College football is among the most popular sports to watch in the United States and with streaming on the rise, Deceptive Speed will take a look at which services offer the best cord-cutting option in 2021 including YouTube TV.
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If you are looking for a reliable live TV streaming service for college football in 2021, YouTube TV is a good way to go for many of the biggest games of the season, though some college football channels are missing from its lineup.
College football on YouTube TV
Assuming no changes to its current channel lineup, YouTube TV subscribers will have access to most of the biggest regular season games and every conference championship matchup. The College Football Playoff semifinals and national title game will be available on YouTube TV in addition to all but one bowl game.
Below is a look at a grid of channels that will feature college football games this fall, and we’ve marked whether they are a part of YouTube TV’s channel lineup, which is priced at $64.99 per month and can be streamed on three devices if you’re looking for a multi-screen viewing experience this fall. Check your local listings to see which regional sports networks are available in your area on YouTube TV.
| Channel | On YouTube TV? |
|---|---|
| ABC | Yes |
| ACC Network | Yes |
| Big Ten Network | Yes |
| CBS | Yes |
| CBS Sports Network | Yes |
| ESPN | Yes |
| ESPN2 | Yes |
| ESPNU | Yes |
| ESPNEWS | Yes |
| ESPN College Extra | No |
| FOX | Yes |
| FS1 | Yes |
| FS2 | Yes |
| Longhorn Network | No |
| NBC | Yes |
| Pac-12 Network | No |
| SEC Network | Yes |
| Stadium | Yes (Sports Plus Add-on) |
Sports Plus Add-ons
One channel that is unavailable on YouTube TV’s main lineup is Stadium, though it can be viewed in other ways. Stadium will air select Group of 5 games and is part of the Sports Plus Add-on channels on YouTube TV, which is an extra $10.99 per month, but it can be seen over the air (antenna) in some markets, and its app can be downloaded on Smart TVs.
What is missing?
YouTube TV will have almost every channel you’d like as a college football fan with the exception of the Pac-12 Network, Longhorn Network and ESPN College Extra. If you are a fan of a team in the Pac-12 or just a die-hard college football fan who doesn’t want to miss any of the Power 5 games, you will need to go elsewhere to find your streaming service in 2021. The Longhorn Network will usually feature two Texas Longhorns games per season, and ESPN College Extra shows games on ESPN3, which will usually feature lower-tier college football games.
College football outside of YouTube TV
Additional premium options are available, and a popular purchase for many fans is ESPN+, which continues to bolster its programming especially in college football. ESPN+ will broadcast plenty of Group of 5 contests and now has exclusive rights to show one non-conference game for every team in the SEC as well as some Big 12 non-conference and even conference matchups. The channel is $6.99 per month, and an annual subscription costs $69.99.
Peacock is scheduled to air one game this season between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Toledo Rockets in Week 2. To watch this, users must pay $4.99 for a month or $49.99 for a year.
The only bowl game outside of the YouTube TV lineup is the Arizona Bowl, which will air on Barstool Sports on New Year’s Eve.
FloFootball will air a few lower-tier college football games, and it costs $19.99 per month or $150 for a full year.
Select games can be seen on a pay-per-view basis including one involving the Oklahoma Sooners against Western Carolina on SoonerSports.tv for $54.99.
Decision Time
YouTube TV subscribers will have plenty of the biggest college football regular season matchups available to them in addition to the entire postseason outside of one bowl game. Other streaming services will offer more college football channels than YouTube TV does, but it is enough to satisfy fans who are okay with missing out on many Pac-12 and Group of 5 games as well as select Texas broadcasts during the regular season.
I run this college football website and make a living based on the sport so I’d put myself in the die-hard college football fan category. I do not want to miss anything, which is why I will be watching college football on fuboTV this fall. It has more college football channels than any of the other streaming services, making it the best option to satisfy my college football addiction, and I’ll be able to watch games on three TV screens every Saturday. By combining this with ESPN+, I have access to just about every single game from Week 0 through the national championship.
Check out our review of fuboTV and if you’re interested in subscribing, please use our link here to sign up. Deceptive Speed will receive a certain percentage of purchases if you use our link, so we would greatly appreciate it as you help keep all of our college football content free.
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