Lou Pickney's Latest Insight
August 28, 2025
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After the sampler platter that was Week 0 in American college football, we're now ready for Week 1. Boise State at South Florida starts later today (5:30 p.m. EDT on ESPN), and from there we're off to the races for 2025. Nebraska at Cincinnati (8 p.m. EDT on ESPN) is the most notable of tonight's matchups.
While I miss Fridays being protected for high school football, times have changed. Two games to watch tomorrow are Auburn at Baylor (8 p.m. EDT on FOX) and Georgia Tech at Colorado (8 p.m. EDT on ESPN).
Auburn has two players who have been trending up on evaluator big boards: defensive end Keldric Faulk and offensive tackle Xavier Chaplin.
Faulk had a great 2024 season that included 11 tackles for loss. Chaplin is a transfer from Virginia Tech who is billed at 6'7" 348 pounds and has legit first-round potential, particularly if he can improve his conditioning.
Saturday has a typical Labor Day weekend lineup with plenty of enhancement match tier games, but also two particularly noteworthy matchups: Texas at Ohio State (12 p.m. EDT on FOX) and LSU at Clemson (7:30 p.m. EDT on ABC) in the Death Valley Junior game.
The Sunday before Labor Day has a much smaller slate, albeit with two notable matchups: Virginia Tech at South Carolina (3 p.m. EDT on ESPN) and Notre Dame at Miami (7:30 p.m. EDT on ABC).
As for Labor Day itself, Bill Belichick debuts as North Carolina's head coach as the Tar Heels play host to TCU (8 p.m. EDT on ESPN). It's wild that Belichick at age 73 is taking on this new role after working in the NFL from 1975-2023.
And yet perhaps Belichick is well-suited for this modern era of college football. NIL and the transfer portal have changed things considerably.
Remember: this is a business.
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