McCarron, No. 1 Alabama beat Colorado State 31-6
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- AJ McCarron passed for 258 yards and threw a 30-yard touchdown to DeAndrew White in the fourth quarter to lift No. 1 Alabama to a 31-6 victory against Colorado State on Saturday night.
Kenyan Drake set up one touchdown with a blocked punt and scored on a 3-yard touchdown run for the Crimson Tide (3-0), which sputtered at times. Alabama managed only one offensive touchdown and no third-down conversions in the first three quarters a week after winning a 49-42 shootout against Texas A&M.
Coached by former Tide offensive coordinator Jim McElwain, the Rams (1-3) nursed hopes for a monumental upset into the fourth quarter before allowing two touchdowns. Trey DePriest stripped the ball from quarterback Garrett Grayson and recovered the fumble.
The next play McCarron laced a perfect strike to White in the end zone and restless Alabama fans got something to cheer about.
Boyd's three TDs lead No. 3 Clemson past NC State
RALEIGH, N.C. -- Clemson struggled to get its offense running in high gear and spent much of Thursday night fighting to protect a slim lead. The third-ranked Tigers still did enough to stay unbeaten in the kind of game that often has slipped away in recent years.
Tajh Boyd threw for 244 yards and three touchdowns to help Clemson beat North Carolina State 26-14, winning its Atlantic Coast Conference opener on the road.
Clemson came in averaging 45 points and 490 yards, but didn't score its first touchdown until late in the first half.
Boyd's 30-yard scoring pass to Martavis Bryant capped a critical third-quarter sequence -- including an apparent Wolfpack touchdown negated by an official's whistle -- that allowed the Tigers (3-0, 1-0 ACC) to seize momentum in front of a hostile crowd.
Boyd found Bryant for another touchdown, with Bryant snatching the ball from defender Niles Clark for a 15-yard score that made it a three-possession game early in the fourth.
Sammy Watkins added 10 catches for 96 yards, helping Clemson finish with 415 total yards.
Guiton guides No. 4 Ohio State to 76-0 mismatch against FAMU
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Kenny Guiton again starred in place of the injured Braxton Miller, setting a school record with six touchdown passes -- all in the first half -- to lead No. 4 Ohio State to a 76-0 victory against Florida A&M on Saturday.
It was the most lopsided Ohio State win since 1935.
The Buckeyes (4-0) needed a total of four offensive plays and 46 seconds to go up 21-0 in the opening 6 minutes and never looked back. It was an epic mismatch between a team with national-title aspirations and a Football Championship Subdivision member getting a $900,000 guarantee.
FAMU (1-3), which suffered its worst loss ever, trailed 48-0 before picking up its initial first down in the second quarter.
Guiton completed 24 of 34 passes for 215 yards.
No. 5 Stanford routs No. 23 Arizona State, 42-28
STANFORD, Calif. -- Tyler Gaffney ran for 95 yards and two touchdowns, Anthony Wilkerson added 68 yards and another score, and No. 5 Stanford started strong in a 42-28 victory against No. 23 Arizona State on Saturday night in the Pac-12 opener for both teams.
The defending conference champions controlled every facet of the game to turn the only matchup between ranked opponents this week into a 29-0 halftime lead. The Cardinal (3-0, 1-0) scored in the air and on the ground, forced two turnovers, blocked two punts, tallied 10 tackles for loss and recorded three sacks.
Taylor Kelly threw for 367 yards, including three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, and Jaelen Strong caught 12 passes for 168 yards and a score in an otherwise disappointing showing for the Sun Devils (2-1, 0-1).
Hill leads No. 6 LSU past Auburn 35-21
BATON ROUGE, La. -- Jeremy Hill rushed for a career-high 184 yards and tied a career high with three touchdowns to help sixth-ranked LSU hand Auburn its first loss of the season, 35-21 on Saturday night.
Hill scored touchdowns of 49, 10 and 6 yards, and also set up another score with a 54-yard scamper in which he was shoved out of bounds at the 1. Fullback J.C. Copeland scored from there. Tre Mason rushed for 132 yards and had two short touchdown runs in the third quarter for Auburn (3-1, 1-1 SEC), the second cutting LSU's lead to 28-14.
Zach Mettenberger completed his only touchdown pass - a 32-yarder to Jarvis Landry - early in the fourth quarter as LSU (4-0, 1-0) dimmed Auburn's hopes for a comeback.
Auburn's Nick Marshall was 17-of-33 passing for 224 and was intercepted twice.
No. 7 Louisville holds FIU to record 30 yards in blowout win
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Teddy Bridgewater threw four touchdown passes and Louisville's defense allowed a school-record 30 yards, helping the seventh-ranked Cardinals blow out Florida International 72-0 on Saturday.
It was the highest scoring game for the Cardinals (4-0) since a 73-10 victory against Murray State in 2007. It also matched the school's fourth-largest margin of victory.
Bridgewater hit DeVante Parker for two TD passes and Gerald Christian and Eli Rogers for one each before Will Gardner came in to throw another touchdown to Michaelee Harris in the fourth quarter. Dominique Brown, Senorise Perry, Michael Dyer and Brandon Radcliff rushed for scores.
Charles Gaines returned the second-half kickoff 93 yards for a TD and recovered a muffed punt to set up Bridgewater's second TD pass in the second quarter.
Louisville's defense meanwhile didn't allow FIU (0-4) a first down until early in the second quarter and just two overall.
No. 8 Florida State blows past Bethune-Cookman
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Eighth-ranked Florida State and quarterback Jameis Winston defeated FCS opponent Bethune-Cookman 54-6 despite plenty of sloppy play Saturday.
The defending ACC champions (3-0, 1-0) will want to clean up their offense before starting a seven-game stretch against conference foes next week.
Winston completed 10 of 19 passes for 148 yards and two touchdowns. Devonta Freeman ran for a game-high 112 yards and a touchdown. Karlos Williams finished with 83 yards rushing and two touchdowns, and James Wilder, Jr. added 56 yards and a touchdown.
The Wildcats (3-1) scored their lone touchdown off a seven-yard run from quarterback Jackie Wilson with 8:21 left in the third quarter.
Florida State ran away in the second quarter, but all three starting receivers had dropped passes, including two for touchdowns. The defense also missed several tackles.
No. 9 Georgia finally puts away pesky North Texas
ATHENS, Ga. -- Aaron Murray threw for 408 yards and three touchdowns, ran for another score, and led No. 9 Georgia to a 45-21 victory against pesky North Texas on Saturday.
Murray overcame an early interception in the end zone, hooking up with freshman Reggie Davis on a 98-yard TD -- the longest pass play in school history. Arthur Lynch and Chris Conley also had touchdown catches for the Bulldogs (2-1).
The Mean Green (2-2) came in as a 33-point underdog, but big plays on special teams helped make a game of it. Brelan Chancellor returned a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown, and Zac Whitfield fell on a blocked punt in the end zone early in the second half to stunningly tie the game at 21.
Murray made sure the Bulldogs avoided the upset. He scored on a 1-yard sneak and went to Conley on a 4-yard TD.
Johnny Manziel leads No. 10 A&M to 42-13 win against SMU
COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- Johnny Manziel accounted for 346 yards with three touchdowns in just more than a half to help No. 10 Texas A&M cruise to a 42-13 win against on Saturday night.
Texas A&M (3-1) was up 32-6 at halftime, and Manziel led the Aggies to a touchdown on their first drive of the third quarter before the Heisman Trophy winner went to the bench.
Manziel had 244 yards passing with a touchdown and ran for 102 yards and two more scores.
Deshazor Everett returned a fumble 12 yards for a touchdown and Ben Malena ran for 71 yards and two scores. He got things going for A&M with a 3-yard touchdown run in the first quarter.
Former Texas quarterback Garrett Gilbert threw for 310 yards and a touchdown with an interception for SMU (1-2).
No. 13 UCLA honors Pasquale, routs New Mexico State 59-13
PASADENA, Calif. -- Brett Hundley passed for 280 yards and three touchdowns as UCLA honored late receiver Nick Pasquale during its blowout win.
Jordon James rushed for a career-best 164 yards and two scores as UCLA (3-0) routed the undermanned Aggies (0-4) in its first home game since Pasquale was hit by a car and killed two weeks ago.
The Bruins ran their first offensive play with 10 men on the field in the walk-on sophomore's honor, and the Rose Bowl crowd waved blue towels and wore T-shirts emblazoned with his No. 36.
Steven Manfro, Devin Fuller and Shaq Evans caught scoring passes from Hundley for the Bruins, who blew out the Aggies even while committing three turnovers inside the New Mexico State 5.
The Aggies have lost 15 consecutive games.
UCLA took a 45-0 lead through three quarters, giving the Bruins 83 unanswered points after scoring the final 38 in last week's comeback victory at Nebraska.
No. 15 Michigan dodges upset, beats UConn 24-21
EAST HARTFORD, Conn. -- Fitzgerald Toussaint ran for 120 yards and two touchdowns, Desmond Morgan made a one-handed interception in the fourth quarter that swung the game Michigan's way and the 15th-ranked Wolverines dodged another upset with a 24-21 victory against Connecticut on Saturday night.
A week after Michigan needed a last-second stand to hold off Akron, Brendan Gibbons kicked a 21-yard field goal with 4:36 left to give the Wolverines (4-0) their first lead of the second half.
Chandler Whitmer threw two touchdowns and Ty-Meer Brown returned a fumble 34 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter that put UConn (0-3) up 21-7.
Devin Gardner turned the ball over three times for Michigan and the Wolverines also muffed a punt inside their 10 that led to a UConn touchdown. Toussaint broke a 35-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, and scored from 12 yards out right after Morgan's pick with 9:56 left.
No. 16 Miami overmatches Savannah State 77-7
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. -- Dallas Crawford and Gus Edwards both scored three touchdowns and No. 16 Miami got into the end zone on its first seven possessions, rolling to a 77-7 victory against Savannah State on Saturday night.
The Hurricanes set a school record for points in a game, topping the 75 scored against Fordham in 1954.
Miami (3-0) lost quarterback Stephen Morris to a lower right leg injury with 8:51 left in the opening quarter. Hurricanes coach Al Golden said in a televised halftime interview that Morris was "fine'' and X-rays were negative.
Stacy Coley had a kickoff return for a score and a touchdown catch for Miami, which has won five consecutive games for the first time since 2008. Duke Johnson, Allen Hurns and Beau Sandland all added a touchdown for the Hurricanes, in a game that had the final quarter shortened to 12 minutes by mutual agreement of the coaches.
DeQuan Daniels had a 75-yard touchdown run for Savannah State (1-3).
QB Price helps No. 17 Washington overwhelm Idaho State
SEATTLE -- Keith Price threw for 213 yards and three touchdowns in less than a half, Deontae Cooper scored his first career touchdown after three major knee surgeries, and No. 17 Washington routed Idaho State 56-0 on Saturday in the Huskies' final tuneup before the start of Pac-12 Conference play.
Bishop Sankey, the national leader in yards rushing per game, barely broke a sweat against the Bengals (2-1) of the FCS. Sankey saw action on the Huskies' (3-0) first three series and scored on a 3-yard TD run in the first quarter. Sankey finished with 77 yards on four carries.
Price played a little more than 1 1/2 quarters, throwing TD passes of 1, 6 and 5 yards and adding a 1-yard TD run as the Huskies led 42-0 at halftime. It was the second consecutive season the Huskies overwhelmed a lower division opponent in the first half. Last year, Washington led Portland State 45-0 at halftime.
Two defensive TDs lead No. 18 Northwestern past Maine
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Linebacker Damien Proby and defensive end Dean Lowry each had an interception return for a touchdown to lead No. 18 Northwestern to a 35-21 win against Maine on Saturday.
Northwestern improved to 4-0 as it wrapped up its non-conference slate, but this was not the consistent, steady performance coach Pat Fitzgerald was looking for heading into the Big Ten season. If not for the interception returns for scores, Maine (3-1) very well could have been shooting for an upset down the stretch.
Running back Mike Trumpy and quarterback Kain Colter each had rushing touchdowns for Northwestern.
Marcus Wasilewski was 25-for-40 for 237 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions for Maine, which had a 379 to 373 edge over the Wildcats in total yards. Northwestern had posted better than 500 yards of offense in each of its first two games against California and Syracuse.
No. 19 Florida loses QB Driskel, still beats Tennessee
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- After starting quarterback Jeff Driskel was lost to a season-ending ankle injury, Tyler Murphy led No. 19 Florida to five scores in a somewhat ugly game, helping the Gators open Southeastern Conference play with a 31-17 victory against Tennessee on Saturday.
Murphy had a 52-yard touchdown throw to Solomon Patton, a swing pass that went the distance, and made several plays with his legs as Florida (2-1, 1-0 SEC) won its ninth consecutive game in the series.
Murphy's 7-yard TD scamper in the fourth quarter made it 31-10 and sent fans scrambling for the exits.
The Volunteers (2-2, 0-1) had hoped to rebound from an embarrassing, 59-14 loss at No. 2 Oregon a week ago. Instead, Tennessee and first-year coach Butch Jones left Gainesville with another double-digit setback.
No. 20 Baylor keeps scoring, routs Louisiana-Monroe
WACO, Texas -- Bryce Petty threw for 351 yards with four touchdowns and ran 2 yards for another score as No. 20 Baylor kept piling up the points, beating Louisiana-Monroe 70-7 on Saturday.
The fast-paced Bears (3-0) had seven offensive touchdowns in the 10 drives Petty played. Those TD drives took a total of 6 minutes.
Baylor is the first FBS team since LSU in 1930 to open a season with at least 60 points in three consecutive games, according to STATS. Those Tigers had at least 70 points in each of those games -- Baylor scored 69 in its opener before 70 points in each of its last two games.
ULM (2-2), coming off a victory at Wake Forest of the ACC last week, suffered its worst loss since a 73-7 loss at Auburn in 2003.
No. 22 Notre Dame beats Michigan State 17-13
SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Cam McDaniel scored on a 7-yard run following a questionable pass interference call, one of several penalties that hurt Michigan State, as Notre Dame beat the Spartans 17-13 on Saturday for their 10th consecutive home win.
The Irish (3-1) also took advantage of another questionable pass interference in the first half that set up a 2-yard touchdown pass from Tommy Rees to TJ Jones and a holding penalty that kept alive a drive that led to a 41-yard field goal by Kyle Brindza. The Spartans (3-1) had 10 penalties for 115 yards by the Big Ten officials.
But Michigan State made some costly mistakes on its own, including a trick play after the Spartans appeared to be gaining momentum. After opening the second half with a field goal, receiver RJ Shelton threw a pass that was intercepted by safety Matthias Farley and led to Notre Dame's go-ahead touchdown.
Gordon, No. 24 Wisconsin trample Purdue 41-10
MADISON, Wis. -- Melvin Gordon ran for three touchdowns, James White added 145 yards and a 70-yard score, and No. 24 Wisconsin opened Big Ten play with a 41-10 win Saturday against Purdue.
Gordon scored from 5 and 27 yards in the first half before capping the opening drive of the second with a 15-yard touchdown run for the Badgers (3-1, 1-0).
Nose guard Warren Herring had a sack, and Chris Borland added six tackles to lead an active defense.
Wisconsin moved on nicely from last week's stunning 32-30 loss to Arizona State, after officials mishandled the final seconds to deprive the Badgers of a game-winning field-goal try.
No late worries this week.
Quarterback Rob Henry's 22-yard touchdown run provided one of the few highlights on the day for the Boilermakers (1-3, 0-1).
No. 25 Texas Tech upends Texas State 33-7
LUBBOCK, Texas -- Backup quarterback Davis Webb threw for two touchdowns and 310 yards to lead No. 25 Texas Tech against Texas State 33-7 on Saturday night.
Webb threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to Eric Ward in the third quarter and a 10-yarder to Bradley Marquez in the fourth after Texas State failed on a fake punt deep in its own territory. Webb finished 19 for 43 and had two interceptions.
Texas Tech's defense got the lone touchdown of the first half when linebacker Will Smith returned a fumble 9 yards. Ryan Bustin added four field goals for the Red Raiders (4-0)
Texas State (2-1) struggled against a stingy Red Raiders defense that gave up only 232 total yards. Bobcats running back Robert Lowe scored on a 49-yard run -- a career-long rush for the sophomore.
Bobcats quarterback Tyler Arndt was responsible for two of the team's three turnovers.
