Saturday’s best
#1 Alabama 24 #3 Florida St. 7 #11 Michigan 33, #17 Florida 17 #4 USC 49, W. Michigan 31 Maryland 51, #23 Texas 41 College football roundup,
The Alabama defense turned in a dominating performance, the Florida State special teams endured a terrible night, and one of the most anticipated opening games in college football history went to the top-ranked Crimson Tide.
Damien Harris ran for a touchdown and blocked a punt, and Jalen Hurts chipped in with a scoring pass on a night that basically required the sophomore quarterback to make no major mistakes, leading Alabama to a 24-7 beatdown of No. 3 Florida State on Saturday at Atlanta’s new $1.5 billion Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Alabama picked off two passes by Deondre Francois in the second half, snuffing out any hopes of a comeback. Throw in a blocked punt, a blocked field goal and a fumble recovery on a kickoff return, and there was no path to victory for the Seminoles in the first matchup ever between two teams in the top three of the Associated Press preseason rankings.
Florida State never got anything going over the final two quarters. Levi Wallace and Mack Wilson both had interceptions, and Francois’ night ended with him being helped off the field after he was sacked from behind by safety Ronnie Harrison.
“The defense did a fantastic job, especially in the second half,” Alabama coach Nick Saban said. “Special teams was a big difference. It’s good to get a win, but we have a lot of work to do . ... We’ll get better.”
PAC-12
#4 USC 49, Western Michigan 31:
Ronald Jones II ran 37 yards for the tie-breaking touchdown with 6:57 to play, and the host Trojans rallied from a second-half deficit. Jones rushed for 159 yards and three scores, freshman Stephen Carr added 69 yards rushing and two TDs and the Trojans scored 28 points in the fourth quarter. USC’s Sam Darnold passed for 289 yards and rushed for a score but failed to throw a touchdown pass. #24 Washington St. 31, Montana St. 0:
Luke Falk threw for 311 yards and three touchdowns, setting the school career touchdown pass record, as the host Cougars beat the Bobcats. Falk completed his first 20 passes as Washington State won a season opener for the first time under sixth-year coach Mike Leach. Oregon 77, Southern Utah 21: The Willie Taggart era at Oregon got off to a fast start with Tony Brooks-James’ 100-yard touchdown return on the opening kickoff. Royce Freeman ran for 150 yards and four touchdowns and the host Ducks routed the Thunderbirds for Taggart’s debut as Oregon’s head coach. Oregon St. 35, Portland St. 32:
Isaiah Hodgins of Berean Christian High-Walnut Creek caught a 17-yard touchdown pass from Jake Luton with about a minute left as the host Beavers (1-1) came back to defeat the FCS-member Vikings (0-2).
MORE TOP 25
#5 Clemson 56, Kent St. 3: Kelly Bryant passed for 236 yards and a touchdown and ran for 77 yards in his first game as the host Tigers’ starting quarterback. Bryant has the hefty responsibility of replacing Deshaun Watson behind center for the defending national champions. #6 Penn St. 52, Akron 0: Saquon Barkley had 226 total yards and two touchdowns, and Trace McSorley was 18for-25 passing for 280 yards and two touchdowns and also ran for a score for the host Nittany Lions. #7 Oklahoma 56, UTEP 7: Baker Mayfield passed for 329 yards and three touchdowns in one half of action to help the host Sooners roll up 676 yards of offense in their first game under new head coach Lincoln Riley. Mark Andrews had career highs of seven catches and 134 yards, all in the first half, for the Sooners. #11 Michigan 33, #17 Florida 17:
In Arlington, Texas, Quinn Nordin became the first Wolverines kicker to make two 50-yard field goals in the same game (55 and 50), and the the Gators absorbed their first season-opening loss since 1989. Florida’s only touchdowns came when Duke Dawson and CJ Henderson returned interceptions. #12 Auburn 41, Georgia Southern 7:
Jarrett Stidham threw two touchdown passes and ran for a score in his debut for the host Tigers against the Eagles. Auburn used a smothering defense to overcome three turnovers — including a fumble returned for a touchdown — plus an injury to tailback Kerryon Johnson and the absence of top runner Kamryn Pettway.
#13 LSU 27, BYU 0: Derrius Guice rushed for 120 yards and two touchdowns, and the Tigers never allowed the Cougars’ offense to cross midfield. While Louisiana native Ed Orgeron was able to celebrate a victory in his maiden seasonopener as LSU’s head coach, he also saw his offense squander scoring chances. The game was originally scheduled to be played in Houston, but moved to New Orleans because of Hurricane Harvey. #15 Georgia 31, Appalachian St. 10: Freshman Jake Fromm led three first-half touchdown drives after starting quarterback Jacob Eason hurt his left knee, and Nick Chubb ran for 96 yards, including scoring runs of 1 and 7 yards, for the host Bulldogs. #16 Louisville 35, Purdue 28: Lamar Jackson passed for 378 yards and two touchdowns as the Cardinals (1-0) beat the Boilermakers (0-1) in Indianapolis to snap a three-game losing streak. Jackson also moved into the top five in school history for TD passes and yards rushing. #18 Miami 41, BethuneCookman 13:
Malik Rosier passed for 217 yards and three touchdowns in his debut as the host Hurricanes’ full-time starting quarterback, and Mark Walton ran for 148 yards and two touchdowns. Rosier completed 17 of 28 passes, and Miami scored on five of its first six possessions.
#19 S. Florida 31, Stony
Brook 17: Quinton Flowers threw for 186 yards and two second-half touchdowns in the Bulls’ home opener, with Tyre McCants’ 65-yard TD reception putting South Florida ahead for good with 11:23 remaining. #20 Kansas St. 55, Central Arkansas 19:
Jesse Ertz threw for 333 yards and four touchdowns in only three quarters of work, Byron Pringle had three catches for 121 yards and a score, and Isaiah Harris had three catches for 118 yards and a TD, as seven Wildcats reached the end zone in Manhattan, Kan. Head coach Bill Snyder, 77, who had treatment for throat cancer in the offseason, looked as energetic as ever. Maryland 51, #23 Texas 41: Tyrrell Pigrome threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score before leaving with an injury and the visiting Terrapins spoiled Longhorns coach Tom Herman’s debut. Pigrome had to be helped off late in the third quarter after twisting his knee, but freshman Kasim Hill came in and led two fourth-quarter touchdown drives. Maryland’s D.J. Moore had 133 yards receiving and a touchdown. Shane Buechele passed for 375 yards for Texas.
JUNIOR COLLEGE
Laney 17, CCSF 14: K.C. Onwumeka’s 23-yard field goal gave the Eagles the lead in the fourth quarter, and CCSF quarterback Zach Masoli threw an interception as the host Rams were driving for the potential winning score. CCSF got touchdowns on a 3-yard run by Deshaun Collins and a 1-yard sneak by Masoli to lead 14-7 at the half. Laney tied it on Andre Zee’s 5-yard pass to Ronald Thomas. San Mateo 47, Modesto 7: Shawn Akina threw for three touchdowns and Damani Sistena (103) and Cameron Taylor (102) each broke 100 yards rushing for the host Bulldogs.