Saturday, September 3, 2022

Watching college football games this weekend: Week 1, Weekend 2

College football kicked off last weekend, and Week 1 continues into its second weekend.

Yeah, things are weird at the start of the season. In the past, last weekend would have been called "Week Zero," but not everyone is doing that this year. Week 1 now covers two weekends.

There were 11 games last weekend, 10 that were broadcast. And there were 16 games this past Thursday, and another 8 yesterday.

There are only 57 games today, one tomorrow, and one Monday. Not every game will be broadcast, but most will. In fact, all of the games from the SEC, ACC, Big 12, and Big Ten will be broadcast. The Pac 12 and the other conferences all have at least one game that won't be broadcast.

So where can you watch the games? The games that are broadcast will be on one of these networks:

  • ABC
  • ACC Network
  • Big Ten
  • Big 12 Network
  • CBS
  • CBS Sports Network
  • ESPN
  • ESPN 2
  • ESPN 3
  • ESPN U
  • SEC Network
  • ESPN+
  • Fox
  • Fox Sports 1
  • Longhorn Network
  • Pac 12 Network

How do you watch these networks? Keep reading.

ABC

  • Antenna, over the air, free.
  • Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
  • YouTube TV, $65/month.
  • Fubo TV, $70/month.
  • Hulu+Live TV, $70.
  • DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.

ACC Network

  • Sling Orange, with Sports Extra, $46/month.
  • Sling Orange+Blue, with Sports Extra, $65/month.
  • Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
  • YouTube TV, $65/month.
  • Fubo TV, $70/month.
  • Hulu+Live TV, $70.
  • DirecTV Stream Choice, $90/month.

Big Ten Network

  • Sling Blue, with Sports Extra, $46/month.
  • Sling Orange+Blue, with Sports Extra, $65/month.
  • Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
  • YouTube TV, $65/month.
  • Fubo TV, $70/month.
  • Hulu+Live TV, $70.
  • DirecTV Stream Choice, $90/month.

Big 12 Network

Big 12 Network games are available through ESPN+.

CBS

  • Antenna, over the air, free.
  • Paramount+ Premium, $10/month.
  • Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
  • YouTube TV, $65/month.
  • Fubo TV, $70/month.
  • Hulu+Live TV, $70.
  • DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.

CBS Sports Network

  • YouTube TV, $65/month.
  • Fubo TV, $70/month.
  • Hulu+Live TV, $70.
  • DirecTV Stream Ultimate, $105/month.

ESPN

  • Sling Orange, $35/month.
  • Sling Orange+Blue, $50/month.
  • Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
  • YouTube TV, $65/month.
  • Fubo TV, $70/month.
  • Hulu+Live TV, $70.
  • DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.

ESPN2

  • Sling Orange, $35/month.
  • Sling Orange+Blue, $50/month.
  • Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
  • YouTube TV, $65/month.
  • Fubo TV, $70/month.
  • Hulu+Live TV, $70.
  • DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.

ESPN U

  • Sling Orange, $35/month.
  • Sling Orange+Blue, $50/month.
  • Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
  • YouTube TV, $65/month.
  • Hulu+Live TV, $70.
  • DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.
  • Fubo TV Elite, $80/month.

ESPN3

ESPN3 is usually included with a service that carries standard ESPN/ESPN2.

  • Sling Orange, $35/month.
  • Sling Orange+Blue, $50/month.
  • Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
  • YouTube TV, $65/month.
  • Fubo TV, $70/month.
  • Hulu+Live TV, $70.
  • DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.

ESPN+

ESPN+ is a standalone sports programming service. It is not the same thing as regular ESPN that you get with cable or one of the live streaming services. Some content from ESPN, ESPN2, or other ESPN networks may be available on ESPN+, but often, it's content that is only available on ESPN+.

  • ESPN+, $7/month.
  • Disney Bundle, $14/month.

Fox

  • Antenna, over the air, free.
  • Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
  • YouTube TV, $65/month.
  • Fubo TV, $70/month.
  • Hulu+Live TV, $70.
  • DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.

Fox Sports 1

  • Sling Blue, with Sports Extra, $46/month.
  • Sling Orange+Blue, with Sports Extra, $65/month.
  • Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
  • YouTube TV, $65/month.
  • Fubo TV, $70/month.
  • Hulu+Live TV, $70.
  • DirecTV Stream Entertainment, $70/month.

Longhorn Network

  • Sling Blue, with Sports Extra, $46/month.
  • Sling Orange+Blue, with Sports Extra, $65/month.
  • Vidgo Plus, $60/month.

Pac 12 Network

  • Sling Blue, with Sports Extra, $46/month.
  • Sling Orange+Blue, with Sports Extra, $65/month.
  • Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
  • Fubo TV Pro, with Fubo Extra, $78/month.
  • Fubo TV Elite, $80/month.

SEC Network

  • Sling Orange, $35/month.
  • Sling Orange+Blue, $50/month.
  • Vidgo Plus, $60/month.
  • YouTube TV, $65/month.
  • Hulu+Live TV, $70.
  • DirecTV Stream Choice, $90/month.
  • Fubo TV Ultimate, $100/month.

You may have noticed that NBC and Peacock are not listed. That's because they don't have any games so far. That will change when Notre Dame begins playing at home.

Those networks, and the services on which they're carried, will cover all but seven of the 59 games. So what's the cheapest way to watch (or have access to) all 52 of the games this weekend?

That's complicated. No streaming service carries both CBS Sports Network and Longhorn Network. The cheapest service with Longhorn Network is Sling TV Orange with Sports Extra. That's $46/month. None include ESPN+, so that's another $7/month. Meaning that the $80 Fubo TV Pro plan is the cheapest option to add to those, giving you a total of $133/month for those three services to get all this week's games.

I'm not interested in all those games, meaning I can get by with Sling TV Orange with Sports Extra, totaling $46/month. If I want more, I'd need to get YouTube TV for $65/month to cover the games I care about. But if it's everything you want, plan to pay $133/month.

If college football is something that you want as a part of your Streaming Life, you have options. And they can get expensive.

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