College Football Week 1 Recap: Scores and highlights from Michigan, Alabama, Penn State and more

• Noon ET — Delaware at Penn State exclusively on Peacock
• 7:30 p.m. ET — Charlotte at Maryland on NBC and Peacock

FINAL:

• UT Martin 7-48 Georgia
• Nevada 14-66 USC
• SEMO 0-45 Kansas State
• New Mexico 10-52 Texas A&M
• Middle Tennessee 7-56 Alabama
• West Virginia 15-38 Penn State
• North Carolina 31-17 South Carolina

Can the Nittany Lions beat Ohio State and/or Michigan to pave their way to the final four-team College Football Playoff? Only time will tell, but Week 1 was a good start and Drew Allar has an arm.

Penn State’s Drew Allar was done for the day, opening the door for freshman QB Beau Pribula to make his own magic on the ground! 5-yard run to finish off West Virginia 38-15.

It seems Michigan and Penn State are having a battle to see who has the most fans in the stands today. Mark November 11 on your calendars, folks! This one is going to be SPICY!

Okay, so it went like this:

—> Penn State’s Malik McClain scores another TD to put Penn State up 31-7
—> West Virginia answers with a 1-yd TD run from a scrambling Garrett Greene
—> Offense lines up in a spinning carousel huddle (inspo: the Kansas City Chiefs’ sugar huddle) and converts the 2-point conversion off a shovel pass from Greene
—> Penn State 31-15 West Virginia
—> Onside kick from WVU is unsuccessful

Texas State is currently up 42-31 on Baylor... but THIS catch is the real story.

Nittany Lions are up 24 to 7 on West Virginia with less than 8 minutes to go after a successful 25-yard field goal from Alex Felkins.

Penn State is up 21-7 on West Virginia heading into the 4th.

Watch on NBC or Peacock.

More details here: How to watch West Virginia vs. No. 7 Penn State: Time, TV/live stream, key storylines for Week 1 matchup - NBC Sports

Two-time reigning national champion and preseason No. 1 Georgia started the day slow against UT Martin, only scoring one touchdown in the 1st and entering the half up 17-0.

But the offense, highlighted by new starting QB Carson Beck and star TE Brock Bowers, started clicking in the second half.

The cherry on top to the Bulldogs’ 48-7 win was a pick-six from Kyron Jones.

While the offense still has work to do, the Georgia defense showed promise in picking up where it left off.

Lose your top two receivers to the NFL? No problem for Penn State! KeAndre Lambert-Smith is ready to fill the void!

West Virginia 7-21 Penn State

• UT Martin 0-31 Georgia, Q4
• Nevada 7-35 USC, Q3
• SEMO 0-35 Kansas State, Halftime
• New Mexico 7-35 Texas A&M, Halftime
• North Carolina 10-14 South Carolina, Q2
• West Virginia 7-14 Penn State, Q2
• Middle Tennessee 0-14 Alabama, Q2
• South Alabama 0-10 Tulane, Q2

After answering Penn State’s first TD with one of their own, West Virginia couldn’t hold Nick Singleton. Penn State back on top, 14-7.

(at Beaver Stadium of all places!)

The current Heisman Trophy winner and USC offensive line wrecked Nevada during this play.

We’re thinking Saban and Co. made the right call putting Milroe under center...

West Virginia 0-7 Penn State

No. 7 Penn State starts its season against West Virginia at home NOW on NBC & Peacock.

How to watch West Virginia vs. No. 7 Penn State: Time, TV/live stream, key storylines for Week 1 matchup - NBC Sports

FINAL:

• Portland State 7-81 Oregon
• Ohio State 23-3 Indiana
• Buffalo 17-38 Wisconsin
• Rice 10-37 Texas
• Tennessee State 3-56 Notre Dame
• Boise State 19-56 Washington

LIVE:

• UT Martin 0-14 Georgia, Q2
• Nevada 7-20 USC, Q1
• SEMO 0-7 Kansas State, Q1
• New Mexico 0-0 Texas A&M, Q1

There were some significant rule changes implemented for the 2023 CFB season (Division I & Division II).

The most prevalent one will shorten games as the NCAA adopts a similar rule to the NFL’s clock rules, allowing the game clock to run even after a first down is gained.

This is a change from previous years, when the clock stopped after every first down. The exception is the last two minutes of either half, when a gained first down will stop the clock.

“This rule change is a small step intended to reduce the overall game time and will give us some time to review the impact of the change,” Kirby Smart, co-chair of the committee and Georgia’s head coach, said.

In addition to the new first down rule, the NCAA implemented other rule changes and other clarifications such as:

• Teams will be prohibited from calling consecutive team timeouts: This rule prohibits teams from calling back-to-back timeouts as a tactic sometimes used to “ice the kicker.” In college football, teams get three timeouts per half each lasting about 90 seconds.
• Penalties at the end of the first and third quarters will carry over and be enforced on the first play of the next quarter.
• Teams will have the optional use of instant replay in games that do not have an instant replay booth official.
• Second-half warmup activities guidelines were established, including that teams are required to wait until the field is made available to return and have designated areas of the field to warm up.
• When teams are on the field, drones are not allowed over the playing surface or the team area.

Read more here.

How to watch West Virginia vs. No. 7 Penn State: Time, TV/live stream, key storylines for Week 1 matchup - NBC Sports

• FINAL: Mercer 7 — Ole Miss 73
  
• Portland State 7 — Oregon 74, Q4
• Ohio State 13 — Indiana 3, Q3
• Buffalo 10 — Wisconsin 21, Q3
• Rice 3 — Texas 30, Q3
• Tennessee State 3 — Notre Dame 42, Q3
• Boise State 19 — Washington 28, Q3

Cal currently up on North Texas, 27-14, with less than 5 left in the half.

Have you ever seen a QB run 35 yards BACKWARDS from the line of scrimmage before completing a pass to convert on 4th and 5?

Now you have.

P.S. BC ended up falling to Northern Illinois, 24-27, in OT.

Reigning two-time national champ Georgia is formally introducing a new live mascot today. Uga XI aka Boom is looking ready for his first official game between the hedges!

Boom succeeded his predecessor, Uga X aka Que, in April at the Bulldogs’ spring game. Que retired as the most successful Uga in program history.

Watch Notre Dame vs. Tennessee State here. Check out the Fighting Irish’s first score of the game:

Unofficial Ole Miss football mascot and head coach Lane Kiffin’s yellow Labrador retriever had the UNDISPUTABLE play of the game today. We will take take no arguments at this time.

The Auburn Tigers honored musician Jimmy Buffett Saturday inside Jordan-Hare Stadium, where they blasted Buffett’s hit Margaritaville. Buffett died Friday at the age of 76.

JT Daniels has played for four Division 1 schools in his NCAA career: USC ('18-'19), Georgia ('20-'21), West Virginia ('22), and Rice ('23).

He was part of Georgia’s national championship effort in 2021, backing up Stetson Bennett after beginning the season as the starter.

Noon games have wrapped! Let’s check out how those games turned out and where the 3:30-ish games stand.

• Virginia 13 — Tennessee 49
• Utah State 14 — Iowa 24
• East Carolina 3 — Michigan 30
• Arkansas State 0 — Oklahoma 73
• Colorado 45 — TCU 42

• Mercer 7 — Ole Miss 45, Q3
• Portland State 7 — Oregon 29, Q2
• Ohio State 7 — Indiana 0, Q1
• Buffalo 7 — Wisconsin 7, Q1
• Rice 3 — Texas 7, Q1
• Tennessee State 3 — Notre Dame 7, Q1
• Boise State 0 — Washington 0, Q1

It’s PRIME TIME! Colorado head coach Deion Sanders all but silenced critics when his team, led by son Shedeur Sanders, beat #17 TCU — a CFP finalist last year — 45-42 in a shootout on Saturday afternoon.

It was Sanders’ first game as head coach and the first game as a Buff for 87 of his players. The Buffaloes were 1-11 last season.

The CU defense stopped TCU on 4th and 9 to seal the deal.

“We told we’re coming. You thought we was joking, but guess what? We keep receipts,” Sanders said on Fox about the naysayers after the game.

Final stats for QB Shedeur Sanders:
38-47, 510 yards, 4 TDs

Final stats for RB Dylan Edwards:
Receiving: 5 REC, 135 yards, 3 TD
Rushing: 6 CAR, 24 yards, 1 TD

Final stats for WR/DB Travis Hunter:
11 REC, 119 yards, 1 INT

In his first game as a Buffalo, Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders — head coach Deion’s son — has set the school record for passing yards in a single game with 510 yards — and the game isn’t even over yet!

On what could’ve been the nail in the coffin for the Buffaloes — 4th and 2 with 4:30 to go — Colorado’s Sanders throws a pass to RB (!!!) Dylan Edwards who toes the sideline and evades multiple tackles to score and put Colorado up 45-42 on TCU after the PAT.

That’s Edwards’ 3rd receiving TD of the day and fourth overall!

After a hard-fought game, East Carolina tacks on 3 to prevent a shutout against Michigan while the No. 2 Wolverines start strong, led by an outstanding performance from QB J.J. McCarthy.

Here’s a breakdown of McCarthy’s first half performance:

If you didn’t know already, Shedeur Sanders, Deion Sanders’ son, is the quarterback for his dad’s new team, the Colorado Buffaloes, and he just through a long DART to Jimmy Horn Jr. to regain the lead against TCU with less than 8 minutes to play. Colorado 38 — TCU 35. Kid can PLAY!

Shedeur Sanders so far this game:
35-43, 444 yards, 3 TDs

• Virginia 10 — Tennessee 35, Start of Q4
• Utah State 6 — Iowa 17, Q4
• East Carolina 0 — Michigan 30, Q4
• Arkansas State 0 — Oklahoma 66, Start of Q4
• Colorado 24 — TCU 28, Q3
• Mercer 7 — Ole Miss 28, Start of Q2

Final stats for J.J. McCarthy in Game 1: 26-30, 280 yards, 3 TD

While you’re watching No. 2 Michigan beat East Carolina on Peacock, might as well pull up a second screen and watch the madness of this Colorado vs. #17 TCU game unfold!

Check out this incredible interception from the Buff’s Travis Hunter!

Massive play from Mercer QB Carter Peevy to get the Bears on the board against Ole Miss!

Unfortunately, the tie game didn’t last long. Rebels now up 21-7 with 6 minutes left in the 1st.

Chip Towers, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Georgia Bulldogs beat writer, shared a bittersweet moment with Barbara Dooley — wife of Georgia’s legendary head coach Vince Dooley — earlier today.

Calls are just not going East Carolina’s way today. Plenty to point out, but most notably the not-offsides ruling from the first TD of the game, and then Jack Powers gets ejected for a questionable targeting call. Rules consultant for Peacock broadcast is surprised the call wasn’t overturned.

J.J. McCarthy and Roman Wilson are the magic duo today, with the former hitting the latter for his third TD catch of the day to put Michigan up 30-0 over East Carolina.

Fun fact about Wilson: He attended St. Louis High School on Oahu and played football and ran track. It was a few islands over from where Wilson grew up on Maui. He had to commute via plane before eventually moving in with teammates on Oahu.

The likes of Tua Tagovailoa, Marcus Mariota, and Nate Herbig are all alumni of St. Louis High.

Michigan is without head coach Jim Harbaugh on gameday for the first three games of the season due to a university-imposed suspension, which stemmed from an NCAA investigation into recruiting violations during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Before the game, starting QB J.J. McCarthy expressed his grievance by sporting a Harbaugh No. 4 shirt, in a tribute to Harbaugh’s own time playing at Michigan and the number he wore. The word “Free” was taped above Harbaugh’s name. Details here.

Fast forward to the Wolverines’ first drive of the game, and the team lined up and held up four fingers — again, an ode to Harbaugh’s old jersey number — in another tribute to their coach.

Harbaugh is allowed to coach during the week. He just can’t coach during the games.

• Virginia 3 — Tennessee 21, Halftime
• Utah State 3 — Iowa 17, Halftime
• East Carolina 0 — Michigan 23, Halftime
• Arkansas State 0 — Oklahoma 45, Halftime
• Colorado 17 — TCU 14, Halftime

Coach Prime, aka Deion Sanders, is primed for his first win as the head coach of Colorado after a tumultuous offseason that saw Sanders add 87 new players to his roster — a massive roster overhaul that’s called into question the culture around the program to start the season.

“I’m not welcoming to that word, culture,” Sanders said, according to Bleacher Report. “That’s all I heard when I was in Jackson. Culture, culture, culture, culture, culture. Now culture, culture. What the heck does that mean?”

He added: “I don’t care about culture. I don’t care. I don’t care if they like each other, man. I want to win. I’ve been on some teams where the quarterback didn’t like the receiver, but they darn sure made harmony when the ball was snapped.”

Read more here.

Saturday’s game against the Vols marks Hollins and the Cavaliers’ first since an on-campus shooting in November killed players Devin Chandler, Lavel Davis Jr., and D’Sean Perry. Hollins was one of two people wounded in the shooting and was shot in the abdomen. He returned to practice in the spring and even scored a TD in Virginia’s spring game.

Virginia cancelled its final two games of the season after the shooting and finished 3-7.

Read more here.

• Virginia 0 — Tennessee 14, Q2
• Utah State 3 — Iowa 14, Q2
• East Carolina 0 — Michigan 20, Q2
• Arkansas State 0 — Oklahoma 35, Q2
• Colorado 14 — TCU 7, Q2

Michigan misses the extra point, but 20-0 ain’t too shabby.

The beginning of the Deion Sanders era for Colorado has seemingly overshadowed what TCU did last season: making it to the CFP National Championship.

Of course, the Horned Frogs were beat 65-7 by Georgia, but still, put some respect on getting that far!

All that being said, Buffaloes up 14-7 halfway through the second.

Gets us EVERY time!

Michigan star RB Blake Corum breaks away for a 37-yard run to open the 2nd quarter, setting himself up for a 2-yard TD.

Michigan’s Mike Sainristil gets the Wolverines’ first INT of the year and setting up what initially looks like a passing TD from a scrambling J.J. McCarthy, but on second glance looks like he’s clearly offsides. Seemingly everyone — broadcast team, beat writers, myself — think it’s coming back, but the call stands! Michigan up 7-0.

Trying to find East Carolina vs. No. 2 Michigan on TV? It’s streaming exclusively on Peacock!

Details here: How to watch East Carolina vs. No. 2 Michigan: Time, live stream, key storylines and more for Week 1 matchup - NBC Sports

Week 1 of college football doesn’t start today — there have been quite a few games so far, not to mention Week 0 last week, so let’s catch up on what’s happened the past few days:

- #14 Utah beat Florida 24-11 despite a valiant effort from the Gators’ junior QB Graham Mertz, who went 31-44 for 333 yards. His one late passing touchdown (and ensuing 2-point conversion) was all the offense could muster against a stout Ute defense.
- Rhode Island’s Kasim Hill threw for over 400 yards and 4 touchdowns against Georgia State. Still, it wasn’t enough, with the Panthers winning 42-35, thanks in large part to Marcus Carroll’s near-200-yard effort on the ground that resulted in 3 TDs and an average of 8 yards/carry.
- Minnesota and Nebraska needed a full four quarters to decide this one after not being able to get anything going early. Minnesota ultimately prevailed, 13-10.
- Only down by three at the half, Central Michigan was able to keep up with Michigan State early, but the field opened up for the Spartan’s passing game in the second half, with Noah Kim throwing for nearly 300 yards, two TDs, and no interceptions. Nathan Carter added 113 yards and a TD on the ground to separate the Spartans from the Chippewas, 31-7.
- Georgia Tech looked like it had firm control of its kickoff game against Louisville after racking up 28 points in the second quarter, but the Cardinals rallied in the second half to put up 26 points and win by five, 39-34.

Brad Thomas, Vaughn Dalzell and Eric Froton reveal their best bets for the entire Week 1 slate of the Big Ten season.