College football is one of the biggest attractions in the United States but, unfortunately, given the number of teams and games involved, it would seem that most of the really good games require a cable subscription.
The major bowl games, as well as the National Championship, were all available via local channels back in the day but you need ESPN to watch the most important games these days.
In spite of this, there are several options that allow for viewing every single college game without a cable plan. Some of them are listed right below.
HDTV Antenna
The rest of the options are great in terms of their offering cable TV channels but they aren’t all that good for local channels. Networks such as ABC, NBC, and FOX do not have partnerships with most of the streaming apps.
An HDTV antenna is the best choice if you still want your local channels, although you might not even need it if you live somewhere you could stream all four local affiliates, such as in Los Angeles with Hulu TV.
An antenna is also great for quality and you also won’t have to worry about your internet lagging during an important game.
Sling TV
Sling TV has three plans available (Sling Orange, Sling Blue, and the Blue and Orange Combo). Orange costs $25 a month and you can stream ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPN3 but no FOX. An extra $5 gets you ESPNU, Pac-12 Network, SEC Network, and the Stadium Network. You can only stream on one device, however.
Blue also costs $25 monthly but doesn’t offer ESPN’s channels. You get FS1 and FS2, plus local NBC and Fox channels. You could grab the sports package for a further $10 a month; that still doesn’t get you ESPN yet the NFL RedZone is available and is a pretty neat perk
The Combo gets you both plans for $10 less as it costs $40 and comes with the advantage of streaming on up to four devices at once.
Hulu with Live TV
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Hulu Live TV is a great option for getting both ESPN and Fox. The service costs $44.99 a month and also offers most or all four local channels.
This app is also loaded with movies and TV shows, as well as 50 free hours of DVR storage. Hulu says users can record any football game they stream and two screens can be used at any time with the basic Lite TV plan. Unlimited screens at home and the ability to stream on three devices when you’re away from the house could be had for an extra $14.99 a month.
CBS All Access
Local CBS Channels and the CBS Sports Network could be accessed with this service for just $5.99 a month. The $9.99 plan is commercial-free for on-demand content but you will still see the regular ads that run during games.
This plan is the cheapest way to stream CBS content and also gives users the on-demand CBS library.
The CBS Sports website provides readers with lots of betting tips too, including college football odds to win the National Championship.
College Sports Live
College Sports Live has partnerships with over 70 schools to stream live sports but most of them belong to smaller conferences. They have some big-name partners, though, with the likes of Penn State, Notre Dame, and USC all on board.
The service costs $9.99 and is great for persons who have a favorite team partnered there. There are also various other school sporting events on while a live schedule lets users know which games will be streamed ahead of time and. If a game won’t be on, you could get the audio with the added radio service.
ESPN+
While it does not present access to the full ESPN network, ESPN+ is a great cheap option. The app, though, mostly streams games from smaller colleges, similar to the content you’d get on ESPN3. Sling TV would be best for getting ESPN and ESPN2.
On a brighter note, you could stream European Soccer, Canadian, and NHL hockey with the app and you will also have their entire on-demand library available.
DirecTV Now
This contract-free online version of DirectTV offers the “Just Right” package with college football for $55 a month. While it’s a little on the high end and costs, on average, $40 more than most of the apps here, there are plenty of non-sports channels available.
In terms of college football, you would get the Big Ten Network, FS1, SEC Network, ESPN, ESPN2, and ESPNU, plus Local ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC where they are available.
