No. 5 Ohio State runs away from Nebraska in opener
Justin Fields and No. 5 Ohio State shook off the rust in the first half and then buried visiting Nebraska the rest of the way.
Fields completed 20 of 21 passes for two touchdowns and ran for another, Master Teague III rushed for a pair of scores and the Buckeyes rolled over Nebraska 52-17 Saturday in the Big Ten teams’ pandemic-delayed opener.
Fields, a Heisman Trophy finalist last season, completed his first 12 passes and threw for 276 yards. He ran for another 52 — including a stunning 17-yard third-quarter touchdown scramble around the left side that saw him spin past a defender and into the end zone.
His 42-yard touchdown pass to slot receiver Garrett Wilson on Ohio State’s second drive of the game couldn’t have been prettier. The only pass he missed on, in the second quarter, may have been catchable, but Chris Olave couldn’t hold on in the end zone.
Olave caught six passes for 104 yards, and Wilson had seven for 129 .
he Ohio Statet defense took most of the first half to figure out a way to contain quarterback Adrian Martinez, who marched the Huskers down for a touchdown in the opening 2 minutes of the game.
Nebraska (0-1, 0-1 Big Ten) tied the score at 14 in the second quarter, but an Ohio State (1-0, 1-0 Big Ten) field goal, a defensive stop and Teague’s second TD run gave the Buckeyes a 24-14 lead at the half. Then came Fields’ nifty touchdown run and a 55-yard scoop and score by Buckeyes cornerback Sevyn Banks, and Ohio State had it under control.
NO. 1 CLEMSON 47, SYRACUSE 21 >>
Trevor Lawrence threw two touchdown passes, Travis Etienne ran for three scores and the Tigers (60, 5-0) shook off a sluggish performance to win their 27th straight Atlantic Coast Conference game and put away the Orange (1-5, 1-4).
Syracuse kept the Tigers out of synch much of the game and was down just 27-21 late in the third quarter. But Andrew Booth Jr.’s fumble recovery and touchdown run after Rex Culpepper was sacked late in the third quarter turned the game in Clemson’s favor for good. NO. 2 ALABAMA 48, TENNESSEE 17 >> The Crimson Tide lost wide receiver Jaylen Waddle for likely the rest of the season on the opening kickoff.
Mac Jones threw for 387 yards and ran for a touchdown, and Najee Harris ran for three more TDS as the Crimson Tide rolled to their 14th straight win in this rivalry.
Alabama (5- 0, 5- 0 SEC) out
gained Tennessee 587-302. But playing the Volunteers (2-3, 2-3) proved costly for Alabama. Waddle rolled his right ankle as he was tackled on the opening kickoff. Alabama coach Nick Saban said Waddle has a high ankle sprain with a fracture and will be out the rest of the season if he needs surgery.
NO. 3 NOTRE DAME 45, PITTSBURGH 3 >> Ian Book passed for 312 yards and three touchdowns — two of them long catch-and-runs to graduate transfer Ben Skowronek — and the Fighting Irish overwhelmed the reeling Panthers.
A week after scuffling its way past Louisville, Notre Dame (5-0, 4-0 ACC) had no such issues while handing host Pitt (3- 4, 2- 4) its fourth consecutive loss.
NO. 6 OKLAHOMA STATE 24, NO. 17 IOWA STATE 21 >> Spencer Sanders passed for 235 yards and ran for 71 and a touchdown in his return from injury to lead the Cowboys at home.
Sanders had been out since injuring his right ankle in the season opener against Tulsa.
Chuba Hubbard ran for 139 yards and a touchdown to help Oklahoma State (4-0, 3-0 Big 12) join Kansas State as the only remaining undefeated teams in conference play.
The Cyclones (3-2, 3-1) vaulted onto the national radar by beating Oklahoma and were seeking their first-ever 4-0 start in league play.
INDIANA 36, NO. 8 PENN STATE 35, OT >> Michael Penix forced overtime with a 2-point conversion run with 22 seconds left, then scored on a diving 2-point conversion to give the Hoosiers a season-opening Big Ten upset win — ending the Big Ten’s longest streak of consecutive losses to Top 10 teams at 42. Indiana beat the Nittany Lions for the second time in 24 matchups, and beat a Top 10 foe for the first time since a 31-10 victory at Ohio State on Oct. 10, 1987.
NO. 14 NORTH CAROLINA 42, NORTH CAROLINA STATE 21 >> Javonte Williams ran for 160 yards and three touchdowns to help the Tar Heels (4-1, 4-1 ACC) beat the Wolfpack (42, 4-2).
Michael Carter ran for 106 yards and a score of his own for North Carolina, which used a runthrough-and-over-tacklers ground game. The Tar Heels ran for 326 yards and finished with 578 overall.
WAKE FOREST 23, NO. 19 VIRGINIA TECH 16 >> Walk-on freshman safety Nick Anderson had three interceptions, Christian Beal-smith ran for 129 yards and Nick Sciba kicked three field goals to help the Demon Deacons triumph.
Anderson stopped two deep Hokies drives and the third ended their final possession.
Beal-smith set the tone for Wake Forest (3-2, 2-2 ACC) against Virginia Tech (3-2, 3-2) with a 58-yard run on the game’s first series. He later added runs of 26 and 19 yards.
NO. 20 KANSAS STATE 55, KANSAS 14 >> Phillip Brooks returned a pair of punts for touchdowns and the Wildcats rolled past the Jayhawks. Will Howard threw for 243 yards and two TDS while Justin Gardner returned an interception 25 yards for another score, helping Kansas State (4-1, 4-0 Big 12) kept Kansas (0-5, 0-4) winless.