College Football Scores 2015: Week 1 Results and Top Stars for Top 25 Teams
It may officially still be summer on the calendar, but it most certainly feels like fall is here with the arrival of the 2015 NCAA college football season.
Week 1 began in earnest on Thursday, highlighted by Utah sullying Jim Harbaugh's coaching debut at Michigan, Georgia Tech's balletic triple option ripping Alcorn State to shreds and Minnesota's Golden Gophers calling on their fellow rodent, the chipmunk, to help out with a little gamesmanship against No. 2 TCU, via SportsCenter:
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
On Friday, it was No. 4 Baylor and No. 5 Michigan State cruising to wins over SMU and Western Michigan, respectively.
Saturday saw all kinds of impressive performances and shenanigans. No. 13 UCLA's freshman quarterback Josh Rosen made this whole college football thing look easy, Cal and No. 17 Ole Miss might have the NCAA thinking about a mercy rule and Northwestern upset No. 21 Stanford, 16-6
Here's a rundown of the complete results from Week 1 up to Saturday evening at 8 p.m. ET, followed by a look at a few standout performers from teams ranked in the Associated Press Top 25.
| Winner | Score | Loser |
| No. 2 TCU | 23-17 | Minnesota |
| No. 16 Georgia Tech | 69-6 | Alcorn State |
| No. 22 Arizona | 42-32 | Texas San Antonio |
| South Carolina | 17-13 | UNC |
| Florida International | 15-14 | UCF |
| Oklahoma State | 24-13 | Central Michigan |
| Wake Forest | 41-3 | Elon |
| Ball State | 46-38 | VMI |
| Connecticut | 20-15 | Villanova |
| Western Kentucky | 14-12 | Vanderbilt |
| Utah | 24-17 | Michigan |
| Ohio | 45-28 | Idaho |
| Utah State | 12-9 | Southern Utah |
| Duke | 37-7 | Tulane |
| Nevada | 31-17 | UC Davis |
| San Jose State | 43-13 | New Hampshire |
| Fresno State | 34-13 | Abilene Christian |
| Hawaii | 28-20 | Colorado |
| Winner | Score | Loser |
| No. 4 Baylor | 56-21 | SMU |
| No. 5 Michigan State | 37-24 | Western Michigan |
| No. 23 Boise State | 16-13 | Washington |
| Charlotte | 23-20 | Georgia State |
| Fordham | 37-35 | Army |
| Oregon State | 26-7 | Weber State |
| Syracuse | 47-0 | Rhode Island |
| Winner | Score | Loser |
| No. 24 Missouri | 34-3 | Southeast Missouri State |
| No. 6 Auburn | 31-24 | Louisville |
| No. 18 Arkansas | 48-13 | UTEP |
| No. 13 UCLA | 34-16 | Virginia |
| No. 12 Clemson | 49-10 | Wofford |
| No. 17 Ole Miss | 76-3 | Tennessee-Martin |
| No. 9 Georgia | 51-14 | Louisiana-Monroe |
| Northwestern | 16-6 | No. 21 Stanford |
| Florida Atlantic | 44-41 | Tulsa |
| Rice | 56-16 | Wagner |
| Cal | 73-14 | Grambling State |
| Navy | 48-10 | Colgate |
| Rutgers | 63-13 | Norfolk State |
| Iowa | 31-14 | Illinois State |
| Maryland | 50-21 | Richmond |
| South Dakota | 41-38 | Kansas |
| Pittsburgh | 45-37 | Youngstown State |
| Boston College | 24-3 | Maine |
| Portland State | 24-17 | Washington State |
| Illinois | 52-3 | Kent State |
| Air Force | 63-7 | Morgan State |
| Buffalo | 51-14 | Albany |
| Miami (OH) | 26-7 | Presbyterian |
| Appalachian State | 49-0 | Howard |
| Texas Tech | 59-45 | Sam Houston State |
| BYU | 33-28 | Nebraska |
| Old Dominion | 38-34 | Eastern Michigan |
| Temple | 27-10 | Penn State |
| Indiana | 48-47 | Southern Illinois |
| Colorado State | 65-13 | Savannah State |
| North Dakota | 24-13 | Wyoming |
Top Stars for Top 25 Teams
Josh Rosen, QB, UCLA
| No. 16 Georgia Tech | Marcus Marshall | RB | 8 CAR, 184 YDS, 2 TD |
| No. 2 TCU | Trevone Boykin | QB | 26-42, 246 YDS, 1 TD, 1 INT; 18 CAR, 92 YDS, 1 TD |
| No. 22 Arizona | Anu Solomon | QB | 22-36, 229 YDS, 4 TD; 5 CAR, 35 YDS |
| No. 5 Michigan State | Riley Bullough | DL | 7 SOLO, 2 AST, 3 sacks |
| No. 4 Baylor | Seth Russell | QB | 15-30, 376 YDS, 5 TD, 1 INT |
| No. 23 Boise State | Jeremy McNichols | RB | 24 CAR, 89 YDS, 2 TD; 3 REC, 24 YDS |
| No. 21 Stanford | Blake Martinez | ILB | 7 SOLO, 7 AST, .5 TFL |
| No. 9 Georgia | Nick Chubb | RB | 16 CAR, 120 YDS, 2 TD |
| No. 17 Ole Miss | Trae Elston | DB | 2 SOLO, 1 AST, 1 TFL; 1 INT, 93 YDS, 1 TD |
| No. 12 Clemson | DeShaun Watson | QB | 18-22, 194 YDS, 2 TD; 2 CAR, 22 YDS |
| No. 13 UCLA | Josh Rosen | QB | 28-35, 351 YDS, 3 TD |
| No. 18 Arkansas | Brandon Allen | QB | 14-18, 308 YDS, 4 TD |
| No. 6 Auburn | Ricardo Louis | WR | 3 REC 55 YDS, 1 TD; 4 CAR, 20 YDS, 1 TD |
| No. 24 Missouri | Maty Mauk | QB | 12-22, 181 YDS, 2 TD, 1 INT |
Let's not waste any time in getting Josh Rosen's picture next to the word "poise" in the dictionary. The true freshman wasted little time in asserting himself in the Bruins offense, throwing for 351 yards and three touchdowns against Virginia on Saturday.
Feast your eyes on this sumptuous 30-yard touchdown pass to Thomas Duarte, via Pac-12 Networks:
Rosen's two other touchdown passes came on short throws, but that highlight alone is good enough to get UCLA fans dreaming about a Pac-12 title, and perhaps more.
UCLA has had plenty of fine quarterbacks over the years, but ESPN Stats & Info pointed out no Bruins true freshman ever put together a game like Rosen's debut:
Rosen was (and considering it's only one game, still is) the main question mark for the Bruins this season. The team is returning a number of starters on both sides of the ball, including two-way sensation Myles Jack and running back Paul Perkins.
Considering Rosen wasn't the only true freshman to make a big impact in the Bruins backfield—Soso Jamabo picked up 79 yards on the ground in his first game—the future is bright in Westwood.
Marcus Marshall, RB, Georgia Tech
In keeping with the freshman-phenom theme, Marcus Marshall staked an early claim to this year's title of top home-run hitting running back, rushing for a staggering 184 yards and two scores on just eight carries on Thursday. Of course, this performance came against lowly Alcorn State, but it's at least safe to say Marshall will get his touches in coach Paul Johnson's run-heavy offense.
The highlights from the game show just how dangerous the triple option can be when firing on all cylinders:
Johnson wasn't afraid to let Marshall know that despite the obvious talent, there are still aspects of his game he needs to work on.
“Certainly, Marcus Marshall can hit some big plays,” Johnson said, via the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Ken Sugiura. “He needs to learn to hang onto that football. We’ll have a little discussion on that. But it’s like I said - he’s got ability.”
Under Johnson's steady tutelage and with a number of talented players in the fold, the Yellow Jackets are primed to be the class of the ACC this season.
Brandon Allen, QB, Arkansas
All of the turn-the-corner talk surrounding Arkansas this year appears to be founded, as the Razorbacks shamed UTEP 48-13 in Fayetteville. Brandon Allen's career-high 308 yards were a big reason for the win. ESPN.com's Alex Scarborough called him the player of the game:
"Allen tied a career high for touchdown passes in a single game in the first half alone. The formerly indecisive, inaccurate QB was gone. In his place was something different, someone with a strong arm and the confidence of a fifth-year senior. It was just one game against a lesser opponent in UTEP, but 308 yards and four touchdowns on 14 of 18 passing isn’t a bad way to start the year.
"
If Allen continues to play like this, Arkansas could put up a big fight in the SEC West. Alabama's offense might not be quite as good as it has been in recent years, while Auburn signal-caller Jeremy Johnson got off to a rough start with three picks against Louisville.
LSU might be a one-dimensional offense with running behind Leonard Fournette. Ole Miss was scary good against Tennessee-Martin, but there's no surefire elite team this year.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
