Saturday college football guide: Texas-Tennessee opens a five-game watch list

Saturday's college football schedule starts with Texas at Tennessee and runs through two games kicking off together in the night window. These five matchups give readers a path through the day. Times below are Eastern, checked against ESPN's live September 26 schedule and the schools' or broadcasters' current listings. They are upcoming games, not results.

Noon: Texas at Tennessee — ABC. The Longhorns visit Neyland Stadium for Tennessee's SEC home opener. ABC's schedule confirms the noon window. The first thing to watch is how Texas handles a road start in a stadium Tennessee is marking with its Checker Neyland promotion, which the Volunteers announced with the game time.

2 p.m.: Notre Dame at Purdue — Peacock. The Irish make a short trip to West Lafayette. Notre Dame's official schedule confirms both the 2 p.m. kickoff and Peacock listing. It is the lone game on this watch list between the noon SEC opener and the 3:30 slate, with a clear local rivalry angle.

3:30 p.m.: Oklahoma at Georgia — ESPN. The Sooners' first trip to Athens is only the second meeting between these programs, according to Georgia's game notes. Georgia enters 3-0 and Oklahoma 2-1 in those notes. The schools last met in the 2017 season's Rose Bowl semifinal, a 54-48 Georgia overtime win. Today's result has to be earned on the field; that history is context, not a forecast.

7:30 p.m.: Texas A&M at LSU — ABC. LSU's game announcement sets the rematch for Tiger Stadium. Texas A&M won last year's meeting there 49-25, according to LSU. That gives the Tigers a concrete result to answer in this night window.

7:30 p.m.: Oregon at USC — NBC. The parallel night choice is in Los Angeles. USC's viewing guide and NBC Sports' announcement confirm the kickoff and network. Viewers who want both night games will need to choose a live start or follow one alongside the other.

The ESPN September 26 game board provides live status as these kickoffs approach. Check it for any late schedule change and for finals; this guide reflects the pregame listings checked Saturday morning.