It's all about the Benjamins

Modern Friends, the season is upon us.

Sure, baseball is still going on, but I've lost complete interest in it as it appears the Cardinals are destined to be couch potatoes for the 2008 postseason. I haven't given up all hope though: I'm still praying daily for the second coming of the Bartman.

In the mean time, ESPN has thrown a lot of dough at a number of colleges this off season to ensure that you, the football fan, has as pleasurable first weekend of college football as possible. You need to thank them by absorbing every moment of it. They've even done us a favor by making the weekend a FIVE-DAY WEEKEND! Bosses, are you hearing me? The almighty ESPN says this is a five-day weekend, not three-day weekend. I'm sure it was complete oversight on your part.

I'm kicking off the season tomorrow with a faux barbecue chicken recipe from Weight Watchers and adult beverages.

The ESPN FIVE-DAY WEEKEND! schedule is as follows:

Thursday
College Football Live from Atlanta (ESPN, 3:30pm)
College Football Live Kickoff Special (ESPN, 7pm)
Vanderbilt at Miami, Ohio (ESPNU, 7:30pm)
Jacksonville State at Georgia Tech (ESPN360, 7:30pm)
Charleston Southern at Miami (ESPN360, 7:30pm)
N.C. State at South Carolina (ESPN, 8pm)
Oregon State at Stanford (ESPN2, 9pm)

Friday
College Football Live from Atlanta (ESPN, 3:30)
Temple at Army (ESPN Classic, 7pm)
College Football Live (ESPN, 7:30pm)
SMU at Rice (ESPN, 8pm)

Saturday
College GameDay from Atlanta (ESPN, 10am)
Virginia Tech vs. East Carolina from Charlotte (ESPN, Noon)
Syracuse at Northwestern (ESPN2, Noon)
Bowling Green at Pittsburgh (ESPNU, Noon)
Utah at Michigan (ABC or ESPN or ESPN2, 3:30pm)
USC at Virginia (ABC or ESPN or ESPN2, 3:30pm)
Delaware at Maryland (ESPNU, 3:45pm)
Appalachian State at LSU (ESPN, 5pm)
Mississippi State at Louisiana Tech (ESPN2, 6:45pm)
Boston College vs. Kent State from Cleveland (ESPNU, 7:30)
Alabama vs. Clemson from Atlanta (ABC, 8pm)
Michigan State at California (ABC, 8pm)
Illinois vs. Missouri from St. Louis (ESPN, 8:30pm)
Prairie View at Texas Southern (ESPNU, 10:30pm, Delay)

SUNDAY
Jackson State vs. Hampton (ESPN2, 2pm)
Kentucky at Louisville (ESPN, 3:30pm)

MONDAY
College Football Live from Los Angeles (ESPN, 3pm)
Fresno State at Rutgers (ESPN, 4pm)
College Football Live (ESPN, 7pm)
Tennessee at UCLA (ESPN, 8pm)

My pick of the week is the GameDay special: Alabama v. Clemson at Atlanta. Here's one reason. I gather the crimson-clad clan doesn't much like talking about anything that smells of a recruiting violation.

P.S. I have an Modern Expert on SEC and Big Ten+One relations to help analyze things in the coming football season, but if there's anyone who is an expert on SEC and Pac-10 relations or Big Ten+One and Pac-10 relations, please let me know. My rule of thumb is that you have to have some strong ties to both conferences as in you grew up supporting one but went to school in the other.