NCAA committee recommends ditching Week Zero and officially moving up the start of college football season in 2027
The move, if approved in June, could help create more room for the expansion of the College Football Playoff.
The college football season could officially begin earlier in the year starting in 2027. The NCAA announced Thursday that the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision Oversight Committee had recommended the elimination of Week Zero from the calendar and officially give teams 14 weeks to play 12 games. If approved, the decision would mean that Week 1 would begin the weekend before Labor Day weekend.
Week Zero has been the unofficial start to the college football season and has grown in popularity in recent seasons as more teams have applied for waivers to start their seasons earlier. In 2026, there are eight games scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 29, including North Carolina vs.
TCU in Dublin and NC State vs. Virginia in Rio de Janeiro. Week 1 then officially begins on Thursday, Sept.
3. As part of the recommendation, Week 1 would “begin on the Thursday of what is now designated Week Zero and end on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. ” To be ratified, the recommendation has to be approved by the Division I Cabinet in June.