Carson Beck completed 23 of 33 passes for 278 yards and a pair of touchdowns as the No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs steamrolled the No. 14 Clemson Tigers 34-3 in Atlanta.
Georgia outscored Clemson 28-3 in the second half, extending its regular-season winning streak to 40 games. Nate Frazier added 83 rushing yards and a score for the Bulldogs, who won their third straight in the series.
Clemson was outgained 447-188, as junior quarterback Cade Klubnik was 18-for-29 for 142 yards. He also threw an interception to Malaki Starks.
Georgia outgained Clemson 160-76 in the first half, with the Bulldogs gaining 126 through the air and the Tigers 54. The Clemson offense managed just two first downs in the opening half to Georgia’s eight.
The 31-point loss was the Tigers’ largest defeat since a 51-14 loss to Florida State in 2013. Georgia now leads the all-time series 44-18-4.
No. 2 Ohio State 52, Akron 6
Freshman receiver Jeremiah Smith caught two of Will Howard’s three touchdown passes as the Buckeyes stampeded the visiting Zips. Smith, a possible heir apparent to Marvin Harrison Jr., the No. 4 pick by the Arizona Cardinals in the 2024 NFL Draft, finished with six receptions for 92 yards.
Howard, a Kansas State transfer in his Ohio State debut, was shaky, missing on his first four passes and completing only 10 of 21 for 116 yards through two quarters. He finished the game 17 of 28 for 228 yards.
Akron quarterback Tahj Bullock was 9 for 13 for 68 yards and rushed for 42 yards in relief of starter Ben Finley, who was 8-for-14 for 53 yards with an interception.
No. 3 Oregon 24, Idaho 14
Fans at Autzen Stadium expecting fireworks didn’t get all they’d hoped for, but the Ducks began their Big Ten era with a home win over Idaho in Eugene, Ore.
New Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel, a transfer from Oklahoma playing his sixth college season, completed 41 of 49 passes for 380 yards with two touchdowns, including a 12-yard connection with Tez Johnson with 5:36 to play that sealed the Ducks’ win.
Idaho had cut the lead to 17-14 with 9:45 left on quarterback Jack Layne’s 4-yard touchdown run, but Oregon had an answer and avoided the upset. Layne earlier threw a flea-flicker 36-yard pass to Jake Cox for a touchdown.
No. 4 Texas 52, Colorado State 0
Quinn Ewers completed 20 of 27 passes for 260 yards, three touchdowns and an interception as the Longhorns blanked the visiting Rams.
Matthew Golden caught two touchdowns, while Isiah Bond and Johntay Cook II each hauled in a score. Cook’s touchdown was a 40-yard strike from Texas backup Arch Manning late in the third quarter. Manning scored on a 1-yard sneak in the fourth as the Longhorns outgained Colorado State 545-192 and held the Rams to 11 first downs.
Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi went 10-for-18 for 59 yards and an interception for Colorado State, which was shut out for the first time since 2013.
No. 5 Alabama 63, Western Kentucky 0
Jalen Milroe threw for three touchdowns and ran for two more as the Crimson Tide started the Kalen DeBoer era with a resounding thumping of the visiting Hilltoppers in Tuscaloosa.
Milroe was highly efficient, completing 7 of 9 passes for 200 yards, and added 79 yards on 10 rushes. Justice Haynes added 102 yards on just four carries for Alabama, which outgained the outmatched visitors 600-145.
TJ Finley completed 18 of 31 passes for 92 yards with two interceptions in the first half for Western Kentucky before Caden Veltkamp took over in the second half. He fared no better, hitting 4 of 9 attempts for 11 yards.
No. 6 Ole Miss 76, Furman 0
Jaxson Dart passed for 418 yards and five touchdowns in one half, Tre Harris caught two scores and Rebels tied their school record for points to pummel the visiting Paladins in Oxford, Miss.
Ole Miss’ high-powered offense erupted for 52 first-half points with Dart at the helm. He was explosive, completing 22 of 27 passes, and also rushed for the season’s first points. In his second season with the Rebels after three at Louisiana Tech, Harris notched eight receptions for 179 yards, both game highs.
Furman saw quarterback Carson Jones go 15-for-25 for 119 yards and an interception. The Paladins were outgained 772-172.
No. 7 Notre Dame 23, No. 20 Texas A&M 13
Jeremiyah Love ran for a go-ahead, 21-yard touchdown with 1:54 remaining and Mitch Jeter tacked on a 46-yard field goal as the Fighting Irish surged ahead for a hard-fought win over the Aggies in College Station, Texas.
Riley Leonard completed 18 of 30 passes for 158 yards and rushed 12 times for 63 yards to win his Notre Dame debut. Love finished with 14 carries for 91 yards and a score, and Jadarian Price ran for 44 yards and a touchdown.
Le’Veon Moss had 20 carries for 70 yards and scored the lone touchdown for Texas A&M. Conner Weigman completed 12 of 30 passes for 100 yards and two interceptions in the Aggies’ first game under new head coach Mike Elko.
No. 8 Penn State 34, West Virginia 12
Drew Allar threw for three second-quarter touchdowns and 216 yards as the Nittany Lions drilled the host Mountaineers.
Harrison Wallace caught two scores in the second period, while Kaytron Allen caught one. Allar was 11 of 17 for Penn State, which outgained West Virginia 457-246. Nicholas Singleton ran for a 40-yard score and finished with 114 yards on the ground for the Nittany Lions.
Garrett Greene hit on 15 of 28 attempts for 161 yards for the Mountaineers, who gained only 85 yards on 37 rushes and made just 4 of 14 third downs.
No. 9 Michigan 30, Fresno State 10
Davis Warren and Alex Orji each completed the first touchdown passes of their careers as the defending champion Wolverines opened their season with a victory over the visiting Bulldogs in Ann Arbor.
Warren, the starter, completed 15 of 25 attempts for 118 yards with one touchdown and one interception for the No. 9 Wolverines, who led 16-10 deep into the fourth quarter before pulling away. Orji finished 1-of-2 for 3 yards and ran for 32 yards on five attempts.
Kalel Mullings rushed for 92 yards on 15 carries, while Colston Loveland caught eight passes for 87 yards and a touchdown. Will Johnson had an 86-yard interception return for a touchdown for Michigan to close the scoring with 3:57 left in the fourth quarter.
No. 15 Tennessee 69, Chattanooga 3
Redshirt freshman Nico Iamaleava threw for three first-half touchdowns and running back Dylan Sampson reached the end zone three times before halftime as the Volunteers crushed the visiting Mocs.
Dont’e Thornton Jr. made two of the early touchdown catches, with Tennessee scoring on its first seven possessions.
Iamaleava finished 22-for-28 for 314 passing yards — all in the first half. For the game, 14 different Volunteers made at least one reception.
No. 17 Oklahoma State 44, South Dakota State 20
Ollie Gordon II ran for two touchdowns and caught a touchdown pass as the host Cowboys ended the Jackrabbits’ 29-game winning streak.
Gordon, last season’s Doak Walker Award winner, totaled 104 rushing yards on 27 carries and added four receptions for 42 yards. Alan Bowman threw for 267 yards and three touchdowns. He completed 25 of 34 passes, including 13 consecutive at one point.
Mark Gronowski, last season’s Walter Payton Award winner as the top player in the FCS, threw for 264 yards, two touchdowns and one interception for South Dakota State, which has won back-to-back FCS championships.
No. 18 Kansas State 41, Tennessee-Martin 6
Avery Johnson was 14-of-21 for 153 yards and two touchdowns as the Wildcats defeated the Skyhawks in Manhattan, Kan., in the season opener for both teams.
DJ Giddens ran for 124 yards on 13 carries for Kansas State, which outrushed UT-Martin 283-36 and held the Skyhawks to fewer than 1 yard per carry. The Wildcats outgained the visitors 265-51 in the second half after managing just 184 yards in the first half while punting twice and throwing an interception.
Dylan Edwards scored his first two collegiate touchdowns on a 1-yard run and a 15-yard catch, both in the second half, as the Wildcats put the game out of reach.
No. 19 Miami 41, Florida 17
Cam Ward threw for 385 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Hurricanes to a convincing victory over the host Gators in Gainesville, Fla.
Ward completed 26 of 35 passes and threw only one interception in his first start for the Hurricanes after transferring from Washington State. Miami beat Florida in Gainesville for the first time since 2002 and for the first time overall since 2013 while ending the Gators’ 34-game winning streak in home openers.
Florida, which surrendered the most points ever in a home opener, saw Graham Mertz get injured while throwing an interception with 24 seconds remaining in the third. Mertz, who was 11-for-20 passing for 91 yards, no touchdowns and the lone interception, did not return.
No. 21 Arizona 61, New Mexico 39
Tetairoa McMillan caught 10 passes for a school-record 304 yards and four touchdowns to help the Wildcats pull away to beat the Lobos in Tucson, Ariz.
McMillan, a preseason first-team AP All-American, scored on a 69-yard reception on Arizona’s third snap and added scoring receptions of 17, 78 and 40 yards. Noah Fifita threw for 422 yards to help coach Brent Brennan win his debut with the Wildcats, who were playing their first game as a member of the Big 12 Conference.
New Mexico (0-2) stayed close through the first half, thanks to athletic quarterback Devon Dampier, who accounted for five touchdowns. Dampier completed 24 of 42 passes for 260 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions. He also rushed for 130 yards and two scores.
No. 25 Iowa 40, Illinois State 0
Leading 6-0 at halftime, the Hawkeyes opened the second half with a score and dominated the rest of the way in Iowa City, Iowa.
Hawkeyes QB Cade McNamara completed 13 of 14 passes for 177 yards and three scores in the second half and was 21-of-31 passing for 251 yards in his first appearance since tearing the ACL in his left knee against Michigan State on Sept. 30, 2023.
The Redbirds were outgained 492 total yards to 189 as Iowa assistant head coach Seth Wallace served as Iowa’s interim coach in place of suspended Kirk Ferentz.
–Field Level Media
