College Football Week 0 Predictions: 2 Best Bets for Saturday, August 23

The 2025 college football season kicks off on Saturday, August 23, and we’re here for it. Our top insider shares his 2 best bets in this predictions piece. Enjoy the games, and best of luck with all of your action!

Best Bet: Kansas State Wildcats -3

The 2025-2026 season will kick off in Dublin, Ireland, when the Cyclones face off with the Wildcats. In our preseason preview, we did select KSU to be in the top tier of the conference, while the Cyclones would be just outside of that group. The matchup is slated to be the best of Week 0, and it should be a great way to get the season started.

KSU will have Avery Johnson running the show, but has just 2 returning starters on the offensive line. That said, he should be able to make up for any protection problems with his ability to extend plays with his legs.

The biggest issue for the Cyclone defense should be their secondary, and that could be a big issue in the 1st game of the season. Iowa St has Rocco Becht back to run the offense, but has new receivers that we will find out quickly if they can step up against this tough competition. Austin Romaine will be roaming the field and the KSU defense in this one.

We like the outlook for KSU and believe they will start the season off on the right foot here in Ireland. It should be a higher scoring affair, so we would lean towards the over on the total, but feel more comfortable with tailing Johson and company to get the job done and cover the number in the opener.

Key Trends for Iowa State vs. Kansas State

• Iowa St is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games against an opponent in the Big 12 conference.
• Iowa St is 0-6 ATS in its last 6 games played in August.
• KSU is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games played in August.
• KSU is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games played in week 1.

Best Bet: Fresno State Bulldogs +12.5

Fresno St had a tumultuous start to the season last year when their coach retired in July and left the Bulldogs scrambling. This year, they will have leadership in the new head coach, Matt Entz, who is from USC. He brought in EJ Warner to play QB. Warner has experience from his time at Temple and Rice. Entz will likely rely on the backfield a bit, but even the offensive line will be filled with new faces. The same is true about their defense.

Kansas is slated to finish around the middle of the pack for the Big 12. While they didn’t live up to expectations last season, they did seem to find their stride late in the year. Jalon Daniels will be the starter, but he will have a revamped offensive line that will need to figure things out quickly. Not only is the offensive line a work in progress, but the entire defense will also be new and need to gel quickly.

While both programs have serious question marks to start the season, we like the points in what we believe will be closer than the experts expect in this opening contest. If the Bulldogs can get even moderate pressure on Daniels early in this one, he could struggle enough to keep this one close to the end.

Key Trends for Fresno State vs. Kansas

• Fresno St is 7-0 ATS in its last 7 games against an opponent in the Big 12 conference.
• Fresno St is 7-1 ATS in its last 8 games played in week 1.
• Kansas is 1-6 ATS in its last 7 games played in week 1.
• Kansas is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games when playing as the favorite.