If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission. The new season is finally here! The 2026-2027 NCAA College Football season officially kicks off with its first big weekend of games starting on Saturday, Aug. 23.
Starting on Saturday, Aug. 29, The first game of the season is North Carolina Tar Heels vs. TCU Horned Frogs at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland, with a start time of 12 p.m. Throughout the season, games broadcast live across ABC, ACC Network, Big Ten Network, CBS, CBS Sports Network, The CW, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, FOX, FS1, FS2, NBC, SEC Network, TBS, TNT and truTV, as well as livestreams on ESPN Unlimited, Paramount+, FOX One, Peacock and HBO Max.
Luckily, even without cable, you don’t have to miss any of the action. You can access games on NBC, ABC, CBS and FOX with affordable cable antennas, while college football games are also available to stream online on a variety of platforms, such as Sling TV and Hulu + Live TV. However, the best ways for cord-cutters to tune into the action is with DirecTV.
With the start of a new season, it’s likely matches may features a few of celebrities in attendance to support their favorite college teams, like Texas Longhorns-alum Matthew McConaughey, USC Trojans-fan Will Ferrell, Kansas State-grad Eric Stonestreet, Tennessee Volunteers-fan Kenny Chesney and others. Meanwhile, with the popularity of college sports, especially football, it’s likely that games are going to be big ratings draws for networks. Programming like Sunday Night College Football on ABC: Miami vs.
Notre Dame was a big hit in 2025 with more than 10 million viewers watching the game. DirecTV is one of the best ways for cable-cutters to access live sports and TV from home. Save up to $30 on signature packages with DirecTV.
Priced at $59.99/month for the first month of service ($89.99/month afterwards), you get access to the streaming service’s “Entertainment” package for college football on ABC, ACC Network, Big Ten Network, CBS, CBS Sports Network, The CW, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, FOX, FS1, FS2, NBC, SEC Network, TBS, TNT and truTV, along with over 90 local, broadcast and cable channels. The streamer comes with unlimited cloud DVR for recording programming, as well as an additional 105 channels from DirecTV’s “MyFree” networks. Pricing and channel availability are subject to your local TV market.
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