Contrary to popular belief, the 2018 college football season actually begins this weekend for some schools across the country, with Saturday being the day when the season kicks off.Â
Streaming has taken over the way we watch and consume content nowadays online. With that said, here are some of the best ways to stream college football this season.
One of the first things that has changed between the 2017 season and 2018 season is that ESPN+ is now a thing. ESPN is currently putting several games on that streaming service. Right now, there is only one game on the service this weekend, but that will change throughout the season.
ESPN+ currently costs only $4.99 a month, so if you are the kind of person that wants to watch as much football as possible, then this might be something you will want to invest in. You can sign up through the service through the ESPN app in the App Store. For those wanting to get it through Apple, you’ll be able to do so.
The biggest thing is going to be live TV streaming services such as Sling TV, YouTube TV or Hulu with Live TV.
The cheapest one is Sling TV, which starts at $25 a month for both plans. Sling Orange will contain your ESPN Networks, specifically, ESPN, ESPN 2, and ESPN 3. It does also contain ACC Network too.
Sling Blue has local networks such as FOX and NBC but only in select markets, meaning that it will not be available everywhere. However, it does have FOX Sports networks such as FS1, FS2, and your local FSN networks. Additionally, it has NBC Sports networks like NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) and the regional NBC Sports Network stations (example: NBC Sports Chicago).
Sling does have a Sports Extra package that will have college football networks such as SEC Network, ESPNEWS, PAC 12 Network, ESPN U, and ESPN Goal Line. Prices and channels vary depending on the plan that you have.
YouTube TV and Hulu with Live TV are priced at $39.99 but contain a lot more channels than Sling TV.
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On Hulu with Live TV, you pay the $39.99 price per month and get sports channels such as ESPN, ESPN 2, ESPNEWS, ESPN U, ESPN Goal Line, SEC Network, FS1, FS2, FSN (regional station), Big Ten Network, NBC Sports Network, regional NBC Sports Network and CBS Sports Network. Depending on your location, you can also get access to local broadcast networks such as ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC.
YouTube TV works in a similar way and has almost all of the same channels as Hulu with Live TV, but also gives users access to channels like NESN, SNY and YES. YouTube TV is also better with local networks, with most locations having their local ABC, FOX, NBC and CBS affiliates.
Other streaming services out there are PlayStation Vue and DirecTV NOW that have all of the channels from YouTube TV and Hulu with Live TV, but it will all depend on how much you are willing to spend on a plan.
The other live TV streaming service that we can think of is Fubo TV. Fubo TV starts at $39.99 a month and has many local channels (again, varies on location), along with also having many of the same channels as Hulu with Live TV, YouTube TV, PlayStation Vue and DirecTV NOW. What sets them apart is that Fubo TV has the FOX Sports 4K beta channel.
I would also recommend using the FOX Sports GO app for the Apple TV since you can watch up to four screens at once. The same goes with the ESPN app too for the Apple TV. CBS All Access will also be allowing users to stream college football games, but only those on CBS and not on CBS Sports Network.
Overall, those are going to be the best ways to stream college football games this season. They are cheaper than buying a traditional cable or satellite subscription and can be accessed on multiple devices. The services mentioned in this are available on the iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV.
