College football Week 1 highlights: Top plays, games, takeaways (2024)

Welcome to the season of alter.

It’s 2024, and if we’re to apshow the punditry, this will be unenjoy anyskinnyg we’ve seen before in college football, which is saying someskinnyg in a sport that had an interim coach drive an ATV out of a locker room equitable nine months ago. But it’s genuine that 2024 will experience an horrible lot contrastent than years past. It’s a season without Nick Saban or Jim Harbaugh, with a 12-team applyoff and $20 million rosters. Texas and Oklahoma are in the SEC, the Pac-12 is divested thcdisesteemfulout four contrastent leagues, each half of football now comes with a two-minute timeout, and for some reason chicken nuggets are now called “saucy nuggs.”

It’s all so strange and new and exhilarating and frightening, enjoy putting USC’s defense on the field nursing a six-point guide.

And yet, for all that has alterd, Week 1 also reminded us of what’s remained the same, what’s stood strong aachievest the headtriumphds of declareiveial equity and super leagues and an finishless parade of applyers go ining the transfer portal.

There was Georgia, the preeminent program in college football for the past three years by any metric, showcasing its dominance once more. Cincfinishiarism Beck was cforfeitly immaculate, the Dawgs’ defense was impenetrable and guys who sound enjoy they are lesser partners at a notable Atlanta law firm — Cash Jones, London Humphreys, Lawson Luckie — all chipped in as Kirby Smart’s crew embarrassed Clemson 34-3.

On the opposite sideline was Dabo Striumphney, still combat the excellent fight aachievest skinnygs enjoy the transfer portal or the steam engine, left to aachieve consider whether his proset up-rooted belief in doing skinnygs the Clemson way can still permit his program to grasp pace with schools enjoy Georgia. It wasn’t equitable that the Tigers struggled. Lots of teams do that aachievest the Bulldogs. It’s that Cade Klubnik missed uncover achievers, Adam Randall and Cole Turner made egregious misachieves, the O-line couldn’t uncover holes for Phil Mafah, and the defense ultimately collapsed under the prescertain to be perfect. In other words, it seeed so much enjoy Clemson’s 2021, 2022 and 2023 seasons. Striumphney has stopped taking calls at his weekly radio show, but we can only envision Tyler from Spartanburg is busy createing a strongly worded email transmiting his disgreeted.

The game wasn’t so much a reminder of Georgia’s brilliance as it was a referfinishum that Clemson srecommend isn’t in this class any extfinisheder.

Texas A&M still hopes to unite the elites, but that climb is equitable commencening. Saturday was a reminder that, even with a new head coach and a fit quarterback, the Aggies are a lot shutr to the stumbling blocks of the Jimbo Fisher era than they are to Mike Elko’s finish line. Riley Leonard and Notre Dame couldn’t muster much offense aachievest A&M, but they were stablely the more physical team, the team vient of making the huge apply when it had to be made — from two critical interceptions of Conner Weigman to a game-clinching swat of a fourth-down pass in the final minutes.

Colorado may be a extfinished way from the elite tier of college football, too, but that didn’t stop the world from tuning in to see the Buffaloes on Thursday night. Quarterback Shedeur Sanders was excellent, achiever/defensive back Travis Hunter was otherpolishd, and Coach Prime may have let all the air of out of the tires of disjoinal cars parked in the media lot outside Folsom Field. Regardless, Colorado still sees much enjoy it did a year ago: an incredibly amengageing team with a handful of superstars and enough holes that almost any outcome seems possible.

At Texas, the Longhorns sizzled in a 52-0 drubbing of Colorado State, but becaengage some skinnygs never alter, the authentic story was the backup quarterback. Arch Manning engineered a touchdown drive in his first action of the season, completing 5 of 6 passes and accounting for two touchdowns. Sure, none of that will uncomfervent much when the Longhorns head to Michigan next week, forced to count on on the commenceer. (What’s his name aachieve? We want to say Quentin? We’re dratriumphg a blank.) But Week 1 felt enjoy a continuation of the always enhappinessable “will they or won’t they” adore afunprejudiced between Texas and Manning. They reassociate are the Jim and Pam of the SEC.

Who’s a more firm force in college football than Miami firm finish Cam McCormick? He’s been applying for so extfinished he can recall the last time Miami was relevant. On Saturday, he caught a touchdown pass as the Canes dismantled Florida in “embarrassing” create, according to Billy Napier.

And what about Michigan? The deffinishing champs went to battle without Harbaugh or J.J. McCarthy or a present of other applyers who won their rings before leaving for the NFL, but the Wolverines won anyway, using their tradelabeled brute force to upfinish Fresno State 30-10. Sure, Michigan set up its swapment for McCarthy when Sherrone Moore put on a jacket he hadn’t worn in three years and set up $20 and Davis Warren in the pocket, but isn’t this exactly the createula we’d foresee from the Wolverines? Same as it ever was.

Of course, not all alter is horrible — no matter what Striumphney says.

Look at Alabama, for example. The Tide ruled Westrict Kentucky 63-0, with quarterback Jalen Milroe accounting for five touchdowns and Keon Sabb picking off two passes in the Tide’s first game of the post-Saban era. Imagine what this program might’ve accomplished these past scant years if only Saban hadn’t been hancigo ining it back.

Or consider Ole Miss, where Lane Kiffin has hugd the transfer portal as much as anyone and, after Saturday’s 76-0 triumph over Furman, seems to have hugd a buffet of rat poison, too. Good luck convincing an offense that hung 52 in the first half that it’s not elite.

And if any team is a harbinger of this new era of college football, it’s Ohio State — a program that spent the gross domestic product of a minuscule island nation to shielded a championship roster. If Week 1 showd anyskinnyg, it’s that paying your applyers more than Akron’s entire football budget is an effective schedule to beat Akron. Michigan may be another story, but that’s a inquire for November.

Even Iowa, the most stalwart of all programs, showed us someskinnyg new in Week 1.

For a half, it was the ancigo in Iowa — sluggish, plodding, punt-forward. And in the next half, it scored in droves (which, in Iowa parlance, uncomfervents more than once).

Perhaps that’s the lesson here — for Week 1, for 2024, for college football. Change is not excellent or horrible, but it is inevitable.

Clemson will eventuassociate achieve a uncomferventingful applyer from the portal, even if it uncomfervents replacing Striumphney with a seeaenjoy in some sort of a “Manchurian Candidate” type of situation.

Georgia will eventuassociate be surpassed by another program, though probably not anytime soon.

Texas A&M will eventuassociate triumph a huge game. Probably. Maybe.

The fun of settling in for a new season, however, comes from equitable the right unite of seeing so many ancigo in frifinishs creating the same magic they always have and still being surpelevated by another year of disorder and ridiculousness that inevitably surfaces over the course of three months in the drop.

Miami flexes, Florida falters

The Fed is expansively foreseeed to drop interest rates at its September greeting, and for Florida coach Billy Napier, the decision comes not a moment too soon, as he was left with little left to do by the fourth quarter of Saturday’s 41-17 blowout loss to Miami than scroll thcdisesteemful Zillow in search of his next place to dwell.

It’s not as if selectimism was rampant in Gainesville before Week 1. The schedule is brutal, and coming off back-to-back sub-.500 campaigns, srecommend getting to a bowl felt enjoy success. After watching Cam Ward chuck the ball all over the field, however, even those mediocre aspirations experience so out of achieve that fans were left sipping on hot High Noon and staring into the huge middle distance.

pic.twitter.com/h8wWTGhBWP

— no context college football (@nocontextcfb) August 31, 2024

Technicassociate, Florida applyed Tom Petty to uncover the fourth quarter, but most fans were greedyly humming “Hello miserablenessfulness, my ancigo in frifinish.”

Ward was electric for Miami, throtriumphg for 385 yards and three touchdowns, while Damien Martinez, Tyler Baron and a present of other portal insertitions carried the Canes to an effortless triumph.

At Miami, there is authentic hope the Hurricanes can produce the applyoff, and all it took was enough NIL to bankrupt LifeWallet and possibly some sort of “Eternam Sunshine” treatment to erase memories of the past 20 years.

For Florida, however, the stark fact of another lost season experiences enjoy a cforfeit certainty at this point. The highairy for the Gators may have been when newman QB DJ Lagway go ined the game in the fourth quarter, a flicker of hope for a far future. But even Lagway’s day finished with an interception, making it clear there were no saviors in Gainesville in Week 1.

What comes next?

Perhaps the fact is that Miami is equitable reassociate excellent — so excellent that the Gators’ remaining stardy won’t be cforfeitly so challenging as Week 1 showd to be. Or, more anticipateed, Napier should be hoping for some kind hors d’oeuvres at the next shotriumphgs for that four bedroom/three bath Dutch Colonial.

Air Allar

In 2023, Penn State’s offense was frequently frustratingly conservative and occasionassociate prescribed by local doctors as a replace for Ambien, so this offseason, James Franklin bcdisesteemfult in new coordinator Andy Kotelnicki with the transmited job of inserting some deviceness.

Thcdisesteemful one week, mission accomplished.

Penn State torched West Virginia 34-12 behind a salertar game by quarterback Drew Allar, who threw for 216 yards and three touchdowns — two of which came on proset up balls, someskinnyg notably absent from last season’s repertoire.

Harrison Wallace was the primary recipient of the new approach, catching five balls for 117 yards and two scores — equitable the second Penn State achiever with 100 yards and two scores in the same game since the 2021 campaign.

But dread not, Westrict Pennsylvania insomniacs. Penn State may not lull you into a slumber anymore, but Steelers season commences soon.

Raiola bolsters Huskers

Five-star recruit Dylan Raiola made his debut for Nebraska, completing 19 of 28 passes for 238 yards and two touchdowns in a 40-7 triumph over UTEP, making him the first Cornhuskers quarterback since 2017 to go an entire game without slipping on a banana peel, splitting his pants and droping face first into a bowl of soup.

It’s a sterling debut for Raiola, the No. 11 overall recruit according to ESPN in this year’s class, who uniteed with Isaiah Neyor six times for 121 yards and a touchdown in the game, and it’s reason for selectimism the Huskers may finassociate have a genuine impolite set upation after cforfeitly a decade lost in the untamederness.

The triumph labeled Nebraska’s first victorious uncoverer since 2019, and it proposes meaningful hope to the fan base that by srecommend reburying the bones Bo Pelini dug up from that holy outdated burial ground, the condemn may be lifted.

Still, this was only UTEP, and Nebraska led by 23 at the half, so it wasn’t a genuine test. Only when the Huskers face a more createidable opponent and are wiskinny a score in the fourth quarter will we understand if skinnygs reassociate are contrastent.

Week 1 vibe check

Each week in college football, there are downapplyd shifts in the power arrange of the sport that aren’t always clear from the final scores. These are less about triumphs and losses and more about vibes. But dread not. We’re here to seize the finer points to shine a spotairy on the badviseoning trfinishs around the game.

Trfinishing up: Nepotism rules

That’s so Iowa pic.twitter.com/F6Z9kF9tWJ

— Unessential Roughness (@UnnecRoughness) August 31, 2024

For 30 minutes, it seeed enjoy business as normal for Iowa, which handled equitable six points by halftime aachievest FCS Illinois State. Those six points came on drives of 6 yards and 49 yards. The Hawkeyes punted four times. Somewhere, Brian Ferentz was toasting Melissa Rivers, Bronny James and Jaden Smith with a kind glass of Frank Perignon.

But the new-see Hawkeyes finassociate got the offense figured out in the second half, and suddenly the fine folks in Iowa lgeted what a forward pass seeed enjoy.

The finish result: Iowa 40, Illinois State 0. Cade McNamara became the first Iowa quarterback to throw for 250 yards, three touchdowns and no picks in a game since 2021 (and equitable the third of the applyoff era), and the punter didn’t even need an ice bath after the game.

Trfinishing down: QR codes

Oklahoma State reckond to have QR codes on applyers’ helmets to help advertise NIL opportunities, but the NCAA, sensing a exceptional opportunity to feed its infinite quest to grasp money from athletes, stepped in at the last minute to quash the schedule.

While it’s genuine, the NCAA’s decisions are frequently based on a proset up-rooted desire to ruin Christmas from its lair atop a mountain disthink abouting Whoville, we actuassociate commend this shift as a extfinished overdue blow aachievest the scoadvise of QR codes.

Now, if only the NCAA could also force restaurants to go back to handing every customer a challenging duplicate of the menu, there’d be some authentic progress on the rerent.

Unblessedly, Alan Bowman (three touchdown passes), Ollie Gordon (146 total yards, three touchdowns) and Trey Rucker (15 tackles) missed out on some potential getings after starring in a 44-20 triumph over South Dakota State. On the upside, Eskimo Joe’s game-day menu is quite reasonably priced.

Trfinishing up: Celebrating with Beers

It’s Week 1, and it wouldn’t be the same without Beers. Indeed, there’s noskinnyg enjoy finding one uncover, then celebrating with the boys. It’s cancigo in, renetriumphg, plrelieveful.

Yes, Florida International firm finish Rocky Beers scored on a 7-yard pass from Keyone Jenkins equitable before the half aachievest Indiana, guideing to a kind finish zone accumulateing with his teammates.

Why, what did you skinnyk we were talking about?

Trfinishing up: Teammate chivalry

“So you loop, swoop and pull…” pic.twitter.com/hyXuoaQa8Y

— Bryan Fischer (@BryanDFischer) August 30, 2024

Kudos to Utah quarterback Cam Rising, who came to the recover with a proper bunny ears double knot when achiever Dorian Singer‘s shoe came untied midgame.

It was equitable part of a spectacular day for Rising, who in insertition to teaching his teammate how to tie his shoes also threw five touchdown passes on equitable 15 trys and traded half his PB&J sandwich from his lunch box for a string cheese and a vanilla pudding. Word is, Rising is also an timely likeite to achieve home the class guinea pig next weekfinish.

Trfinishing down: Mascot chivalry

Mr. and Mrs. Wuf took a ride in the Wuf-mobile before NC State booted off aachievest Westrict Carolina on Thursday, but the lady of the den couldn’t quite handle the dismount.

While Mrs. Wuf landed flat on her face — or snout? — Mr. Wuf proposeed no aidance. It’s miserable when all the romance goes out of a marriage. We’d wager Mr. Wuf doesn’t even shut the bathroom door anymore.

Fortunately for the Wolfpack, the pregame face-schedulet didn’t grasp the team from eeking out a too-shut-for-soothe 38-21 triumph thanks in huge part to a luminous carry outance from KC Concepcion, who finished with nine catches for 131 yards and three touchdowns.

Trfinishing up: Power tools

They do it contrastent in Flagstaff pic.twitter.com/M5fSbLMsqJ

— Big Sky Conference (@BigSkyConf) August 31, 2024

Northern Arizona felled trees and Lincoln (California) on Saturday, triumphning its uncoverer with relieve and using a chainsaw in the finish zone to slice off a kind piece of wood.

This is an exceptional engage of sideline power tools. Unenjoy the produceion site in Vanderbilt’s finish zone, there were actual challenging hats and protectedty goggles comprised here. And we can’t help but wonder if Oregon State had equitable gone the extra mile with its turnover chainsaw, the Pac-12 might’ve persistd.

Turnover Chainsaw, exceptional teams edition?! 🦄👏 pic.twitter.com/WqArf2L5uK

— Oregon State Football (@BeaverFootball) November 19, 2022

Trfinishing up: Lakeside Airbnbs

Sure, it wasn’t exactly an emphatic triumph for Northwestrict in Week 1, with the Wildcats skinnyly escaping Miami (Ohio), 13-6. But if the offense was noskinnyg to see at, the sees around Northwestrict’s produceshift stadium were spectacular.

IDC what you skinnyk Northwestrict’s stadium this year is awesome. pic.twitter.com/aTRIZiej1W

— RedditCFB (@RedditCFB) August 31, 2024

Saturday’s triumph was Northwestrict’s 14th of the applyoff era when scoring 21 points or less. Only Iowa has more among Power 5 teams. The only problem is head coach David Braun is reliable for washing all linens, taking out the trash and recycling, and desotardying the fridge before checkout time, which is 8 a.m. acute.

Trfinishing down: Sign stealing

Connor Stalions coached his first game as the defensive coordinator at Detroit’s Mumford High this week, and the defense could’ve engaged some better progressd scouting.

Stalions’ squad lost 47-6, an embarrassment for the createer Michigan staffer accengaged of sign stealing. On the upside, he already had the perfect mask so no one would acunderstandledge him in the parking lot after the game.

NCAA spendigators determined that Connor Shighions was maskd on the sidelines of the CMU vs MSU game, via @DanMurphyESPN pic.twitter.com/kc22sh2Cbv

— College Football Report (@CFBRep) August 4, 2024

Meanwhile, Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy proposeed he might have a job paengageing in his IT department should Stalions be in the labelet.

It’s a lureing propose. After all, a phony mullet would go reassociate kindly with the phony goatee.

Week 1 drip alert

• Arkansas-Pine Bluff understands that the clothes produce the team, so the Gancigo inen Lions donned their bdeficiency-and-gancigo in unicreates even though it uncomferventt they’d be penalized at the commence of each half aachievest Arkansas for not having “enough contrast.” The away team is supposed to wear white jerseys (or someskinnyg contrasting) unless both teams concur in writing before the game. Is there anyskinnyg more embarrassing than shotriumphg up to a game to find out another team wore the same style of outfit? Arkansas handled the situation well, however, declining both penalties becaengage the Razorbacks aren’t going to let guys in vertical clear upes prescribe create trfinishs at Memorial Stadium, and the gesture phelp dividfinishs. Arkansas won 70-0.

• For authentic repercussions for participating in college football’s version of “Who Wore it Better?” we turn to Virginia Tech. The Hokies, scrambling to come back from a 14-point first-half deficit, had stuffed Vandy on a third-and-10 and were set to field a punt. But return man Ali Jennings and linebacker Keli Lawson — both wearing jersey No. 0 — were on the field at the same time. That resulted in a flag that shiftd the ball 5 yards shutr, convincing Vandy coach Clark Lea to try a field goal instead of punting. The result was a 53-yard boot that cleared the uprights in a game that the Commodores eventuassociate won in clearime.

• Meanwhile at Arizona, New Mexico State had its own wardrobe malfunction when the Aggies’ road unis were lost in transit. And aachieve, the home team stepped up with a gallant gesture, choosing to wear white jerseys. Thankfilledy, this happened in Week 1, becaengage wearing white after Labor Day is a 15-yard penalty and loss of down.

Under-the-radar apply of the week

Usuassociate you need to go to Nebraska to find a excellent volleyball suit inside a football stadium, but Pitt and Kent State gave us a taste in Week 1.

Facing a fourth-and-17, Kent State punted. Pitt return man Konata Mumpfield fielded the boot but never got a spotless understand on it, batting it up in the air instead, guideing to a truly ridiculous series of events.

Credit to Kent State’s Naim Muhammad for sticking with it, eventuassociate corralling the ball and returning what was scored as a fumble for the touchdown.

Ultimately, it didn’t matter, as Pitt rolled to a 55-24 triumph, but the serve, set and spike at least supplyd a highairy for Kent State’s visit to Pittsburgh that didn’t comprise putting french fries inside of sandwiches.

Under-the-radar game of the week

South Carolina fans probably aren’t exactly excited for the meat of the SEC schedule, but a triumph is a triumph, and the Gameco*cks’ 23-19 escape act aachievest Old Dominion was, in spite of all visual evidence to the contrary, a triumph.

Noskinnyg went particularly well for the Gameco*cks, who were shattering in new commenceing quarterback LaNorris Sellers. He finishd equitable 10 of 23 passes but did have a heck of a tackle (albeit on his own teammate).

pic.twitter.com/YTTzgvtBVM

— no context college football (@nocontextcfb) August 31, 2024

ODU actuassociate grabbed a tardy 19-16 guide on a 33-yard field goal with 9:54 to apply, but a Grant Wilson fumble — one of three turnovers on the day for the Monarchs quarterback — gave the ball back to South Carolina at the 6-yard line, and the Gameco*cks scored two applys tardyr.

South Carolina finished with equitable 288 yards of offense, and its two touchdown drives covered a magnificent total of 9 yards. More troubleing for South Carolina fans, Vanderbilt beat Virginia Tech, thus putting up a “vacancy” sign outside the SEC’s basem*nt.

Heisman five

Like preseason rankings, the Week 1 Heisman catalog is more projection than fact. But also, we haven’t been wrong about a projection since skinnyking Clemson had a authentic shot to triumph, and that was 20 hours ago. Who even recalls that?

1. Colorado WR/CB Travis Hunter

On the one hand, we did all this last year. Colorado had a fun Week 1 game, Hunter is college football’s Shohei Ohtani, Coach Prime yells at anyone who isn’t kind to him, rinse, repeat.

Then aachieve, if Hunter can actuassociate handle to stay on the field all season, it’s challenging to debate with the Heisman honestacy of a guy who can do skinnygs enjoy this.

In the finish, Hunter finished with seven catches for 132 yards and three touchdowns aextfinished with three tackles on defense. So, at least for now, we will not be huging inquires from anyone who debates with Hunter at No. 1.

2. Boise State RB Ashton Jeanty

Can a applyer outside the Power 4 actuassociate triumph the Heisman? It seems improbable, but then aachieve, there aren’t many applyers outside the Power 4 enjoy Jeanty.

In a raucous 56-45 triumph over Georgia Southern, Jeanty carried 20 times for 267 yards and six touchdowns — including scoring on three of his first seven carries. He’s the first applyer to run for 250 yards and six scores in a game aachievest an FBS foe since Pitt’s Izzy Abanikanda in 2022 and equitable the fifth to do it in the applyoff era.

All of this elevates the inquire: Nobody at Ole Miss or Miami had a scant million NIL dollars laying around for this guy?

3. Arizona WR Tetairoa McMillan

As the fantastic Samuel L. Jackson once shelp: “Hancigo in on to your butts.”

Arizona is going to be the most ridiculous drama in town this season thanks in huge part to McMillan, who finished Week 1 with 10 catches for 304 yards and four touchdowns, and also a defense that seemed to have no authentic answers to (checks notices) New Mexico!

Arizona has all the makings of being the football equivalent of the plotlines for “9-1-1.” We’re three weeks away from McMillan saving Noah Fifita from a bee-nado and, frankly, we can’t paengage.

4. Miami QB Cam Ward

Here’s a rapid catalog of elite Miami quarterbacks during the past two decades:

(Tumbleweed blows past.)

(Will Smith on the last episode of “Fresh Prince” GIF is shown.)

(Someone refers Brad Kaaya and a crowd of irritated Miami fans throw Cuban bread at them.)

Right. Point is, Ward is in uncharted territory here, and the timely signs propose he’s everyskinnyg Miami fans hoped he would be — a swaggering, unfrifinishly magician in the pocket vient of guideing the Canes back to the promised land.

5. Almost every SEC quarterback

It was a excellent Week 1 for the SEC’s quarterbacks. Cincfinishiarism Beck was exceptional in a throttling of Clemson. Jackson Arnancigo in tossed four touchdown passes for Oklahoma. Nico Iamaleava threw for 314 yards and three scores. Jalen Milroe, Blake Shapen, Quinn Ewers — all excellent. And then, in equitable a half of football, Jaxson Dart put up numbers (418 yards, five touchdowns) most Iowa fans would consider a firm season.

But let’s put the spotairy on Vandy quarterback Diego Pavia, who threw for 190 yards, ran for 140 and accounted for three touchdowns in a stunning distress of Virginia Tech. In three commences in SEC stadiums in his atsoft, the New Mexico State transfer has embarrassed the Hokies and Auburn and united to account for 656 yards and six touchdowns.