Mike Hughes on TV

1) College football. For the first time ever, there are primetime games on all five of the top commercial, broadcast networks. We expect that from ABC (which has Wisconsin,shown here, and Washington State at 7:30 p.m. ET), CBS (UCLA-San Diego State, 7:30) and Fox (Oregon-Texas Tech, 7). But now NBC, no longer confined to Notre Dame, has Charlotte-Maryland at 7:30. And CW carries Atlantic Coast Conference games; at 6:30, it has Cincinnati-Pittsburgh. Read more…

1) “American Masters,” 9-11 p.m., PBS. Bella Abzug (shown here) reached Congress at full-speed. She “came there with a sledge hammer,” says former Rep. Charles Rangel. By her own account, she “always had a decent sense of outrage”; by a friend’s account, she “had an ego the size of Montana.” Alternately screaming at and charming her aides, she pushed key legislation involving equal opportunity. Here’s an excellent profile of a bigger-than-life personality. Read more…

1) Pro football season-opener, 8:15 p.m. ET, NBC. With most scripted shows sidelined by the strikes, NFL games should soar. The season starts now, with a preview at 7 p.m. and then the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs (shown here) hosting the Detroit Lions, who had a 9-8 record last year. The rest of the teams start Sunday afternoon (CBS and Fox), Sunday night (NBC) and Monday (ABC and ESPN). Read more…

1) “MasterChef,” 8 and 9 p.m., Fox. Americans (well, some Americans) really like big walls. Here’s one that’s eight feet high, 55 feet long and forbidding. On each side is half of a chef duo; partners try to create dishes that look and taste the same. It’s a fun concept, bringing surprising success and occasional flubs. That’s at 9 p.m., after a fairly uneventful hour involving barbecues (shown here). By the end of the night, the field has been trimmed from nine to six. Read more…

1) “Inside the NFL” season-opener, 8 p.m., CW. It was 30 years ago that Fox created a fresh, fun football studio show, with .Howie Long and Terry Bradshaw at the core. Those two are still there, but now Long’s son gets a turn. Chris Long (shown here) had an 11-year pro career as defensive end, including two Super Bowl wins and a Walter Peyton award (the year he gave his entire pay to charity). He joins Ryan Clark, Chad Johnson, Jay Cutler and Channing Crowder. Read more…