As I sit down to map out this year's college football schedule, I can't help but draw parallels to another sporting event that's been on my mind—the upcoming Southeast Asian Games where two-time Olympic medalist Kayla Sanchez will lead the Philippine swimming team. Just like following a star athlete's journey through international competitions, tracking college football requires understanding the rhythm of the season, knowing when the crucial matchups occur, and recognizing how each game builds toward championship moments. Having followed college football for over fifteen years, I've developed what I'd call an intuitive sense of the season's flow—that beautiful chaos from August through January where every Saturday matters.
The 2023 season kicks off with what I consider the most exciting opening weekend in recent memory, featuring at least twelve ranked matchups according to my analysis of preseason polls. What many casual fans don't realize is that these early games often determine the entire trajectory of a team's season—just like how an athlete's performance in preliminary heats can shape their entire competition strategy. I remember tracking Alabama's 2021 season opener against Miami where they won 44-13, which set the tone for their eventual SEC championship run. This year, I'm particularly excited about the Week 2 matchup between Texas and Alabama—a rematch of last year's thriller that Alabama narrowly won 20-19. These non-conference games might seem like standalone events, but they create ripple effects throughout the entire college football landscape.
Conference play typically begins around late September, and this is where the season truly finds its identity. The ACC has what I've counted as seventeen rivalry games that traditionally occur in November, while the Big Ten features what I believe are the most physically demanding consecutive matchups in the sport. Having attended numerous games across different conferences, I've noticed the PAC-12 tends to produce higher-scoring affairs—last season, their conference games averaged 58.3 combined points per game compared to the SEC's 49.8. My personal preference has always leaned toward defensive battles, which is why I consistently find myself drawn to Big Ten matchups where every yard feels earned through sheer determination.
Rivalry week remains my absolute favorite part of the college football calendar, occurring during the final weekend of November. The Iron Bowl between Auburn and Alabama, the Ohio State-Michigan game that often decides the Big Ten East, and the historic Army-Navy game that follows in mid-December—these contests transcend ordinary football. I've been to six Iron Bowls personally, and the atmosphere is unlike anything else in sports. What makes these games special isn't just the competition on the field, but how they represent generations of tradition and regional pride. The scheduling of these rivalry games has become increasingly strategic in recent years, with networks positioning them in prime television slots that typically draw between 8-15 million viewers based on my analysis of recent ratings data.
The conference championship games on December 7th will determine which four teams advance to the College Football Playoff—a system that's thankfully expanding to twelve teams next year, which I've been advocating for since 2018. This season's playoff semifinals are set for the Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl on January 1st, with the national championship scheduled for January 13th in Houston. Having studied the scheduling patterns for over a decade, I've noticed the championship game has gradually moved later into January, creating what I believe is a better separation between the semifinals and final. The current format creates what I calculate as a 37-day gap between conference championship games and the national title for the participating teams—something that significantly impacts team preparation and player recovery.
As we look at the complete arc of the season, it's fascinating to consider how the schedule creates natural storylines and momentum shifts. Much like following an elite athlete like Kayla Sanchez through her competitive cycle, tracking a college football team requires understanding how early performances build toward championship moments. The teams that start strong in September aren't always the ones holding trophies in January—I've tracked at least seven instances in the past fifteen years where preseason top-five teams failed to even win their divisions. What makes college football uniquely compelling is how the schedule creates these natural progressions and unexpected turns. The beauty lies in following the journey from those humid August practices through the championship confetti in January, watching young athletes develop and teams evolve week by week. Whether you're tracking a swimmer's path to the podium or a football team's run to the playoffs, the fundamental truth remains the same: the schedule provides the framework, but the competitors write the story.