Week 1 of the college football season is here, and after getting a taste of the game we love last weekend in Week 0, we’ve got a full slate coming up!
There are several marquee matchups to look forward to, including Clemson vs. LSU in Baton Rouge on Saturday night, Wisconsin vs. Notre Dame from Lambeau Field in Green Bay and Louisville vs. Ole Miss from Nissan Stadium in Nashville on Sunday and SMU vs. Florida State from Doak Campbell Stadium on Monday night.
Week 1 will also serve as the launching pad for several programs. Lackawanna College (PA), a former junior college program, will play its first game in Division II after making the transition to four-year football.
Azusa Pacific University (CA) and Whittier College (CA) will both play their first games since reinstating their teams as Division III programs.
Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College (IN), which is transitioning from sprint football to traditional football, will play its first game in the NAIA, and Mount Mercy University (IA) and Schreiner University (TX) will play their first games as new programs in the NAIA and Division III, respectively.
Sit back and relax, there’s a lot of college football to watch this week!
NFF Updates gathers news from events within the National Football Foundation and celebrates individuals honored by the organization.
More than 1.08 million high school student-athletes participated in football during the 2025-26 school year, according to the NFHS 2025-26 High School Athletics Participation Survey. Boys 11-player football grew another 1.4 percent to 1,043,716 participants, its highest level since the 2016-17 season and by far the largest participation total of any boys or girls high school sport.
The growth of girls flag football is equally remarkable. Participation increased 48.7 percent in just one year, from 68,847 to 102,360 girls. To put that growth in perspective, fewer than 16,000 girls participated nationally just four years ago. Nearly 4,000 high schools now offer girls flag football, and 37 states will either sanction the sport or conduct independent or pilot programs by next year.
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