4 G5 Football Games You Should Watch This Weekend

We've got your Saturday all planned for you.

Week Two provided another exciting slate of noteworthy contests across the Group of Five landscape. Arguably two of the most exciting games in college football were in Conference USA as FIU outlasted North Texas 46-39 in a back-and-forth battle and Rice raced out to a 28-0 lead over Houston, before having to go to double overtime to hang on for the 43-41 win. Entering week three, there are several G5 contests which have interesting storylines – here’s four that we’re keeping our eyes on.

Georgia State at Charlotte

Charlotte’s first-year head coach Biff Poggi has made his fair share of headlines since taking over in the Queen City. Through one quarter of play last Saturday against Maryland, Poggi’s team looked like they may be able to cruise their way to a major upset of the Terrapins. However, the Niners would go on to allow 38 unanswered points over the next three quarters before mustering a late-TD. Now, entering week three, Poggi’s team are still in search of their first win against a Georgia State team that features veteran signal-caller Darren Grainger and senior running back Marcus Carroll, who already has six touchdowns on the ground this year. If Charlotte doesn’t win Saturday, it could be awhile before the Niners see the win column again.

Louisiana at UAB

Saturday’s contest in Birmingham features two programs who have been models of success in the Group of Five ranks, but are entering new eras under head coaches who still have plenty to prove. Trent Dilfer made headlines when the former Super Bowl-winning quarterback decided to leave high school coaching to take the job at UAB. Dilfer is looking to get the program to the top of the American, after winning several Conference USA titles. Former Louisiana signal-caller Michael Desormeaux is in his second season at the helm of his alma mater, after taking over for the highly-successful Billy Napier. Both teams come in at 1-1 and while not in desperate need of a win, a victory for either team would be a nice statement that they’re still among the Group of Five elite.

Florida International at UConn

FIU head coach Mike MacIntyre has a track record of taking over jobs that would be considered “rebuilds.” However, calling the FIU job he took over following the 2021 season a rebuild, would be a massive understatement. At the time of his hire, the Panthers had less than 50 scholarship players on the roster, yet MacIntyre managed to compile a roster that would be 4-4 through eight games last year. This year, MacIntyre has had to do it again after losing double-digit starters to the transfer portal. He's beating the odds again, bringing a 2-1 team that could easily have been undefeated to UConn – taking on a Huskies team who were also a rebuild job when Jim L. Mora took over prior to last season. Mora’s team needs to find the win column to have any chance of matching last year’s six-win season.

Jackson State at Texas State

Our final contest that we’ll been keeping an eye on features FCS Jackson State heading to San Marcos to take on Texas State. While Deion Sanders may have taken his show to Boulder and Colorado, Jackson State’s strong tradition of football continues under former Tiger and three-year NFL vet T.C. Taylor. The Tigers still have several talented players on the roster and enter with a 2-1 record. Meanwhile, G.J. Kinne’s Bobcats traveled to one of the most hostile environments in the Group of Five, San Antonio’s Alamodome and nearly upset the Roadrunners. Returning home, Kinne’s club looks to find it’s second win as quarterback T.J. Finley’s career has been jumpstarted with the Bobcats.