Why is This Week of College Football Games Called Week 0?

Everything to know about Week 0.

Oklahoma's Nic Anderson (4) celebrates a touchdown in the first half of the college football game between the University of Oklahoma Sooners and the University of Central Florida Knights at Gaylord Family Oklahoma-Memorial Stadium in Norman, Okla., Saturday, Oct., 21, 2023. / SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK

Significant change is coming to college football this season but some things will remain the same. Such as Week 0, which is the first week in the CFB season but isn't called Week 1. It's when fans start to rev up the excitement for the upcoming season and usually plays host to a handful of somewhat silly games, including an international showcase.

But the whole Week 0 idea is, understandably, a little confusing to those who do not eat, breathe, and sleep college football. So what's it all about? Here's what you need to know.

What is Week 0?

For most teams in college football, their first game comes in Week 1. Which makes sense. And Week 1 always takes place on Labor Day Weekend. However, a select few schools are approved to play a game on the weekend before Labor Day. This counts as an extra game on their schedule, but as it is coming before Week 1, it's been labeled Week 0.

This year, the schools who play Week 0 games are headlined by the Florida State-Georgia Tech matchup taking place in Dublin, Ireland. Additionally, SMU will take on Nevada, Montana State plays at New Mexico, and Hawai'i hosts Delaware State (after some minor travel hiccups).

History of Week 0

While there have been Week 0 games as far back as 1983, the modern concept of Week 0 is driven by a particular reason. Teams who play Hawai'i were allowed to either play Hawai'i in Week 0 or host an extra home game in Week 0 in order to offset travel costs. Given the money in college football nowadays it may feel like a relic of the past but the extra revenue is actually very important for teams who may not be exactly flush with alumni cash.

Otherwise, though, the NCAA has approved Week 0 games to essentially maximize viewership. This helps explain why the international showcase game is a Week 0 contest instead of coming in the middle of the season, where it may be more meaningful. The most obvious recent example came in 2019, when Florida battled Miami in a legit rivalry contest between two Power 5 schools.

In that vein, the first Week 0 game was a 1983 clash between No. 1 Nebraska and No. 4 Penn State. The Cornhuskers dominated, 44–6, at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford.

Week 0 Schedule

With all that background information absorbed, here's the full schedule for Week 0 of the 2024 college football season.

MATCHUP	LOCATION	TIME	CHANNEL
Florida State vs. Georgia Tech	Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland	12 p.m. ET	ESPN
Montana State @ New Mexico	University Stadium, Albuquerque, New Mexico	4 p.m. ET	FS1
SMU @ Nevada	Mackay Stadium, Reno, Nevada	8 p.m. ET	CBS Sports Network
Delaware State @ Hawai'i	Aloha Stadium, Halawa, Hawai'i	11:59 p.m. ET	TBD