A Historical Look at a Unique Early-Season Situation
Unlike the NFL, where every team plays on the first weekend, college football has a unique Week 0 in which only a few teams make their debut. This year, we saw 14 FBS squads kick off their seasons last weekend with a majority (13 of 14) back in action again in Week 1 against an opponent making its season debut.
That begs the question of which has more importance: shaking out the rust and working out the kinks in live action – or holding a potential film, rest and preparation edge.
Teams that have yet to play can see what their opponent did in the opener. Meanwhile, they can reap the benefits of the unknown. The latter can be especially import ant in college football, where we see an abundance of coaching and roster turnover each offseason.
Additionally, teams that have yet to play may have a preparation edge. While their opponent may have spent time preparing for their first opponent, teams who didn't play in the opening week had no such concerns.