Ohio State displays talent to remain unanimous No. 1
Braxton Miller has found a new home at wide receiver, and No. 1 Ohio State has found another dangerous weapon.
Not what the rest of the college football world wanted to hear.
Miller scored two touchdowns — one on a 54-yard catch-and-run in which he had to tiptoe down the sideline, the other on an electrifying 53-yard run — and the star-studded Buckeyes began their title defense with a 42-24 victory Monday night over Virginia Tech at Blacksburg, Va.
Quarterback Cardale Jones picked up where he left off last season by throwing for two touchdowns and running for a third, and tailback Ezekiel Elliott was virtually untouched in breaking off an 80-yard run as he gained 122 yards on just 11 carries.
The Buckeyes avenged a 35-21 home loss to Virginia Tech last season and earned their 14th straight win overall.
The Hokies, meanwhile, lost more than the game, with quarterback Michael Brewer, a Lake Travis High School graduate, sidelined by a broken left collarbone.
Trainer Mike Goforth said Brewer would have surgery Tuesday and set the recovery time at “four to six weeks, maybe as many as eight.”
Associated Press poll: The Southeastern Conference has a record 10 teams ranked in the first AP college football poll of the regular season.
Ohio State remained a unanimous No. 1.
The SEC already held the record for most teams from one conference in the Top 25 with eight, a mark it matched in the preseason. After the conference went 12-1 to open the season, No. 16 Texas A&M and No. 25 Mississippi State moved into the poll to go with the eight teams already there.
Alabama moved up a spot to No. 2. The rest of the SEC roll call is: No. 6 Auburn, No. 10 Georgia, No. 14 LSU, No. 17 Mississippi, No. 18 Arkansas, No. 20 Missouri and No. 23 Tennessee.
TCU dropped from second to third, and Baylor stayed at No. 4. Okla- homa was the only other ranked Big 12 team, remaining at No. 19. Notre Dame moved up from 11th to ninth after trouncing Texas 38-3.
Kansas State: The university says it will pay a $5,000 fine after its marching band formed the rival Kansas Jayhawk mascot and what appeared to be a sex act during a halftime show. Band director Frank Tracz will miss the Nov. 28 game against Kansas, and future halftime shows will need the approval of university officials.
The university says it decided to pay the self-imposed fine after the Big 12 Conference warned of potential sportsmanship and ethical conduct violations.
The controversy erupted after Saturday’s spacethemed halftime show during the team’s home opener against South Dakota. One formation featured the Kansas State band forming the Jayhawk and a phallic-looking Starship Enterprise crashing into it.
Tracz apologized for what he described as a “misinterpretation.”