College football season officially started last Friday, but here in Big Ten country, the really meaningful games don't kick off until Thursday night.
Michigan and Michigan State will break in new quarterbacks, Iowa will look to build on an undefeated regular season and Wisconsin will host a top-five team in an NFL stadium. All 14 Big Ten teams are in action, but not all games are created equal.
It's a loaded football weekend, so you have to pick and choose which games are worth your time. Here's a look at every Big Ten matchup and which to circle on your schedule.
14. Purdue vs. Eastern Kentucky
Game details: Saturday at noon
The worst game of the week is luckily during the busiest part of football Saturday, so you'll have plenty of other options. I mean, come on, watching Eastern Kentucky and Purdue on the same football field? Nobody deserves that type of punishment, even on opening weekend.
The Colonels finished 6-5 last season and finished fourth in the Ohio Valley Conference. Purdue went 2-10 and finished dead last in the Big Ten West. Chances are, this game won't be pretty.
13. Maryland vs. Howard
Game details: Saturday at noon
Maryland's matchup really gave Purdue a run for its money, but the Terps slide in at No. 13 thanks to former Michigan defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin serving his first game as head coach. Durkin led a mostly dominant Michigan defense last season and will be responsible for fixing a, well, pathetic passing game.
Maryland quarterbacks put up some of the worst numbers you'll ever see from a Big Ten team last season, completing fewer than 50 percent of their pass attempts and throwing almost twice as many interceptions (29) as touchdowns (15).
12. Illinois vs. Murray State
Game details: Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
Are you seeing a trend? Bad Big Ten teams and non-FBS opponents don't combine to create very good matchups. Illinois got out to a 4-1 start last year but went just 1-6 down the stretch to finish with a losing record.
Wes Lunt is one reason to tune in to Illinois games. The senior quarterback threw for 2,761 yards last season and had a 14:6 touchdown to interception ratio. Can he lead Illinois to a bowl game this season? It might be an uphill battle.
11. Penn State vs. Kent State
Game details: Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
Penn State was supposed to be a good team last year, but it was not -- even with a future NFL quarterback leading the offense. Now that NFL quarterback is gone, and the James Franklin experiment is entering year three without many signs of forward progress.
Kent State doesn't add much spice to the matchup, although the Golden Flashes are at least an FBS program. Kent State got blown out, 52-3, by a bad Illinois team last season and finished with a 3-9 record (2-6 in the MAC).
10. Nebraska vs. Fresno State
Game details: Saturday at 8 p.m.
It's a shame Nebraska couldn't find a better matchup for their primetime slot Saturday night, but Big Ten fans should at least get to see some quality football from the Cornhuskers. Starting quarterback Tommy Armstrong Jr. is back for his final season, and Mike Riley is ready to build on a disappointing first year at Nebraska.
Despite their 6-7 record, the Cornhuskers were a good football team in 2015, losing five games by fewer than six points and six games by one possession. If Nebraska buckles down in late-game situations this year, it could see a big jump in that record.
9. Rutgers at (14) Washington
Game details: Saturday at 2 p.m.
The list sees its first ranked team at No. 9, but it's not a ranked Big Ten team. Rutgers is beginning a new era under head coach Chris Ash, but the Scarlett Knights aren't expected to make any big moves in 2016.
If you tune in to this game, you get to see a solid Washington team without staying up for a late West Coast kickoff. Who knows? Maybe Rutgers will take advantage of the unpredictability of Week 1 and make things interesting.
8. Indiana at Florida International
Game details: Thursday at 7:30 p.m.
This might be the most underrated game of the week, especially since it's the first Big Ten team to kickoff this season. Indiana is always an entertaining team to watch under Kevin Wilson, thanks to a high-powered offense and his ability to pump out talented running backs.
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Last year, Indiana and Florida International went down to the wire in Bloomington. Indiana kicked a field goal with 11 minutes left in the game to tie it at 22 and didn't seal it until Jameel Cook returned an interception 96 yards for a touchdown with under four minutes to play. Hopefully the rematch in University Park won't disappoint.
7. (17) Iowa vs. Miami (OH)
Game details: Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
Teams rarely fly under the radar immediately after an undefeated regular season, but it seems like that's just what Iowa has done. The Hawkeyes were one play away from the College Football Playoff last season and return many of their key players, like quarterback C.J. Beathard and All-American defensive back Desmond King.
Iowa has only one ranked team on its schedule and plays its three toughest games at home. The Hawkeyes are eyeing another perfect season.
It's never too early! Click here to check out our Michigan vs. MSU countdown to kickoff clock.
6. (6) Ohio State vs. Bowling Green
Game details: Saturday at noon
Ohio State lost a ton of talent to the NFL this offseason, but that shouldn't be an issue against Bowling Green at the Horseshoe.
The most appealing player in this matchup is quarterback J.T. Barrett, who enters this season as the unquestioned starter and a Heisman trophy candidate.
5. Minnesota at Oregon State
Game details: Friday at 9 p.m.
For the second straight season, Minnesota begins its season on a Thursday night against a Power Five opponent. Last year, the Gophers almost knocked off No. 2 TCU. This year, they're heavy favorites over Oregon State.
Minnesota is coming off of a roller coaster season in which their head coach, Jerry Kill, retired for health reasons and Tracy Claeys took over. Claeys led Minnesota to just a 2-4 finish, but the Gophers gave three straight ranked teams a scare when they lost to Michigan, Ohio State and Iowa by an average of just over seven points. Mitch Leidner returns as a senior and could be one of the best players in the conference that nobody's talking about.
4. (12) Michigan State vs. Furman
Game details: Friday at 7 p.m.
The Spartans are coming off of one of their best seasons in school history, a trip to the College Football Playoff and a third straight top-10 finish, and the Friday night opening opponent they chose was Furman?
Furman?
Yes, I know college football schedules are made years in advance, and yes, I know teams regularly start the season against weak opponents. But it feels like Michigan State missed out on a chance to really capitalize on some national momentum Friday night.
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But even against a team that finished 2-5 in the Southern Conference last season, Michigan State is a must-watch. The defending Big Ten champions will break in a new starting quarterback and try to avoid taking a big step back after losing a bunch of NFL talent.
3. (7) Michigan vs. Hawaii
Game details: Saturday at noon
Michigan is another school guilty of scheduling weak non-conference games. The Wolverines welcome an already battle-tested Hawaii team to the Big House after the Rainbow Warriors got waxed by California in Sydney, Australia, last week.
Michigan is a team to watch closely during the early parts of the season because of the high expectations and the young talent that Jim Harbaugh is expected to showcase. Who will start at quarterback? Will Rashan Gary make an impact in his first game? The game should be a blowout, but there are still plenty of reasons to tune in.
2. Northwestern vs. Western Michigan
Game details: Saturday at noon
The Northwestern-Western Michigan game didn't earn the top spot on this list, but it could be the closest Big Ten game of the weekend.
Northwestern is coming off a 10-win season in which it featured one of the top defenses in the country. The Wildcats knocked off Stanford, Nebraska and Wisconsin en route to the Outback Bowl, where they got spanked by Tennessee. Pat Fitzgerald will be looking to build on that success and make a run at the Big Ten West title.
Meanwhile, Western Michigan brings back a pretty solid team under head coach P.J. Fleck. Wide receiver Corey Davis enters his senior year with 235 catches, 3,785 receiving yards and 33 touchdowns in his career. His early test against the Northwestern defense will be a good one to watch.
1. Wisconsin vs. (5) LSU
Game details: Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
Wisconsin does it again. For the third straight season, the Badgers kick off their season against a highly-ranked SEC team at a (technically) neutral site. Wisconsin will host No. 5 LSU at Lambeau Field as a rematch of the 2014 opener in Houston. LSU won that game after trailing 24-7 in the second half.
Paul Chryst's team is a bit of an unknown heading into 2016. Bart Houston will take over at quarterback, and his first game comes against a good LSU defense in the home of Wisconsin's beloved Green Bay Packers. A win over an SEC powerhouse would be a big step for Wisconsin and a great start for the Big Ten.