Week 1 of the 2024 college football season keeps rolling with another slate of games Friday night. Five of the evening’s six contests see a Power Four team making their first appearance of the season, including one AP Top 25 team in No. 16 Oklahoma.
The Sooners start an important Year 3 under coach Brent Venables with a home showdown against Temple. This will, notably, be Oklahoma’s first contest as an SEC team, so a big win against a team it’s heavily favored against will be important.
A pair of new coaches are also set to make their debut in Duke’s Manny Diaz and Michigan State’s Jonathan Smith. Diaz’s return to the ACC is worth watching; he coached at Miami from 2019-21 and led the Hurricanes to three straight bowl games.
The nightcap features one of Week 1’s most intriguing no-conference games when TCU travels to Stanford. The Horned Frogs are trying to bounce back after 2023’s disappointing 5-7 showing, while Stanford hopes to enter back into bowl contention after three straight losing seasons.
Be sure to stick with CBS Sports throughout the evening for college football coverage from the opening kickoff onward. Let’s take a look at our expert picks for the best games on Friday of Week 1.
Odds via SportsLine consensus | All times Eastern
7 p.m. | ESPN, fuboTV (Try for free) — Oklahoma enters its first game as an SEC member ranked top 20 in the country and with plenty to prove behind a first-year quarterback. Without question, the Sooners will leave zero meat on the bone against a wildly overmatched Temple team. Expect deep shots early and often as Oklahoma tries to build some confidence and swagger under first-year coordinators. Pick: Oklahoma -42.5 — Shehan Jeyarajah
7 p.m. | Big Ten Network, fuboTV (Try for free) — The roster overhaul at Michigan State is real, but first-year coach Jonathan Smith has enough talent to handle a mid-tier AAC program. Even with their program splintering at the seams a year ago, the Spartans beat their opening two opponents by 24 and 31 points, respectively. Now, Michigan State is reinvigorated by a fresh regime and a potential star at quarterback in Oregon State transfer Aidan Chiles. The season will have rough patches, but the Spartans can handle business out of the gate. Pick: Michigan State -14 — David Cobb
9 p.m. | FS1, fuboTV (Try for free) — Luke Fickell’s first year in Wisconsin included a couple of less-than-inspiring wins against Group of Five opponents, who were able to keep the score respectable even in defeat. That probably shouldn’t happen Saturday. Western Michigan is coming off a 4-8 season, and though it brings back plenty of stars from one of the MAC’s best offenses, the defense ranked sixth-worst in the nation in yards allowed per play. Wisconsin’s new-look offense under quarterback Tyler Van Dyke should be able to put plenty of points on the board, and the Badgers have enough talent defensively — especially in an underrated secondary led by cornerback Ricardo Hallman — to keep the Broncos out of the end zone enough for a comfortable win. Pick: Wisconsin -23.5 — Will Backus
10:30 p.m. | ESPN, fuboTV (Try for free) — Opening games are the hardest to predict because of the uncertainty on both sides, but Stanford with the points seems like the safest bet. The Cardinal are returning most of their production from last season and should be significantly improved in Year 2 of Troy Taylor’s tenure. Stanford should be able to create explosive plays in the passing game with Elic Ayomanor, and that could be the difference. It wouldn’t be surprising if Stanford pulled off the upset and won outright. Pick: Stanford +9.5 — Cameron Salerno
Which college football picks can you make with confidence in Week 1? Visit SportsLine to see which teams will win and cover the spread — all from a proven computer model that has returned well over $2,000 in profit since its inception — and find out.
