College Football's Week 0 slate was tantamount to sitting down at Red Lobster only to be informed by the server that they have run out of cheddar bay biscuits and oh by the way, here are a few slices of Sunbeam and some prepackaged butter. The week 1 slate is not the best opening week in the sport's history, but there are plenty of juicy matchups and some under-the-radar good games. We are giving our readers our thoughts and predictions, (against the spread), on eleven games we believe are of some interest to Gamecock fans and fans of the sport. Note: We lock the lines in on Sunday night so they will likely be different on the publishing date.

Another familiar name to SEC fans will lead the way for WVU in JT Daniels, former Georgia QB, but an argument could be made that WVU lost more than they gained this past offseason. WVU finished 6-7 last year with a loss in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl. It is probably a safe bet for another season along those lines for the Mountaineers. To this point, head coach Neal Brown has found Power 5 football far more challenging than his quick turnaround success at the Group of 5 level leading Troy. Brown brought in all new coaches on the offensive side of the ball, outside of the offensive line coach, in the hopes of better results in 2022.

Pitt has big shoes to fill with QB Kenny Pickett’s departure to the NFL as a first-round draft pick along with former leading receiver Jordan Addison, who transferred to Southern Cal. Also gone is offensive coordinator Mark Whipple who is now in the same position at Nebraska. Pitt should present a solid offensive line to give its new playmakers a chance for another strong showing on offense even with the key departures. Defensively Pitt boasts what they believe will be a strong group, especially up front, that will keep them in most games.

Illinois is coming off a trouncing of Wyoming 38-6 in Week 1. Wyoming was determined to take away the middle of the field from Illinois, so Illinois exposed the edges in both the run and passing game. QB Tommy DeVito was not sacked and delivered the ball to twelve different receivers while the running backs produced 260 yards rushing. The defense put Wyoming on their heels forcing them to throw the ball, which is not Wyoming’s strength. Teams usually make their biggest improvement from Week 1 to Week 2, so Indiana will likely have their hands full.

Tom Allen’s Hoosiers were only able to scrape out two wins in 2021 after finishing with a winning record in 2020 and 2019. There are a lot of fresh faces around Indiana with a new offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator, running backs coach, defensive line coach, and wide receivers coach. Usually, when that type of turnover is seen it is the last gasp of a head coach trying to keep his job. Former Mizzou QB Conner Bazelak is expected to win the starting position, but will he have time to throw the ball and who will he throw to? Indiana is hurting for proven playmakers at WR and the OL is questionable. The defense will have a new scheme and the staff has been hush-hush about what it will look like.

The 2021 Duke Mayo Bowl runners-up did not exactly light up the college football world with their uninspired play against a Florida A&M team that was missing 26 players due to an administrative screw-up. The Rattlers had only seven offensive linemen dressed and three were true freshmen. UNC won 56-24, but they were only up 35-24 in the fourth quarter. Mack Brown's bunch has had a week to hear about how much they suck. One guy that did his part was freshman quarterback Drake Maye. The former Alabama commit and Rivals Top250 member, was 29 of 37 passing with 294 yards and five touchdowns.

Meanwhile, up in the Boone, NC mountains await perpetual Power 5 slayer Appalachian State. (Just ask UNC from prior experience). The Mountaineers return their entire offensive line, former Clemson QB Chase Brice, and their top two running backs, Nate Noel and Camerun Peoples, who combined for over 2,000 yards rushing in 2021. Putting up some points shouldn't be a problem in Boone this season.

Houston head coach Dana Holgorsen returns with the majority of his coaching staff after going 12-2 overall and winning the Birmingham Bowl last year. Expectations are high as Houston is returning Clayton Tune at quarterback and a slew of other players on offense that saw playing time in 2021. The Cougars will have to replace NFL draftees CB Damarion Williams and CB Marcus Jones, but return a host of other veteran players. Houston has a chance to win a high number of games in 2022, but winning 12 in consecutive years is a tall task.

UTSA returns Frank Harris at quarterback and his top three receiving targets. Replacements had to be made at running back and several OL spots. Also gone is offensive coordinator Barry Lunney and his pro-style offense that saw the ball spread around to numerous receivers. Defensively UTSA had a number of holes to fill due to heavy graduation numbers, so it remains to be seen if either the offense or defense will be on the same level as they were in 2021.

Cincinnati, the Group of 5 darlings, will come down south to take on the Razorbacks on Saturday. Head coach Luke Fickell enters his sixth year at the helm and is fresh off being recognized as national coach of the year. Fickell had all kinds of holes to fill in the offseason including staff turnover and multiple NFL draftees. Cincinnati will again have high expectations, but replicating results from last year and reaching the college playoffs is unlikely.

Sam Pittman is entering his second year at Arkansas with visions of winning the SEC West. While that challenge is an insanely tough one, Arkansas will first attempt to handle business against Cincinnati. Arkansas returns most of its offensive unit minus 1st round draft pick WR Treylon Burks. Where Arkansas is questionable is on defense. They certainly have some talented players, but will they be efficient enough to help win meaningful games? While losing in Week 1 would not be detrimental to either team, it would give the loser an uphill battle the rest of the season.

First-year head coach Dan Lanning takes charge of the Ducks with a new staff in place. It is expected that former Auburn QB Bo Nix will be named the starter, but what the offense will officially look like is still in question. Gone is former offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead who is now the head man at Akron. Moorhead has been replaced by former Florida State offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham. It is likely the defense will resemble what was run at Georgia last year, but without the same level of playmakers. The game may not be played in Athens, but Atlanta is close enough, making this a monster of an opening game for Lanning.

Georgia may not be as good as they were in 2021, but they should still be one of the top teams in the nation. College football fans may not see another defense that was on UGA’s level, this past year, for years to come. Georgia returns Stetson Bennett at QB, a talented group of running backs, and one of the best tight-end corps in the nation. There are some questions at wide receiver and offensive line, but not a lack of potential. Former South Carolina and Florida head coach Will Muschamp is now co-defensive coordinator.

This game is being played for the benefit of the convalescent Urban Meyer, the man that delivered Florida two National Titles and Utah to a perfect season in 2004. The Utes have been able to hold on to the highly sought-after head coach Kyle Whittingham since Urban's departure from the Bee Hive State. The Gators are debuting head coach #4 since Urban's mystery illness helped him prioritize his family over his career, for about 3 weeks until he accepted a TV role, then the Ohio State gig the next offseason. Former Clemson assistant Billy Napier draws a difficult match for his first game as Gators head man.

Florida has more talent than many national pundits are giving them credit for. Gator signal-caller Anthony Richardson is a dark horse Heisman candidate with a rocket for an arm. UF's leading tackler from last season, Mohamoud Diabate, will be the starting for the Utes in this game.

Notre Dame enters a new era with former defensive coordinator Marcus Freeman leading the way. Former head coach Brian Kelly just so happened to jump ship to LSU in one of Notre Dame’s most difficult scheduling years. Not only does Notre Dame face OSU on Saturday, but they play preseason-ranked Clemson, Southern Cal, and BYU later in the year. Toss in UNC, Stanford, Boston College, and Notre Dame will get a taste of what it is like to play a conference schedule on a yearly basis. Notre Dame has talent, but also a number of question marks with a staff consisting of seven new assistants.

Ohio State has national championship aspirations and with the amount of talent on their roster, it is easy to see why. They return 2021 Heisman trophy finalist CJ Stroud and seem to be loaded at the skill positions with Jaxson Smith-Njigba leading the way. The main question marks are on defense with a new defensive coordinator and if they will match up with whoever comes out of the SEC come playoff time - assuming Ohio State wraps up the Big Ten as they should.

We will have plenty more predictions and analyses on this game in the next 50 hours so we aren't going to get into the minutiae in this article.

Florida State fans are riding high after the Seminoles thumped FCS member Duquesne 47-7 last week. This week will provide a true test at LSU. The Tigers may have been picked to finish in the lower half of the SEC West, but they still have plenty of talented players, and playing the Bayou Bengals in the Pelican State is always a difficult task. For Florida State to regain national status, winning games like this is a must.

Brian Kelly departed Notre Dame as their all-time winningest coach, but that will not be the case at LSU. Even so, there is no excuse for not having success in Baton Rouge. Kelly will have an almost limitless amount of resources at his disposal and he is located in a hotbed of football talent between Louisiana and Texas. There will not be nearly as many cupcakes on the schedule as at ND and playing in the SEC West is no easy task, but Kelly will have the chance to prove his coaching prowess against some of the best teams in college football. The biggest question is if Kelly will be a cultural fit at LSU. Numerous midwest to northeast bred coaches have not panned out in the SEC.

Clemson will start the season off with new defensive and offensive coordinators. Brent Venables, who is one of the best defensive coordinators in college football, is off to Oklahoma as their new head coach while Tony Elliot is off to Virginia as their new head coach. Clemson is still loaded with talent, but how will their season go with new coordinators? Head coach Debo Swinney seems to be an excellent CEO-style leader, but what happens if the men he has allowed to call plays do not live up to expectations?

RamblinWreck head man Geoff Collins came in and flipped the roster and scheme built to keep the program competitive in Power 5 football with promises of a high-flying offense. The results? An average of three wins a year. Year four may find Collins’ seat heating up if he cannot produce better results. Carolina fans can tune in and see if Tech can pull off a stunner with an assist from former Gamecock WR EJ Jenkins.