Kickoff Has Arrived

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College football is back — a week earlier than usual. The season usually kicks off on Labor Day weekend.

And only two ranked teams are playing today. But what the heck? Football is back!

In fact, as I finish this, games have already begun. But my focus in these posts is on the games involving the ranked teams — and we have two of those tonight.

You'll have to wait until next week to see games involving two ranked teams — and we do have some then.

Fasten your seat belts.

Idle: #1 Alabama, #2 Ohio State, #3 Florida State, #4 Southern Cal, #5 Clemson, #6 Penn State, #7 Oklahoma, #8 Washington, #9 Wisconsin, #10 Oklahoma State, #11 Michigan, #12 Auburn, #13 LSU, #15 Georgia, #16 Louisville, #17 Florida, #18 Miami (Florida), #20 Kansas State, #21 Virginia Tech, #22 West Virginia, #23 Texas, #24 Washington State, #25 Tennessee

Saturday

• #14 Stanford vs. Rice in Sydney, Australia, 9 p.m. (Central) on ESPN: From 1957 to 1964, these schools met four times, with Rice winning the first three encounters.
  
  But they haven't met since.
  
  What's more, they have always played on one campus or the other. A game in Sydney, Australia, is most unusual.
  
  I grew up in the old Southwest Conference, and Rice was never very competitive. The Owls didn't win an undisputed Southwest Conference championship in my lifetime — and shared an SWC title after my alma mater, the University of Arkansas, had joined the Southeastern Conference and I no longer paid attention to the SWC.
  
  Things are different for Stanford. Now, Stanford has had its share of failure on the football field, too, but things have been looking up in recent years. Stanford has had 10 wins or more in six of the last seven seasons and is clearly the team that is on the way up.
  
  I pick Stanford.
• #19 South Florida at San Jose State, 6:30 p.m. (Central) on CBSSN: This is the first–ever meeting between these schools.
  
  There are exceptions from time to time, but San Jose State doesn't usually have much of a team.
  
  Meanwhile, South Florida has been competing only since 2000 and went through the growing pains one would associate with an expansion team in professional football. But the Bulls went 11–2 last year and are now coached by Charlie Strong, who spent the last three seasons on the University of Texas' hot seat.
  
  I expect South Florida to win.