Fired up for 2024: Game 700 among 32 contests planned (Updated November 5)
Like every season, we’re already firing up our “Tentative” 2024 schedule. Of course, it’s subject to change for better opportunities or unavoidable personal issues. Retirement from the 40-hour+work weeks has really paid off, couldn’t be better. Relocation to Tennessee provided new travel opportunities and unanticipated benefits of local weekday C-USA clashes. With a designated “bucket list” to focus on to see more games played beyond the 82 FBS stadiums we’ve already attended; our plans still entail many great match-ups. With most bowls not as enticing as they used to be, we already decided to make at least one significant CFP imperative. Our season goes on to January 9 for the Capital One Orange Bowl College Football Playoff semi-final.
We look forward to new venues on our 2024 schedule
More than usual, Collegefootballfan.com has plans for more new venues to be visited with economic, travel strategies to allow us to see as many games as possible. This season we plan to visit at least 16 new venues (even a new D-2), and in the process, attend games in four states for the first time – New Mexico, Arkansas, Wyoming and Wisconsin. The new weekday schedule format utilized by Conference USA once again happens to maximize our games within our monetary plans. Among 29 games slated, we have five games scheduled to see nearby at Middle Tennessee State. Even Alabama-Birmingham offers a venue where we can do games within a day if desirable. But, Penn State, Navy, Wake Forest and a few others remain as traditional must-visits as usual.
New FBS team joins 2024 schedule
In addition, Conference – USA changes bring us new FBS entries this year and next. We’ll see Kennesaw State twice in their inaugural FBS Season – once at home and then nearby on the road. Sam Houston State has to wait until 2025 to become Team #134. And in 2025, we don’t anticipate any problem figuring how to get new members Delaware and Missouri State on board, even at home games for both.
MACTION reels in four other new venues in 2024
Reviews of final schedules indicated some great weekday combinations of game nights of two Mid-American Conference games on two consecutive nights! During two consecutive weeks no less. We had already scheduled Ohio U. at Central Michigan on October 12 to attended CMU’s Kelly/Shorts Stadium to our growing list of venues attended. The MACTION in November pulled in game opportunities in Week 11 to venture to both Ball State and to Western Michigan for the first time. The following week, we travel to two new venues in Ohio for the first time. We’ll be at Toledo and at Ohio U. the following Tuesday and Wednesday.
Competition remains the name of our games
This season, we didn’t plan to see the preseason Top Four as we did during 2022. However, through a long-time friend and Auburn grad, Charles Murren, we may get to see his Tigers at Georgia, No. 1 in many preseason polls, in Athens this season! Already, several top pre-season favorites dot our slate. One or two, Ohio State and Oregon, may be in the Top Four. Notre Dame, Penn State and Florida State should also weigh in near the top. And of course, we have teams on the board with good chances to surprise “the experts” into the Top 25 – maybe Wisconsin, possibly Virginia Tech. Florida could possibly end up on our slate for a big game later in the season.
We’ll roll with the punches. There could be some Group of Five teams that will surprise the experts even more. Group of Five Appalachian State, Troy, Liberty, Ohio U. and even Texas State could sneak into the Top 25. We pencil in Memphis and Tulane as contenders, too. Though not on our regular season slate, we see the possibility of either hosting the American Athletic Championship on December 6, and we’ll definitely try to attend. Stay tuned!
2024 TENTATIVE COLLEGEFOOTBALLFAN.COM SCHEDULE
AUGUST-SEPTEMBER
AUG 24 MONTANA STATE* 35 AT NEW MEXICO 31 ALBUQUERQUE, NM**
AUG 29 WAKE FOREST 45 NORTH CAROLNA A&T* 13 WINSTON-SALEM, NC
AUG 30 DUKE 26 ELON 3 DURHAM, NC**
AUG 31 MIDDLE TENNESSEE 32 TENNESSEE TECH* 25 MURFREESBORO, TN
SEPT 2 BOSTON COLLEGE 28 FLORIDA STATE 13 TALLAHASSEE, FL **
SEPT 7 ARKANSAS STATE 28 TULSA 24 JONESBORO, AR**
SEPT 14 BRIGHAM YOUNG 34 WYOMING 14 LARAMIE, WY**
SEPT 19 SOUTH ALABAMA 48 APPALACHIAN STATE 14 BOONE, NC
SEPT 21 DUKE 45 MIDDLE TENNESSEE 17 MURFREESBORO, TN
SEPT 28 NAVY 41 ALABAMA-BIRMINGHAM 18 BIRMINGHAM, AL
OCTOBER
OCT 3 TEXAS STATE 38 TROY 17 TROY, AL
OCT 4 JACKSONVILLE STATE 63 KENNESAW STATE 24 KENNESAW, GA **
OCT 5 GEORGIA 31 AUBURN 13 ATHENS, GA
OCT 12 OHIO U. 27 CENTRAL MICHIGAN 25 MT. PLEASANT, MI**
OCT 15 MIDDLE TENNESSEE 14 KENNESAW STATE 5 MURFREESBORO, TN
OCT 17 VIRGINIA TECH 42 BOSTON COLLEGE 21 BLACKSBURG, VA
OCT 18 DUKE 23 FLORIDA STATE 16 DURHAM, NC
OCT 19 DAVIDSON* 70 STETSON* 48, DAVIDSON, NC**
OCT 26 GAME 700 – NOTRE DAME 51 NAVY 14 EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ
NOVEMBER
NOV 2 OHIO STATE 20 PENN STATE 13 STATE COLLEGE, PA
NOV 5 MIAMI (O.) 27 BALL STATE 21 MUNCY, IN**
NOV 9 SOUTH CAROLINA 28 VANDERBILT 7 NASHVILLE, TN
NOV 13 OHIO U. 35 EASTERN MICHIGAN 10 ATHENS, OH**
NOV 16 OREGON 16 WISCONSIN 13 MADISON, WI**
NOV 20 OHIO U. AT TOLEDO TOLEDO, OH**
*NOV 23 NEW MEXICO STATE AT MIDDLE TENNESSEE MURFREESBORO, TN
NOV 29 UTAH AT CENTRAL FLORIDA ORLANDO, FL
OR FCS PLAYOFF AMONG OTHER OPTIONS TBD
CHAMPIONSHIP AND BOWL SEASON
DEC 6 AMERICAN ATHLETIC CHAMIONSHIP GAME OR C-USA CHAMPIONSHIP TBD 8 PM EST
DEC 7 SUN BELT CHAMPIONSHIP TBD 7:30 EST
DEC 14 ARMYNAVY OR FCS PLAYOFF TBD
DEC 20 CFP CAMPUS GAME OR BOWL TBD 8PM EST
OR DEC 21 CFP CAMPUS GAME TBD 12, 4, OR 8 PM EST OR FCS PLAYOFFS
DEC 27 76 BIRMINGHAM BOWL AAC/ACC/ SEC BIRMINGHAM, AL
OR AUTOZONE LIBERTY BOWL BIGXII VS SEC MEMPHIS, TN
DEC 30 TRANSPERFECT MUSIC CITY BOWL SEC VS B1G NASHVILLE, TN
JAN 3 DUKE’S MAYO BOWL ACC VS B1G CHARLOTTE, NC
JAN 9 CAPITAL ONE ORANGE BOWL CFP SEMI-FINAL TBD MIAMI LAKES, FL
* INIDICATES A NEW TEAM ON OUR SCHEDULE TO BE SEEN FOR THE FIRST TIME
**INDICATES A NEW VENUE ON OUR SCHEDULE TO BE VISITED FOR THE FIRST TIME
