The months-long wait is over, sports fans, college football is back in earnest this weekend. After a surprisingly exciting Week 0, the season kicks off on Thursday, Aug. 29 with a solid set of games, continues on Friday with a bit of a weekend amuse-bouche before the main course of games on Saturday gets going. Of course, because this is a holiday weekend — both the start of college football and Labor Day — we will also be treated to exciting games on Sunday and Monday as well.

If you are a certified college football sicko, then you are undoubtedly anxiously planning out your viewing schedule for this weekend. But finding a live TV streaming service that has access to all of the biggest games can be pricy. That is why we here at The Streamable consider Sling TV to be the most cost-efficient way to stream the college football season. Not only can you get one of Sling’s two base packages for $40 per month, but if you sign up for the Sling Season Pass, you will get both Sling Orange and Sling Blue, plus the sports add-on for $199 for four months, saving you $92 over Sling’s already great price.

What Sling Channels Can You Watch College Football Week 1 On?

The only major channels that cover college football that Sling TV doesn’t provide access to are CBS, CBS Sports Network, and The CW. Your local CBS affiliate can be streamed as part of a Paramount+ With Showtime subscription which costs $12.99 per month and The CW — which will carry games from the remaining Pac-12 teams Oregon State and Washington State amongst others — is available over the air for free.

Week 1 Games on ABC

While Sling carries three of the four broadcast networks, those channels — and their local affiliates — are not available in all markets across the country. While Sling only provides access to ABC in eight regions across the country, sports fans outside of those markets don’t have to worry about missing the college football games on those channels. That’s because Sling offers ESPN3 to all users across the country, and that streaming-only channel carries every sporting event that otherwise airs on ABC.

Which Sling Markets Offer ABC?

Week 1 Games on ACC Network

With conference expansion gripping all of college football this season, football fans will be looking in unusual places to watch their teams. That’s why having a streamer that carries channels like the ACC Network and other conference-specific channels is especially important this season. While none of the new ACC member institutions — Stanford, [Cal][California Bears], SMU — will be in action on the network during Week 1, there is no doubt that ESPN, who owns the channel, will have the newly added teams on the channel throughout the season.

Week 1 Games on Big Ten Network

Similar to the ACC Network, the Big Ten Network is welcoming a new set of teams this season, but unlike its “Atlantic Coast” counterpart, BTN will be bringing football fans Week 1 action featuring teams new to the conference as the No. 3 Oregon Ducks will take on the Idaho Vandals at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday and then the Washington Huskies will host the Weber State Wildcats in the first Big Ten After Dark window of the season.

There is an extra advantage to watching BTN on Sling, because currently, West Coast Comcast cable subscribers are being blacked out from watching the channel. So, if you are one of those unlucky Ducks or Huskies fans who don’t currently have a way to watch the game, Sling would be a great way to cut the cord and catch the games all season long.

Week 1 Games on ESPN

There is a reason that ESPN has dubbed itself the worldwide leader in sports. The Disney-owned cabler will be at the center of every college football weekend all season long. No channel will have more CFB action throughout the year, so however you get your live TV, ESPN is a must-have. Fortunately, there is no cheaper way to watch ESPN all football season than with Sling.

The Sling Season Pass will also get you access to ESPN2, which will carry loads of college football action throughout the season as well. However, during Week 1 of the season, that channel will be primarily dedicated to the U.S. Open Tennis tournament.

Week 1 Games on ESPNU

Another ESPN network that will carry college football all fall is ESPNU. The channel will have a mix of Power 4 and Group of 5 games every weekend and will be a great outlet for fans of teams that don’t often get the marquee attention of the more mainstream networks.

Week 1 Games on Fox

With the expansion of the Big Ten, Fox will expand its coverage this season beyond its traditional Big Noon marquee slot and an afternoon broadcast. Throughout the season, the channel will also air Big Ten games on Friday nights — or on Thursday night for Week 1. The Fox College Football Friday schedule will feature a heavy dose of B1G games with a couple of Big 12 games thrown in during the regular season culminating with the Mountain West Championship Game on Dec. 6.

Like ABC (and NBC further down the page), Fox is not available everywhere on Sling. However, of the three broadcast channels that Sling offers, Fox is by far in the most markets. So there’s a very good chance that you will be able to stream Fox all season long on Sling.

Which Sling Markets Offer Fox?

Week 1 Games on FS1

Fox’s sports cable outlet FS1 will also be a major source of college football action all season with a healthy dose of the expanded Big Ten and Big 12 conferences every week. While FS1 might not carry the biggest matchups in either conference every week, it is a great outlet for the football fan who follows under-the-radar teams or wants to make sure that they see all of the games available each weekend.

Week 1 Games on NBC

This season, NBC is continuing to lay claim to the Saturday primetime window with a nearly weekly Big Ten matchup. The network will start the season with the defending national champion Michigan Wolverines as they host the Fresno State Bulldogs. Every Saturday, NBC will have at least one B1G game on the schedule and often two if the Notre Dame Fighting Irish are playing at home.

Sling carries NBC in 11 of the biggest markets across the country, so if you live in or near one of the major cities listed below, you will be able to enjoy all of the Midwest football on NBC all season long.

Which Sling Markets Offer NBC?

Week 1 Games on SEC Network

With the additions of the Oklahoma Sooners and Texas Longhorns, the SEC is continuing to flex its muscles as the most talent-laden conference in college football. That means that there will be even more high-profile teams and matchups on the SEC Network throughout the course of the regular season. This season the SEC is likely to have the most teams in the expanded College Football Playoff field, so all diehard CFB fans will want to keep up on all of the conference action during the regular season.

Week 1 Games on truTV

In the wake of losing the NBA starting in 2025, Warner Bros. Discovery has been on a rash of gobbling up sports rights. In July, the company signed a deal to host Mountain West football games starting this season. So for fans in the western half of the country, being able to tune into truTV to catch all of the conference action will be very important this fall. Fortunately, Sling carries the channel on its base packages and obviously as part of its Season Pass promotion.

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Sling TV

Sling TV is The Streamable’s choice for cord-cutters on a budget. Sling is a live TV streaming service with multiple channel packages. The $45.99/month Sling Orange plan offers about 30 channels, including Disney Channel and ESPN. The $45.99/month Sling Blue plan offers about 40 channels, including ABC, Fox, and NBC in major markets.

You can combine Orange+Blue for a total of $60.99 / month. Sling also offers many channel add-on packages starting at $6/month.

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