CFB Week 0 Previews and Predictions

It’s finally that time of year again – it’s game week! Every week, I’ll be ranking my top 10 games of the week, then making my predictions for those games. But it’ll just be the five Week 0 games for this one. All five are interesting in their own ways, though. (Note: This is not SNAP Model game projections, the SNAP Model will be ready for use around Week 5 or 6)

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5. Idaho State at UNLV

This game probably won't be close, but we get to see Dan Mullen's first game back as a coach, as he leads a G5 playoff contender in UNLV against a solid FCS squad in Idaho State.

Prediction: UNLV 52, Idaho State 14

4. Sam Houston at Western Kentucky

This should be a great game between two of the best teams in the C-USA last season. Sam Houston lost a lot from a year ago, but we'll be able to see right away how good the team is against what should be another good WKU squad who also brings in a lot of transfers.

Prediction: Western Kentucky 28, Sam Houston 24

3. Fresno State at Kansas

Another interesting matchup between a good G5 program against a good P4 program. This will be the first game in the Jayhawks' new stadium, but it could be spoiled by what should be a solid Fresno team. I expect this game to be close for 2 or 3 quarters before Kansas pulls away in the 4th.

Prediction: Kansas 34, Fresno State 20

2. Stanford at Hawaii

You could put 2 and 3 in either order and I'd be fine with it, but I'm slightly more excited for this game than the Fresno-KU game, just because it'll likely be closer. You have a Stanford team whose program is an absolute mess at the moment on the road against an up-and-coming Hawaii squad. It should be a great game, but I think Hawaii pulls off the “upset.”

Prediction: Hawaii 23, Stanford 20

1. #22 Iowa State vs. #17 Kansas State (Dublin, Ireland)

The 2025 version of the Aer Lingus Classic is the highlight of Week 0, as usual, but this year it has even extra juice. The game features two Big 12 title contenders and two teams ranked in the preseason top 25 to kick-off the college football season. I really have no idea who’s going to win this game, but whoever does has to be the early favorite to win the conference, while the loser will be in desperation mode for the foreseeable future.

Prediction: Kansas State 24, Iowa State 22

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