponents going at it.  Both teams have question marks, with UAB trying to replace QB Joe Webb, and FAU replacing just about everything but the quarterback.  UAB should have a substantial edge here, but these types of games are hard to read in week 1.  Line: UAB by 14.  That seems generous- for FAU.  UAB won the same game last year by 27, and I think they might do it again.

8:00 PM, Regional TV- Northern Illinois at Iowa State: NIU is hoping that this game is the coming out party for a big 2010 season.  They’re stacked and the favorite to win the MAC, but ISU won’t be a pushover game just because they aren’t a national power.  That said, if the Cyclones are looking ahead to Iowa, they could find themselves in trouble.  Line: Iowa State by 4.5.  I like NIU’s chances of winning this game a lot.  I like their chances of keeping within four even more, I’d take NIU plus the points.

8:00 PM- Southeastern Louisiana (FCS) at Tulane: The SE Louisiana Lions went 6-5 in 2009.  Tulane better win this one, because they’re not going to get much of a chance against Ole Miss, Houston, or Rutgers.  Or many other teams after that.  No line.

8:30 PM, Versus: #15 Pittsburgh at #24 Utah: Game of the Night, to be sure.  TCU and Boise State are getting all the attention, but Utah has a clear path to the top as well, and it starts tonight.  Dave Wannstedt’s propensity to lose important games appears to have waned some, so this certainly won’t be a walkoff for the Utes.  Line: Utah by 3.  Seems about right- I do think Utah can and should win tonight, but it will probably be close.

9:00 PM: North Dakota at Idaho: The North Dakota Fighting Sioux went 6-5 a year ago.  Fighting Sioux? Yes.  But only for a little while- the nickname will be retired after this school year.  Oh, and Idaho should win this one. No line.

9:05 PM: Eastern Washington at Nevada: The Eastern Washington Eagles went 8-4 last year.  Still, Nevada should hang half a hundred on them by the third quarter.  No line.

11:00 PM, ESPN: Southern Cal at Hawaii: Hawaii’s going to have their hands full tonight, trying to replace a bunch of players while taking on the Kiffinized Trojans.  Of course, there’s no telling what Kiffin (lifetime head coaching record 12-21) will do exactly with USC.  But they should beat Hawaii on raw talent alone.  Line: USC by 21.  I wouldn’t touch it with a ten foot pole.  I’m hearing people think USC is a lock there, but Hawaii is capable of scoring a few of their own, and can a first-week coach be counted on to put up 40?  Who knows.

So that’s it- you are now ready for opening night.  Next up, we’ll start looking at what each conference is up to over the weekend.  We’ll recap tonight’s games tomorrow morning and break down the Friday night pair of games tomorrow too.  Cheers.

Here on the Fringe, we attempt to preview any given weeknight game as [...]]]> Today is the day. All the talk of recruiting, GPA, realignment, coaching changes, Senate hearings, lawsuits, transfers, arrests and everything else goes out the window. At least until Tuesday because there’s no games Tuesday. Football is finally ready to kick off.

Here on the Fringe, we attempt to preview any given weeknight game as best we can, and we will have our Weeknight Football preview a little later today. But for now, the first of our weekly features including the BCS Buster Watch and my non-BCS Top 25. So here we go.

BCS Buster Watch

Currently on the watch: Everybody.  All 54 teams are presently undefeated.  So instead, here are 10 teams besides Boise State, TCU, and Utah that could make a run at the dream season, or at least stay undefeated long enough to garner a little attention.  These teams are picked because they could (not will) make it to about 4-0 and do it with a worthwhile resume.  In no particular order, except for alphabetical by the order their conference pages are sitting on my desk:

Houston- If they had finished last year ranked or started this one that way they’d probably be in the obvious category with the others.  First Four Games: Texas State, UTEP, at UCLA, Tulane. Future Obstacles: Mississippi State, UCF, at Texas Tech

UCF- Decent opposition early on, and if they win all four then they have a long stretch of very winnable games before facing Houston.  First Four Games: South Dakota, NC State, at Buffalo, at Kansas State Future Obstacles: at Houston, Southern Miss

Middle Tennessee State- tonight’s game against Minnesota will determine whether they wind up on the national map, without star QB Dwight Dasher.  First Four Games: Minnesota, Austin Peay, at Memphis, at Louisiana  Future Obstacles: Troy, at Georgia Tech

Central Michigan- has knocked off a Big 12 team in each of the last three years, but new coach and a lot of replacing players means it’ll be tough this year.  First Four Games: Hampton, at Temple, at Eastern Michigan, at Northwestern Future Obstacles: at Virginia Tech, at Northern Illinois, at Navy

Northern Illinois- highly regarded squad with a chance to do some damage with three BCS league opponents, starting with Iowa State tonight. Win all 3 and they’re going to be on everyone’s lips.  First Four Games: Iowa State, North Dakota, at Illinois, at Minnesota  Future Obstacles: Temple, Central Michigan

Temple- might not get all the way to four wins, but if they do it’ll be a national story.  Have to get past 1-AA power Villanova first (tomorrow night), considering Nova beat them last year.  First Four Games: Villanova, Central Michigan, Connecticut, at Penn State Future Obstacles: at Northern Illinois, Ohio

Air Force- opportunity to make a splash early with tough games, but Oklahoma in particular has been known to overlook an early game here or there.  First Four Games: Northwestern State, BYU, at Oklahoma, at Wyoming Future Obstacles: Navy, at TCU, Utah

BYU- everyone is counting them out (yeah, including me in a couple writeups) with the loss of Max Hall and a slew of seniors, but if the Cougars have any tricks up their sleeves then they’ll be right back in the mix.  First Four Games: Washington, at Air Force, at Florida State, Nevada Future Obstacles: at TCU, at Utah

Fresno State- The Bulldogs have three decent BCS teams on the slate, two of them in their first three games (and an early bye which messes up things like this feature).  First Four Games: Cincinnati, (bye week), at Utah State, at Mississippi, Cal Poly

Nevada- Getting a lot of national coverage and rightly so, Nevada should be very good and a lot of fun to watch this year- likely one of Boise State’s biggest obstacles.  Also, of the teams on this list, one of the most likely to actually get to 4-0  First Four Games: Eastern Washington, Colorado State, California, at BYU

Non-BCS Top 25

I’ll eschew with much explanation here this week, because if you’re wondering how I came to my conclusions, there’s 60 posts worth of me thinking out loud in the team and conference previews.  Which you should read if your favorite team is playing any non-BCS school, because that way you’ll be much smarter than your idiot friends who know nothing about college football besides the quarterback for their one team.  Anyway, the final Preseason Football on the Fringe Non-BCS Top 25 Rankings are as follows:

1. Boise State
2. TCU
3. Utah
4. Houston
5. Nevada
6. Navy
7. Northern Illinois
8. BYU
9. Air Force
10. Temple
11. Middle Tennessee State
12. UCF
13. Ohio
14. Fresno State
15. Southern Mississippi
16. Idaho
17. Central Michigan
18. Troy
19. SMU
20. Marshall
21. Wyoming
22. East Carolina
23. Kent State
24. Louisiana
25. Tulsa

There you have it.  There is a metric ton of college football on tonight, and we’re going to preview most of it in the next few hours.  Try to keep it together, we’re down to single-digit hours here.