Here are the announcer pairings for the first college football weekend fans will get in the 2017 season.
Labor Day weekend might be college football’s official opening weekend, but it is not the real one. Fans will get an appetizer this weekend to next weekend’s mammoth four-day buffet.
Four games will be broadcast on two cable networks, ESPN and CBS Sports Network. Compared to a normal fall Saturday, this will feel like a light mist, but compared to the arid summer months, it will be a welcome afternoon downpour.
Because the networks are still gearing up for what will be their busiest weekend of the season and the quality of the games, these announcer pairings will be devoid of many of the names people are most familiar with.
CBS Sports Network gets the first 30 minutes of the 2017 season all to themselves. Oregon State and Colorado State kick off from Fort Collins at 2:30 p.m., making this the latest a college football fan will be able to plop down on the couch on a Saturday for the next four months without missing anything. The team of Carter Blackburn on play-by-play, Aaron Taylor and Rick Neuheisel providing color, and Jenny Dell on the sidelines will call the game.
The CBS Sports Network night game stays out west with No. 19 USF at San Jose State. Ben Holden and Randy Cross will be in the booth and John Schriffen will be on the sideline.
ESPN’s 2017 college football season gets underway with Portland State at BYU at 3:00 p.m. Mark Neely, Trevor Matich, and Kris Budden will provide the soundtrack.
The night will close with Stanford and Rice playing in Australia. Roy Philpott, Tom Ramsey, and Quint Kessenich will hopefully actually be calling the game from Sydney.
Note: Announcer pairings courtesy of Daniel Ormsby of Eye on Sky and Air Sports.
Oregon State at Colorado State (2:30 p.m. ET)
- Network: CBS Sports Network
- Play-by-Play: Carter Blackburn
- Color Commentator: Aaron Taylor, Rick Neuheisel
- Sideline Reporter: Jenny Dell
Portland State at BYU (3:00 p.m. ET)
- Network: ESPN
- Play-by-Play: Mark Neely
- Color Commentator: Trevor Matich
- Sideline Reporter: Kris Budden
No. 19 South Florida at San Jose State (7:30 p.m. ET)
- Network: CBS Sports Network
- Play-by-Play: Ben Holden
- Color Commentator: Randy Cross
- Sideline Reporter: John Schriffen
No. 14 Stanford at Rice (10:00 p.m. ET)
- Network: ESPN
- Play-by-Play: Roy Philpott
- Color Commentator: Tom Ramsey
- Sideline Reporter: Quint Kessenich
Next: College Football: Top 50 breakout candidates for 2017
The college football season is finally back and everyone should be tuned in on Saturday, despite the lack of elite games, to check out these four contests.