College Football Week Zero Preview: Key Games and Season Openers

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00:00College football is almost here, folks, just a couple of weeks away from week zero in college football.

00:07What does it all mean? College football has several games.

00:10It's like the appetizer before the meal the following weekend, of course, which is Labor Day.

00:14And then naturally, the National Football League starts.

00:16We're going to do it all again and bring in Mark Zinno for the very latest on these upcoming,

00:20I can say upcoming games coming up in a couple of weeks.

00:23Mark, thanks for coming on Newswire.

00:25August 23rd are the openers. It seems like we do have, at the very least, one really good game potentially on the schedule.

00:33And then several others. And look, football's back. I think we'll be watching no matter who suits up on Saturday.

00:39Yeah, look, it's, you know, I think there's some interesting games on the slate for week zero, as they call it.

00:45You mentioned Iowa-Kansas State, that game across the pond, right, in Dublin, Ireland.

00:51And that's certainly the one that everybody's going to have their eyes on.

00:53I'm actually looking forward to Stanford versus Hawaii.

00:57Frank Reich now over at Stanford. Andrew Luck running things there as well.

01:02I know going to the island is always tough, but there's a feeling here that I have that Stanford may be able to surprise Hawaii

01:08and pull out a victory in this game. I like the fact that they're a short dog here.

01:13It's kind of making it very interesting for me.

01:15Yeah, Hawaii minus one and a half currently over on the FanDuel Sportsbook.

01:20Also, as Mark mentioned, we've got that Iowa State-Kansas game.

01:24Idaho State against UNLV.

01:27The debut, I believe, of Dan Mullen as the head coach there.

01:29Fresno State-Kansas, Sam Houston, and Western Kentucky.

01:32That is the rest of the schedule.

01:34One other team I wanted to just mention in college before we move on,

01:37talking some NFL football, Mark, is the Colorado Buffaloes.

01:41Certainly, we got the good news that Deion Sanders, Coach Prime, is now cancer-free and healthy going into the season,

01:48albeit has to go through a lot this offseason.

01:51Their win total is really low.

01:53It's five and a half going into the season to win the Big 12

01:57and even to make the college football playoff seems like such an enormous long shot.

02:01Do you think that this is more of a result of losing players like they did,

02:05and Hunter and Shudder Sanders and some others to the National Football League,

02:08is where it's just simply once every few years Colorado will be good,

02:12and then the rest of the time they'll be average,

02:14which is a lot of teams at that level in college football.

02:17Look, I mean, arguably, you had two of the best players in college football last year on Colorado's roster,

02:23and one of those guys played both ways.

02:25So, in theory, it was three players who were the best players in college football

02:29on that Colorado roster have now departed.

02:31That said, it's going to be very tough for this Colorado team to win games because here's the difference.

02:37Their defense was awful last year, but they had Shudder Sanders and Travis Hunter to keep them in games offensively.

02:43Those guys aren't there anymore.

02:45Their defense is still going to be really bad.

02:47I just don't know that they have the offense to be able to keep up and play catch-up here.

02:50I took under five and a half on the win total.

02:52I missed a six and a half, but I'm still fairly confident this is not a bowl team

02:56when you look at their schedule and what they have ahead of them in the Big 12.

03:02They're not really going to be done any favors this year, especially given the fact that they are a team

03:09that a lot of people will be gunning after.

03:13I mean, just look at their home games in and of itself.

03:16Wyoming's a team that can score a lot of points on offense.

03:18That's a problem for them.

03:20BYU, even though they changed quarterbacks, still will be a tough out.

03:23Arizona and Arizona State are their home games.

03:26I don't know that they're going to be any good on the road.

03:28Yes, Delaware is an interesting – not Delaware, I'm sorry.

03:32Georgia Tech's going to be a very interesting matchup in week one.

03:34I actually like Georgia Tech in week one, not only to cover that spread,

03:38but to go over their team total on offense.

03:41Let's get to the National Football League.

03:43Mark, certainly you have your fair share of covering the Atlanta Falcons.

03:46Let's take a look at their win total, eight and a half on the season.

03:49Minus 160 to win the South.

03:51Playoffs plus 136.

03:53And to win the NFC, they are 30-1.

03:56Michael Penix Jr. will be, of course, one of the featured players this season,

04:00given the fact that he's replacing Kirk Cousins.

04:02Cousins still on the roster for the time being.

04:05And, look, a lot of optimism for Atlanta.

04:07We've certainly seen that before.

04:09Do you think that this is a season that they make a big jump?

04:12I mean, big – look, they've won seven games, what, like I think three

04:16or four years straight.

04:17So, big jump to ten wins to make the playoffs.

04:19I don't know if that's a big jump, but it's a jump.

04:21It's a significant one.

04:22I think they make the playoffs for the first time in seven years.

04:24When you look at the rest of the NFC, I mean, unless you're going to get

04:29three playoff teams from the East or three playoff teams from the North,

04:34which I don't know that you will, I feel like this is very viable for them

04:38to make the postseason.

04:40I wouldn't take them to win the division.

04:41I don't think they're better than Tampa Bay, despite the fact that they've had

04:44Tampa Bay's number and have been able to beat them fairly routinely.

04:48Tampa Bay's probably the better team overall.

04:50And considering they've won the division three years in a row, I'd give an edge

04:54to the Buccaneers here in this spot.

04:56But I think the Falcons, certainly to make the playoffs at plus money,

04:58is a worthwhile wager.

05:00Meanwhile, B. John Robinson, you know, certainly his props are all out,

05:03as all the NFL players are.

05:06You know, a lot of folks are projecting maybe for him to catch the rushing title

05:10this year.

05:10Hard to beat what Barkley did last year.

05:12I don't know that we'll see 2,000 again.

05:131,200 rushing yards, 10 touchdowns, 8-1 to win the rushing title.

05:17Atlanta certainly handed over the keys a little bit to him last year.

05:21You think they even do it more this year?

05:23Sure.

05:23I think he's going to be a bigger part of the offense.

05:25But to be the rushing yards leader, it will be very tough.

05:27The system that he's playing in under Zach Robinson, which is the same system

05:31that the Los Angeles Rams and Sean McVay play under.

05:34It's not a very run-heavy system.

05:38B. John will be used.

05:39B. John will get plenty of touches.

05:41But some of those are going to be in pass catches out of the backfield.

05:44Now, if you can look for a prop over or under 2,000 yards from scrimmage type deal,

05:48that's something I think you should be worthwhile looking in with Bajon

05:51because that's more of where you're going to see him do it.

05:54They're going to involve him in the pass game often.

05:56Yes, he'll probably have 1,000 yards rushing.

05:58Will he go over that 1,200?

06:00Could very well be.

06:01I mean, if he has a couple of long touchdown runs here and breaks him,

06:03you know where he has 150 yards in a couple of games this year,

06:06yeah, I think he can get over that number.

06:08But I don't think he's going to be in buying for the rushing yards leader

06:10when it's all said and done.

06:11But, again, when you talk about total yards from scrimmage,

06:14he'll be at the top of the league.

06:15Let's close out with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

06:17It's very hard to find anybody breaking down sports betting

06:20or, you know, anything to do with Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers.

06:23Everyone seems to be going the other way.

06:25Maybe it is time, Mark, to go, you know, to zig when everybody zags, so to speak.

06:30I mean, 8 1⁄2 is their win total.

06:32Nobody wants to bet the over there.

06:34Nobody wants to take them to win the playoffs.

06:36No one wants to bet over on any of Aaron Rodgers' props.

06:39And so, you know, I'm looking for that sort of sliver here to say, hey, look, you know,

06:43maybe even though it feels like they're going the other way this year, maybe we'll be wrong.

06:47Well, I did.

06:48Look, I took a flyer on the Steelers to win the AFC North at plus 550.

06:52And I have Aaron Rodgers over 3,200 and a half passing yards.

06:55That's an incredibly known – but Aaron Rodgers has to average 200 yards a game to go over that number.

07:00You're only saying that he's not going to get there if he doesn't stay healthy.

07:03I think he absolutely will stay healthy.

07:05I think the minute they got a second tight end in John News-Smith opened up for them,

07:09Aaron Rodgers, a year after the Achilles, is still going to be able to play all 17 games

07:12and go over 3,200 yards a year in 17 games.

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