Bill Connelly's best college football games of the 2024 season - ESPN

Talking season is practically over and analyzing season will soon lead to having actual games to break down.

The Power 5 became the Power 4 and the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten and SEC added new teams and dramatically overhauled the landscaped the sport. The changes also turned matchups that we could only hope for in bowl games into premier, regular season, conference games.

These are the best games in each power conference that feature (a) the highest combined SP+ ratings for both teams and (b) a projected scoring margin under 10 points.

Jump to a conference:
ACC | Big 12 | Big Ten | SEC

Florida State at SMU (Sept. 28). SMU wasn't exactly blessed with a set of dynamite home games in its first year as a power-conference team since 1995. Visits from Pitt, Boston College and California might not move the needle a ton, but this one's huge. It will tell us if Rhett Lashlee's Mustangs are indeed capable of making a run in their first ACC season.

Clemson at Florida State (Oct. 5). Of the last 12 times these teams have met, the winner went on to win the ACC 11 times. Seems like this one's relatively big.

Miami at Louisville (Oct. 19). Louisville has been blessed by a pretty light conference schedule; the Cardinals do play at Clemson, but they play only two other top-60 ACC opponents, and both have to visit the stadium formerly known as Papa John's: SMU in Week 6 and Miami in Week 8. This one could be an eliminator of sorts.

Florida State at Miami (Oct. 26). What a streaky rivalry game this has been. Miami won nine of 11 showdowns from 1985-94, then FSU won five straight, then Miami won six straight, then FSU won 10 of 12, then Miami won four in a row, and now FSU has won three in a row.

Clemson at Virginia Tech (Nov. 9). The last time a