Fitz’s Four to Watch - Week 1

Yahoo Sports’ Jason Fitz takes you through the best matchups to watch in college football for Week 1 of the 2023 season.

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JASON FITZ: What's up, guys? Fitz here. You don't need your remote. You've got me. It's time for Fitz's Four, the four best matchups in college football. Why four? I love alliteration.

At number four, it's a "Good Old Song" versus "Rocky Top" in the home of country music in Nashville where Virginia takes on Tennessee. Keep in mind, Virginia will be without Chico Bennett, one of the ACC's best pass rushers, which is less than ideal when you're taking on Heupel's high-powered offense. But Joe Milton in at quarterback now. No Jalin Hyatt to throw to. Tennessee could look wildly different. All eyes are on the Vols to see if they can actually threaten Georgia in the East. Stop laughing. It could happen.

At number three, they are Penn State. And West Virginia is going to take that country road all the way to Happy Valley. Fun fact, this used to be a rivalry. Well, tradition might be a better word. Because the tradition is West Virginia going up there and getting destroyed. That's probably going to happen here again. But the Big Ten has a ton of national championship contenders themselves. And we want to see can Penn State be one of those teams. All eyes will be on James Franklin's squad.

At number two, who doesn't love interstate rivalries, right? You've got North Carolina taking on South Carolina. Every single week, we are going to focus too much on Drake Maye because of his draft status. And in this game, both teams are sort of defense optional. Neither of them like to play it. That means we're going to get yards. We're going to get points. We're going to get highlights. And most importantly, Darius Rucker is going to continue to be wrong every year when he says this is the year his beloved Gamecocks don't let him down. Sorry about that, man.

At the top of the list, the matchup we all know is coming, it's LSU taking on Florida State. And you talk about unblockable talent all over the field. Remember this, it's not that long ago that we thought Florida State was going to go off the rails. Mike Norvell was going to be out of a job in only a year. And now they sit around at number eight coming into the season, a true national championship contender.

Jared Verse is virtually unblockable. He'll get the chance to prove his highlights against one of the best quarterbacks in the country in Jayden Daniels. But Jordan Travis has a chance to go off for Florida State also. This is the sort of matchup that will get a ton of weight from the college football playoff committee for the entirety of the season, so it's important right now.

Orlando is the happiest place on Earth on Sunday night because of this one. Sit back, enjoy yourself and, most importantly, thank me later for helping you figure out how to navigate the landscape.