College football’s 2026 season starts twice: once this Saturday, Aug. 29, with a hand-picked slate of eight FBS games – and again the following weekend, when everyone else kicks off on the first full Saturday, Sept. 5. That early slate is “Week 0,” and the two questions it generates every August are the same: why do some teams get to start early, and do these games actually count?
The second answer is simple – yes, completely. Week 0 games are regular-season games in every sense: records, stats, rankings, bowl eligibility. The first answer is a scheduling quirk: NCAA exemptions that let certain games – chiefly the annual Dublin, Ireland opener and long-distance travel arrangements – kick off before the traditional start date.
Here’s how Week 0 works, this year’s slate, and why the sport’s quietest weekend became one of its best.
Why “Week 0” Exists
The traditional season opener is the Saturday of Labor Day weekend. NCAA rules carve out exemptions for games before that date – international contests foremost, which is how the Aer Lingus Classic in Dublin anchors the early slate every year (the full history is in why college football plays in Ireland). The result: a mini-week that isn’t officially named anything, which fans and media solved by counting backward from Week 1.
Yes, Everything Counts
The “0” misleads people into thinking preseason. It isn’t. Saturday’s UNC-TCU result counts toward both teams’ records, TCU’s ranking, Belichick’s coaching ledger, and every player stat – all identically to a game played in November. The only thing unusual about a Week 0 game is the date.
The 2026 Slate
Eight FBS games, anchored by North Carolina vs. TCU in Dublin at noon ET on ESPN – covered start to finish in the full Dublin viewing guide – with NC State-Virginia, San Jose State-USC and a Memphis-UNLV nightcap behind it. It’s also the first live look at the new rules for 2026. The flood arrives Sept. 5.
Quick Answers
Is Week 0 an official NCAA term?
No – it’s an informal label for the exempted early slate. The NCAA just calls them season openers.
Why doesn’t every team play in Week 0?
Most don’t qualify for an exemption and don’t want one – an extra idle week midseason and a shorter camp are real costs.
When is Week 1?
Thursday, Sept. 3 through Labor Day, with the first full Saturday on Sept. 5.
The Bottom Line
Week 0 is college football’s exempted early start – a small, fully-counting slate played the Saturday before the traditional opener, built around the Dublin game and travel exemptions. In 2026 that means eight games on Aug. 29, headlined by Belichick’s UNC against TCU at noon ET, one week before the sport arrives in full.