College Football Week 0 Picks: Best Early Bets (2026)

The 2026 College Football season is quickly approaching, kicking off with an eight-game Week 0 slate on Saturday, August 29th. USC (14) is the lone ranked team, hosting San Jose State as a massive -38.5 point betting favorite.

Some of the most notable matchups on this slate include the annual Aer Lingus College Football Classic, hosted in Dublin, Ireland, featuring UNC vs. TCU. This game opens the 2026 college football season, kicking off at 12 p.m. ET.

Other tight spreads from oddsmakers include an ACC tilt between NC State vs. Virginia (-5.5), Hawaii vs. Stanford (-5.5), and Memphis vs UNLV (-5.5) to wrap up Week 0 with a 10 p.m. ET kickoff. Jacksonville State vs. North Dakota State is intriguing, with the Bison finally moving into the FBS as a Mountain West program after dominating in the FCS.

Another program making its FBS debut is Sacramento State, joining the MAC and facing Eastern Michigan as a +9.5-point road underdog. Finally, New Mexico State heads to Tallahassee to take on Florida State, with the Seminoles laying -31.5.

It’s going to be exciting to kick back and watch the 2026 college football season in full swing this Saturday. I’ve got you covered with a few early Week 0 best bets and predictions to add an extra layer of entertainment value.

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College Football Week 0 Best Bets & Early Line Movement Predictions

(Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)

Home	Away	Open Spread	Current Spread	Open Total	Current Total	Spread +/-	Total +/-
TCU	UNC	-7.5	-7.5	47.5	47.5	0	0
Virginia	NC State	-5.5	-5.5	53.5	53.5	0	0
UNLV	Memphis	-6.0	-5.5	57.5	57.5	+0.5	0

UNC Tar Heels vs. TCU Horned Frogs

There hasn’t been much movement in point spread or total betting markets for the Aer Lingus Classic between UNC and TCU. UNC did make headlines this offseason for placing Michael Lombardi, the former GM, on paid administrative leave.

Bill Belichick creates his own headlines. These distractions don’t bode well for the Tar Heels, who finished 2025 ranked 120th out of 136 FBS programs in points scored per game (19.2).

TCU lost QB Josh Hoover to Indiana. Now, it’s Harvard transfer QB Jaden Craig, under center for the Horned Frogs.  Head coach Sonny Dykes typically runs a tight ship, though, and there is much less turnover in TCU’s program compared to UNC.

Even without Hoover, the Horned Frogs are laying -7.5. Dykes’ defense finished 72nd in the nation last year, allowing 25.3 points per game, while sitting 40th in points scored per game (30.7) with Hoover.

I’m taking the more consistent side in this game. Although we’re through a key number with -7.5 on the point spread, I don’t trust UNC to have it figured out in Week 0. Let’s lay -7.5 with TCU to open up our 2026 Week 0 college football betting board.

Pick: TCU -7.5 (-112)

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NC State Wolfpack vs. Virginia Cavaliers

I’m looking forward to this ACC matchup between NC State and Virginia at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday afternoon. The Cavaliers played above expectations in 2025, finishing 11-3 with both offense and defense ranked inside the top-40 for points per game scored.

The Wolfpack will trot out QB CJ Bailey again in 2026. There’s consistency at this position, and Bailey flashed some great moments last season. He’s also got a pair of new wideouts to target downfield.

Beau Pribula makes his debut with Virginia in this game. The Missouri transfer has plenty of big-game experience, but an injury late in the year derailed his momentum with the Tigers.

NC State handed Virginia one of its three losses in 2025. Despite playing on the road in Charlottesville, I’m going to side with the offense that has more continuity between playcaller and quarterback.

The Wolfpack suffered several blowouts last year, but they did cover +5.5 in 9 of 13 games played, including a two-point loss to Virginia Tech. The point spread market has also stayed neutral at +5.5.

Bet on NC State +5.5 as my second best bet of the 2026 Week 0 slate.

Pick: NC State +5.5 (-112)

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Memphis Tigers vs. UNLV Rebels

There has been line movement in the Memphis vs. UNLV point spread and total betting markets. This matchup has a ton of turnover for both teams, with Memphis set to deploy 11 new defensive starters and nine transfers on offense, including RB Dallan Hayden, a former Ohio State Buckeye.

UNLV has more stability on defense with minimal transfers. However, the Rebels’ offense now has QB Jackson Arnold under center in head coach Dan Mullens’ offense. Arnold has been a starter at Oklahoma and Auburn, so he’ll be primed to showcase his dual-threat ability in Mullens’ run-centric scheme.

Charles Huff takes over for Memphis. The Tigers had a top-25 offense under former head coach Ryan Silverfield, but there are a ton of new starters and pieces across all personnel departments.

UNLV was no slouch either, recording 34.1 points per game (18th) to wind up 10-4 and second in the Mountain West behind Boise State. Defense was the issue for the Rebels in 2025, ranked 89th in the FBS, allowing 28 points per game.

I really like Arnold’s fit at UNLV on paper. Yes, defense was an issue, but Memphis has 11 new defensive starters and a new coach, facing a team that racked up production and just inserted a stud dual-threat quarterback.

Let’s lay -5.5 with UNLV to close out our early 2026 Week 0 best bets.

Pick: UNLV -5.5 (-108)

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