Week 0 College Football Viewing Guide for Notre Dame Fans

College football officially gets underway on Saturday as Week 0 consumes the diehards.

Notre Dame isn't playing, but a few former Fighting Irish football players who transferred out are.

A couple of Notre Dame opponents from later in the year will also play, along with a former/future rival that features one former Fighting Irish player as well.

Here is a Week 0 Watching Guide for Notre Dame fans as this weekend doesn't feature any Fighting Irish football.

Former Notre Dame Players on Display:

Braylon James, WR, TCU: James played in four games for Notre Dame back in 2023 and nine games for TCU in 2024. He did not appear in any contests last year, but returns to the Horned Frogs roster this fall.

James and TCU kickoff the season in Ireland against Bill Belichick and North Carolina.

Rico Flores, Jr. WR, Virginia: Flores is out for Virginia this weekend after suffering an injury, but his Cavaliers have a big ACC game to start the year against NC State. A win by either would be a major starting point as both teams have hopes of making the ACC Championship Game this season.

Kennedy Urlacher, S, USC: Urlacher saw plenty of playing time on Notre Dame's special teams in 2024, but transferred to USC before last year. Urlacher recorded 21 tackles, an interception, and a sack for the Trojans last year. USC takes on San Jose State, the team it replaced Notre Dame with on the schedule this year.

Karson Hobbs, DB, Florida State: Hobbs played seven games in Notre Dame's secondary last season, but things didn't work out, hence why he transferred to Florida State. Hobbs started one game last fall and recorded his first career interception in a win over NC State. Hobbs will be looking to try and help Florida State bounce back after going just 7-17 over the last two seasons.

Notre Dame Football: Scouting Opponents in Week 0

Two Notre Dame opponents from the 2026 season play in Week 0, with North Carolina getting things started at 12:00 p.m. ET from Dublin, against TCU. Things can't be nearly as bad for Bill Belichick in his second season at North Carolina, can they?

Notre Dame travels to Chapel Hill in the first weekend of October.

Stanford plays host to Hawai'i on Saturday, with the Cardinal looking to get things going as a program. The Cardinal have seen things go south in a big way since NIL and the transfer portal became prominent, having not made a bowl game since the 2018 season.

Notre Dame hosts Stanford on October 17.

USC is not on Notre Dame's schedule in 2026, but that doesn't mean a rivalry doesn't still exist. Is this finally the year USC gets things going under Lincoln Riley? Will the Trojans be a threat to make the College Football Playoff for the first time in program history?

We get our first taste of the Trojans in 2026 at 3:00 p.m. ET when they play host to mighty San Jose State in Los Angeles.

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