When Does the 2024 NCAA College Football Season Start?

Last updated on May 31st, 2024 at 01:42 pm

You have your sportsbook up and running thanks to your bookie pay per head software. So, you must be looking forward to a lucrative football season this year. Both the NFL and the NCAA football leagues can bring in thousands of wagers each season. As a bookie, you need to know everything you can about these leagues. Today, we will give you the information to help you get ready. It’s never too early to prepare for the 2024 NCAA College Football Season.

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When Does the 2024 NCAA College Football Season Start?

The 2024 season will begin on August 24, Saturday. This is what you will see as Week Zero in the latest NCAA football news. There will be quite a few interesting games set for that weekend. But most of the Division I programs will be starting their season the following week. Let us look at the games we can watch and bet on during the opening week. It is Labor Day Weekend as well.

Week Zero Games

We are still months away from the start of the college football season. But a lot of sportsbooks already have lines open. That means you can start reading up on football picks as early as now. As we move closer to August, more and more lines will open for people to bet on. And here are some of the first games during Week Zero to watch out for:

- Aer Lingus College Football Classic: Florida State vs. Georgia Tech (in Dublin, Ireland) at 12 p.m. ET
- McNeese at Tarleton State at 2:30 p.m. ET
- Montana State at New Mexico at 4 p.m. ET
- FCS Kickoff: North Alabama vs. Southeast Missouri State at 7 p.m. ET
- MEAC/SWAC Challenge: Norfolk State vs. Florida A&M at 7:30 p.m. ET
- SMU at Nevada at 8 p.m. ET
- Delaware State at Hawaii TBA

Week 1 of the 2024 NCAA Football Season

Week 1 of the NCAA football season will be very exciting. Games will begin on August 29, but your sports calendar will get really busy during Labor Day Weekend. Here are some of the season-opening games that are likely to get a lot of betting action:

August 29 Thursday

- North Carolina at Minnesota at 8 p.m. ET
- North Dakota State at Colorado at 8 p.m. ET

August 30 Friday

- TCU at Stanford at 10:30 p.m. ET

August 31 Saturday

- Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game: Clemson vs. Georgia at 12 p.m. ET
- Penn State at West Virginia at 12 p.m. ET
- Miami (FL) at Florida at 3:30 p.m. ET
- Notre Dame at Texas A&M at 7:30 p.m. ET
- Georgia State at Georgia Tech at 8 p.m. ET
- South Dakota State at Oklahoma State TBA

September 1 Sunday

- Orange Blossom Classic: North Carolina Central vs. Alabama State at 3 p.m. ET
- Vegas Kickoff Classic: LSU vs. Southern California at 7:30 p.m. ET

September 2 Monday

- Boston College at Florida State at 7:30 p.m. ET

NCAA Football Playoffs 2024 Schedule

As a bookie, you will be doing a lot of planning and strategizing for your sportsbook operation. You may be looking at your financials, or your marketing calendar to plot your promotions. Either way, here is the schedule for the playoffs of the upcoming NCAA football season.