Head coach Steve Tandy has also named three British & Irish Lions as replacements – Richard Hibbard, Adam Jones and Ian Evans providing plenty of experience in the match day 23.
Elsewhere, Dan Biggar and new signing Tito Tebaldi start at half back for the first time in a competitive fixture with Wales squad members Ashley Beck and Eli Walker providing attacking options outside them.
In the pack, Ryan Bevington, Scott Baldwin and Joe Rees makeup the front row with Jones partnered by James King in the second row. Joe Bearman makes his 50th Ospreys appearance at No. 8 while Canadian wing Jeff Hassler will make his full regional debut if he features from the bench.
Tandy said: “It’s been a very long pre-season, we’ve had some boys back in since the start of June so it’s good to be getting back into PRO12 action this weekend.
“This time of year is an exciting one. We’ve got new faces in the group and there’s always an element of the unknown about these first few games because every club approaches the first few weeks of the season differently.
“As far as we are concerned, it’s crucial we start the season better than we did last time.”
The Ospreys began last season with three consecutive defeats, a run that saw them eventually miss out on a play-off place. Tandy is obviously keen to avoid a similar start this time around, beginning with the meeting with Treviso.
“It’s a tough start – Treviso beat every Welsh team at home last season and we lost twice out there, so we know we have to be at our best from the very first whistle,” he said.
“Three defeats early on left us with too much to do in terms of securing a top four spot, so we have to make sure we get off to a better start.
“If we can get our performance level right then we can be competitive. We’ll focus on the things we can control and hopefully we can build on what we did last season.
“We’ve got an exciting, young group of players with a fantastic attitude and if we pull together, we can have an enjoyable season.”
