We’ve finally made it from the longest off-season in any major sport and it’s time to kick off the 2022 College Football season. 2022 has arguably the biggest week zero crowd of games with a total of 14. Even though there are no ranked teams playing, there are plenty of intriguing matchups. Now, let’s get into it as we look at the best matchups in college football with our 2022 week 0 college football watch guide.
Note: All game times are in central standard time
2022 Week 0 College Football Watch Guide
Saturday
11:30 AM
Nebraska vs Northwestern 
A similar storyline unfolds to start the 2022 campaign for Nebraska as it did in 2021. Simply put, head coach Scott Frost will not survive another 3-9 campaign. There’s renewed optimism on the offensive side of the ball as they add offensive coordinator Mark Whipple and Texas quarterback transfer Casey Thompson. Conversely, Northwestern is also coming off of a 3-9 campaign but the Wildcats were far less competitive. The big reason for that was the inefficiencies on offense in only averaging 17 points per contest. After losing this game by 49 points last year, revenge could be an interesting factor in the game.
3:00 PM
Wyoming at Illinois 
The Fighting Illini come into 2022 looking to match their week zero performance of a year ago with the upset of Nebraska. Illinois was not incredibly productive at quarterback last year. But, that might change with transfer Tommy DeVitto as he has a 28 to 12 touchdown to interception ratio and also returns 1,000-yard back Chase Brown. For Wyoming, they come into the season as a very inexperienced football team returning only a total of eight starters. However, they add Utah State transfer quarterback Andrew Peasley and have a solid running back in Titus Sween who ran for nearly 800 yards last season.
3:00 PM
UConn at Utah State
On paper, this looks like a mismatch. But, as Mr. Lee Corso has so delicately stated, “that’s why they play the games.” Connecticut is coming off of a one-win campaign and is arguably the least talented team in the FBS with only four wins in their last four years. Be that as it may, Jim Mora comes in looking to make a big improvement in his first year. Conversely, Utah State is coming off of a 10-win season and a conference championship in 2021. Logan Bonner returns after throwing for over 3,600 yards and 36 touchdowns. The biggest concern for the Aggies will be at receiver where they return only one of their top five pass catchers from a year ago.
6:00 PM
Charlotte at FAU
Willie Taggart returns in year three in Boca Raton and has his most talented team. They have a fairly dynamic three-headed monster at the skill positions with 2,700-yard, 20 touchdown throwing N’Kosi Perry at Quarterback, Johnny Ford at running back who rushed for over 800 yards, and LaJohntay Wester who had over 700 yards receiving. Charlotte will be looking to score a mild upset similar to their shocker over Duke to begin 2021. The 49ers return a lot of firepower at the skill position led by Chris Reynolds who threw for 26 scores a year ago. However, they lose a ton on the offensive line and will need some plug-and-play transfers to perform well early on.
8:00 PM
North Texas at UTEP 
This under-the-radar Conference USA matchup has a chance to be the most competitive of the day. The good news is that UTEP made a bowl last year for the first time since 2014. The bad news is not one of those wins came over a team with a winning record. They do have plenty of experience returning with 15 starters back including quarterback Gavin Hardison who for over 3,200 yards and 18 touchdowns. North Texas snuck into a bowl after winning five games in a row to end the season. They will have one of the best offenses in Conference USA this season with eight returning starters. But, they have a depleted defensive line that could be problematic.
9:30 PM
Vanderbilt at Hawaii
We end the week 0 college football watch guide with what may not be the best game, but it’ll give you an excuse to stay up past your bedtime. Hawaii comes into 2022 as a new team in almost every sense of the word. They bring in new head coach Timmy Chang, return only six total starters from last year, and will have fans for the first time at their new stadium. For Vanderbilt, they would love to get the embarrassment of the 23-3 loss to East Tennessee State to begin last season out of their mouth. With wins in the SEC hard to come by for the Commodores, this is a huge opportunity to start fast.
