College football season begins with early tests for powerhouse teams

actions speak louder than words
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College football kicks off over Labor Day weekend, highlighted by early tests for some of this year's strongest programs. No. 3 Oklahoma will open their season against No. 15 Houston on Saturday, followed by a matchup between No. 1 Alabama and No. 20 USC that will test whether the defending champion Crimson Tide can effectively replace graduated quarterback Jake Coker under center. Also Saturday, No. 6 Ohio State will take the field against Bowling Green, while their hated rivals No. 7 Michigan will start things off against Hawaii.

On Sunday, No. 10 Notre Dame will take on the Texas Longhorns, with the Fighting Irish aiming to perfect their two-quarterback system and test a largely new receiving corps. Meanwhile, No. 11 Mississippi will face No. 4 Florida State — an early championship contender — in a Labor Day matchup.

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Kimberly Alters

Kimberly Alters is the news editor at TheWeek.com. She is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.