| Week Two |
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No. 1
Florida 49 |
at Gainesville, Fla. |
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Marshall 14 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
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| The Star |
Rex Grossman, QB, Florida
Has he won the job now? Completed 20-of-30 for 375 yards and three TDs, almost entirely in one half.
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| The Skinny |
Grossman came out smoking, connecting on several throws with Jabar Gaffney, and the Herd barely knew what hit them. The Gators had to be happy with the pressure they got up front, but Marshall QB Byron Leftwich still managed to complete 63.4 percent of his passes (26-of-41).
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| The Future |
Florida (1-0): Saturday vs. La.-Monroe
Marshall (0-1): Saturday vs. Massachusetts
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No. 2
Miami 33 |
at State College, Pa. |
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Penn State 7 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
|
| The Star |
Clinton Portis, RB, Miami
Absolutely shredded the traditionally stout Penn State defense up the middle, gaining 159 yards on 13 carries.
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| The Skinny |
Penn State's worst fears came true: It has no offense, and not enough speed on defense to keep up with the 'Canes. The Lions couldn't stop Miami's run game or QB Ken Dorsey (20-of-27, 341 yards, 3 TDs), with UM's offense finishing with a stunning 600 yards. |
| The Future |
Miami (1-0): Saturday vs. Rutgers
Penn State (0-1): Sept. 13 at Virginia
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No. 3
Oklahoma 44 |
at Colorado Springs, Colo. |
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Air Force 3 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
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| The Star |
Quentin Griffin, RB, Oklahoma
Quickly becoming the new face of the Sooners' offense, the junior gained a career-high 202 yards on 27 carries.
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| The Skinny |
It was the OU defense that once again carried the day, holding Air Force to 132 rushing yards and forcing three turnovers. QB Nate Hybl (14-of-31, 158 yards) looked more comfortable but was hurt by dropped passes. One disturbing trend: the Sooners were 2-of-11 on third downs.
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| The Future |
Oklahoma (2-0): Saturday vs. North Texas
Air Force (0-1): Saturday vs. Tennessee Tech
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No. 4
Nebraska 42 |
at Lincoln, Neb. |
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Troy State 14 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
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| The Star |
Jason Lohr, NT, Nebraska
Led a ferocious Blackshirt pass rush with two sacks and two tackles for loss.
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| The Skinny |
Nebraska's offense was better than last week, gaining 330 rushing yards, but still struggled at times. The Huskers led only 28-14 at halftime and on one goal-line series got stuffed four times within the 5. But NU's defensive line was dominant, sacking Troy State QB Brock Nutter eight times.
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| The Future |
Nebraska (2-0): Saturday vs. No. 18 Notre Dame
Troy State (0-1): Saturday at Middle Tennessee St.
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No. 5
Texas 41 |
at Austin, Texas |
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New Mexico St. 7 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
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| The Star |
Chris Simms, QB, Texas
A decent 17-of-33 for 182 yards, two TDs and -- most importantly -- no interceptions.
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| The Skinny |
The Longhorns did a good job establishing their running game, getting over 60 yards from three different backs, Victor Ike, Ivan Williams and Cedric Benson. Simms connected with his receivers. And the defense held a decent Aggie offense to 222 yards.
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| The Future |
Texas (1-0): Saturday vs. North Carolina
New Mexico St. (0-2): Saturday vs. Oregon St.
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No. 6
Florida State 55 |
at Durham, N.C. |
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Duke 13 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
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| The Star |
Nick Maddox, RB, Florida State
Emerged as a legitimate ground threat, carrying 10 times for 86 yards, mostly early.
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| The Skinny |
After getting shut out in the first quarter, FSU stormed to 31 second-quarter points, taking advantage of a punt block and fumble recovery. It's apparent the 'Noles will have to win with defense while its young offense develops. Freshmen QBs Chris Rix (9-of-18, 133 yards) and Adrian McPherson (6-of-11, 48) were mostly adequate.
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| The Future |
Florida State (1-0): Saturday vs. UAB
Duke (0-1): Saturday at Rice
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No. 7
Oregon 31 |
at Eugene, Ore. |
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No. 22
Wisconsin 28 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
|
| The Star |
Onterrio Smith, RB, Oregon
Ex-Vol stepped up when Maurice Morris went down, gaining 89 yards on eight carries.
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| The Skinny |
In a back-and-forth thriller, Oregon QB Joey Harrington looked decidedly average (21-of-46, 2 TDs, 2 INTs) but made big plays when it mattered. Wisconsin QB Jim Sorgi exposed some holes in Oregon's defense, with game-breaking WR Lee Evans (8 catches, 169 yards) keeping the Badgers in the game.
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| The Future |
Oregon (1-0): Saturday vs. Utah
Wisconsin (1-1): Saturday vs. Fresno State
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No. 8
Tennessee 33 |
at Knoxville, Tenn. |
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Syracuse 9 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
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| The Star |
Travis Stephens, RB, Tennessee
Finally the top tailback as a fifth-year senior, Stephens shone with 114 yards on 15 carries.
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| The Skinny |
Syracuse has no offense, plain and simple. Take away one fourth quarter 74-yard TD pass and the Orangemen gained a paltry 148 yards. QB Troy Nunes was 5-of-16 for 39 yards before going out with an injury. But Tennessee's Casey Clausen (14-of-27, 130) didn't sparkle, either, losing both an interception and a fumble.
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| The Future |
Tennessee (1-0): Saturday at Arkansas
Syracuse (0-2) Saturday vs. UCF
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No. 9
Virginia Tech 52 |
at Blacksburg, Va. |
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Connecticut 10 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
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| The Star |
Grant Noel, QB, Virginia Tech
Michael who? In his first start, the junior was 16-of-20 for 265 yards and three touchdowns.
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| The Skinny |
The Hokies had a dream debut -- until Lee Suggs tore his ACL. The Heisman cadidate had 98 yards and two TDs but could now be out for the season. His possible replacement, prized recruit Kevin Jones, looked good with 63 yards on 11 carries. WR Andre Davis helped out Noel, busting two short throws into long TDs. |
| The Future |
UConn (0-1): Saturday vs. Eastern Washington
Virginia Tech (1-0): Saturday vs. Western Michigan
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Fresno State 44 |
at Fresno, Calif. |
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No. 10
Oregon State 24 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
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| The Star |
David Carr, QB, Fresno State
Carved up the vaunted Beavers secondary, throwing for 340 yards and four TDs -- 182 to Rodney Wright .
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| The Skinny |
So much for all the preseason hype around Oregon State. Or maybe Fresno State is for real. After beating Colorado last week, the Bulldogs were in total control against the Beavers to earn one of the biggest wins in school history.
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| The Future |
Fresno State (2-0): Saturday at Wisconsin
Oregon State (0-1): Saturday at New Mexico State
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No. 11
Georgia Tech 35 |
at Atlanta |
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The Citadel 7 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
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| The Star |
George Godsey, QB, Georgia Tech
A very efficient 14-of-16 for 224 yards and two touchdowns in just over a half of work.
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| The Skinny |
Citadel was no match for the Jackets, even with Tech star Kelly Campbell sitting out with an ankle injury. In his absence, Jonathan Smith stepped up with seven catches for 109 yards. Kicker Luke Manget set an ACC record with his 94th consecutive made extra point. |
| The Future |
Georgia Tech (2-0): Saturday at Navy
The Citadel (0-1): Sept. 15 at Western Carolina
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No. 12
Michigan 31 |
at Ann Arbor, Mich. |
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Miami of Ohio 13 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
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| The Star |
Victor Hobson, LB, Michigan
Anchored what had to be a pleasing defensive performance to Wolverines fans, notching two sacks.
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| The Skinny |
Michigan lost every one of its offensive stars from last year -- and it showed. The Wolverines were stuck at 17-6 and were trailing Miami in total yardage until converting a couple late turnovers. B.J. Askew led the ground game with 95 yards on 21 carries.
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| The Future |
Michigan (1-0): Saturday at No. 15 Washington
Miami of Ohio (0-1): Saturday at Iowa
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No. 14
LSU 48 |
at Baton Rouge, La. |
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Tulane 17 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
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| The Star |
Rohan Davey, QB, LSU
Finally the man at LSU, Davey picked apart the porous Green Wave defense (20-of-30, 245 yards, 2 TDs)
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| The Skinny |
Tulane's high-flying offense had modest success against the Tigers, with QB Patrick Ramsey throwing for 349 yards. But LSU shut down stud RB Mewelde Moore (61 yards) while rolling up 484 yards of offense, 139 of it on seven catches by WR Josh Reed
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| The Future |
LSU (1-0): Saturday vs. Utah State
Tulane (0-2): Saturday vs. East Carolina
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No. 17
UCLA 20 |
at Tuscaloosa, Ala. |
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Alabama 17 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
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| The Star |
DeShaun Foster, RB, UCLA
One again the thorn in Alabama's side, though not as drastically as last year, with 107 yards on 26 carries.
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| The Skinny |
The Bruins scored a huge road win with a textbook lesson in "bend but don't break," surrendering 474 yards but mostly keeping the conservative Tide away from the end zone. Fifteen Alabama penalties - compared with zero for UCLA -- were the difference. |
| The Future |
UCLA (1-0): Saturday at Kansas
Alabama (0-1): Saturday at Vanderbilt
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No. 18
Clemson 21 |
at Clemson, S.C. |
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Central Florida 13 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
|
| The Star |
Brandon Mance, CB, Clemson
Survived first game as a starter facing a pass-happy team, notching eight tackles and a pass deflection.
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| The Skinny |
Clemson's offense wasn't in top form, gaining only 292 yards, but QB Woodrow Dantzler did his usual damage, throwing for 154 and running for 56 and a touchdown. It's obvious Dantzler is missing a proven big-play guy at receiver, though freshman Roscoe Crosby impressed with three catches for 64 yards. |
| The Future |
Clemson (1-0): Saturday vs. Wofford
UCF (0-1): Saturday at Syracuse
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No. 20
Mississippi St. 30 |
at Starkville, Miss. |
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Memphis 10 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
|
| The Star |
Dicenzo Miller, RB, Mississippi State
He got the scoring started for MSU with a 49-yard touchdown late in the third. Finished with 167 total yards.
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| The Skinny |
After an ugly first 35 minutes that saw the Bulldogs turn over the ball three times, MSU exploded for four unanswered touchdowns in the final 15:46. The 'Dogs finished with 179 yards rushing and scored on a blocked punt return for the go-ahead touchdown.
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| The Future |
Mississippi State (1-0): Sept. 15 vs. Brigham Young
Memphis (0-1): Saturday vs. Chattanooga
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No. 21
South Carolina 32 |
at Columbia, S.C. |
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Boise State 13 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
|
| The Star |
Rashod Faison, South Carolina
The game turned on his 82-yard return of a blocked field goal as time expired in the first half.
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| The Skinny |
South Carolina did nothing spectacular on offense, but was more than adequate on defense against a previously potent Boise team, allowing only 241 yards. Gamecocks QB Phil Petty was 14-of-19 for 192 yards, and Derek Watson ran for 66 yards.
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| The Future |
South Carolina (1-0): Saturday at Georgia
Boise State (0-1): Saturday vs. Washington St.
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Colorado 41 |
at Denver |
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No. 24
Colorado State 14 |
• Game recap
• Game summary
|
| The Star |
Bobby Purify, RB, Colorado
Look out, the Buffs have a running back! Purify stepped up with 191 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries.
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| The Skinny |
CU did everything it couldn't against Fresno State. Along with Purify, Chris Brown added 91 as the Buffs ran for 294 yards. Its offense had only one turnover while its defense picked off four passes, three of them by new Rams QB D.J. Busch (15-of-29, 139 yards).
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| The Future |
Colorado (1-1): Saturday vs. San Jose State
Colorado State (0-1): Saturday vs. Nevada
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All rankings 
