For college football fans, today's a much better day

The curtain raised on the college football season Thursday night, but there wasn't much behind it.

Opening night was unquestionably a dud.

If you missed it, no worries.

• Louisville might set a record for points per play after scoring twice on 1-play drives, once on a 2-play drive and adding a punt return touchdown. But the Cardinals were playing Murray State.

• Rutgers' Ray Rice (184 rush yards, 3 TDs) and Boise State's Ian Johnson (128 rush yards, 3 TDs) haven't lost a step. Then again, Boise State played Weber State, a Championship Subdivision program, while Rutgers hosted Buffalo, which should be demoted to FCS.

• Mississippi State might want to surrender its SEC membership after a 45-0 home flop against LSU. With wide receiver Early Doucet and safety Craig Steltz, who had 3 of the team's 6 interceptions, LSU might have the most talent this side of Los Angeles.

Bottom line: today's games should be much more compelling.

How will Virginia Tech, undeniably America's team, respond in its first game since the April 16 campus tragedy?

Will Cal avenge its embarrassing loss to Tennessee last year when it hosts the Vols? Can Wake Forest reload in its opener at Boston College? Will UCLA back up the preseason hype against Stanford?

There's a lot of local appeal as Illinois, Notre Dame and Northern Illinois open with first-rate matchups. Even today's lone undercard, Northwestern- Northeastern, will reveal plenty.

Here's quick look at the quartet of games.

Illinois vs. Missouri

Hopes are understandably high for Illinois despite just two wins in each of the last two seasons. The Illini can make an immediate statement against Missouri, which is primed for its own renaissance behind quarterback Chase Daniel. Committing to the run with Rashard Mendenhall could open things up for Illini quarterback Juice Williams, who has weapons but needs to display passable accuracy with his throws. This should be a good one.

The pick: Missouri 24, Illinois 23

Georgia Tech at Notre Dame

Notre Dame's quarterback mystery has held interest in a team most peg to lose 4-7 games this season. Whether the Irish remain relevant largely depends on their performance today against blitz-happy Georgia Tech. Sophomore quarterback Demetrius Jones likely gets the call for Notre Dame, which needs to run well, curtail Georgia Tech's Tashard Choice and summon some September magic.

The pick: Notre Dame 23, Georgia Tech 20 (OT)

Iowa vs. NIU at Soldier Field

With a sellout crowd and tremendous local buzz, this already has been a successful event for NIU. Will it be a successful game? Iowa expects to reload after two subpar seasons, and NIU's slingshot has been collecting dust since 2003. The Huskies have a more complete offense and a possible successor to Garrett Wolfe in Montell Clanton, but another sizable loss to a Big Ten team won't look good.

The pick: Iowa 28, Northern Illinois 17

Northeastern at NU

These schools are often confused in conversation, but there should be no mix-up today. Northwestern has stability on both sides of the ball, but it typically struggles to put away inferior teams and got pounded by New Hampshire last season.

The pick: Northwestern 33, Northeastern 13