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ESPN Unveils High-Profile Early Season College Football Matchups During Disney Upfront
ESPN announced a slate of high-profile college football showdowns during the 2025 Disney Upfront in New York City on Tuesday, May 13. The 10 early-season showcases mark the first network announcements for ESPN's industry-leading college football production.
The 2025-26 season kicks off with the Aer Lingus College Football Classic featuring No. 14 Iowa State and No. 18 Kansas State in Dublin, Ireland. The Week 0 Big 12 battle begins at noon ET on Saturday, Aug. 23, on ESPN.
The traditional start to the season is Week 1, with nine cross-conference clashes on ABC and ESPN. Highlights include:
· An all-Tigers tussle between No. 6 LSU and No. 2 Clemson under the lights of Memorial Stadium | ABC Saturday Night Football Presented by Capital One: Saturday, Aug 30, at 7:30 p.m.
· A longstanding rivalry is reignited between No. 7 Notre Dame and No. 21 Miami | Sunday, Aug 31, at 7:30 p.m. on ABC
· The collegiate coaching debut of eight-time Super Bowl champion Bill Belichick on Labor Day Monday: TCU at North Carolina | 8 p.m. on ESPN, presented by Capital One
· A pair of neutral site ACC/SEC showcases with the Aflac Kickoff Games at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta featuring Syracuse and Tennessee (Saturday, Aug. 30, at noon on ABC) and Virginia Tech against No. 13 South Carolina (Sunday, Aug. 31, at 3 p.m. on ESPN)
· No. 9 Alabama travels to Tuscaloosa to take on Florida State | Saturday, Aug. 30, at 3:30 p.m. on ABC
· Coach Deion Sanders's third season kicking off in primetime: Georgia Tech at Colorado | Friday, Aug 29, at 8 p.m. on ESPN
· 2024-25 College Football Playoff participant Boise State takes on South Florida in Tampa | Friday, Aug. 29, at 5:30 p.m. on ESPN
The first three weeks of ESPN's 2025-26 college football schedule and all special date games will be revealed on Thursday, May 29. ESPN's Bowl Season schedule will be announced on Thursday, June 5.
Schedules are subject to change. Please continue to check @ESPNPR and ESPN Press Room for more information. All rankings are sourced from ESPN.com's Post-Spring Way-Too-Early Top 25.
Date Time (ET) Programming Platform
Sat, Aug 23 Noon Aer Lingus College Football Classic:
No. 14 Iowa State vs. No. 18 Kansas State (Dublin, Ireland) ESPN
Thu, Aug 28 5:30 p.m. Boise State at South Florida ESPN
9 p.m. Nebraska vs. Cincinnati (Kansas City) ESPN
Fri, Aug 29 8 p.m. Georgia Tech at Colorado ESPN
Sat, Aug 30 Noon Aflac Kickoff Game: Syracuse vs. Tennessee (Atlanta) ABC
3:30 p.m. No. 9 Alabama at Florida State ABC
7:30 p.m. No. 6 LSU at No. 2 Clemson ABC
Sun, Aug 31 3 p.m. Aflac Kickoff Game: Virginia Tech vs. No. 13 South Carolina (Atlanta) ESPN
7:30 p.m. No. 7 Notre Dame at No. 21 Miami ABC
Mon, Sept 1 8 p.m. TCU at North Carolina ESPN
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