Week 1 didn’t waste any time shaking up the college football conversation. Before the ranked games even really got rolling, there were already breakout stars, ugly debuts, and a few results that landed with real force.
The biggest offensive fireworks came from the wide receiver room, where two names flashed like Heisman candidates in fast-forward. Miami sophomore Malachi Toney set a school record with 229 yards on 11 catches and three touchdowns in a 42-6 win over Stanford.
Then Jeremiah Smith answered with a first-half demolition of Ball State, piling up eight catches for 151 yards and two touchdowns before halftime. The sport has been trending this way for a while, and if Week 1 is any hint, 2026 could be the strongest receiver year yet.
Pittsburgh also got a major jolt from a young playmaker. Mason Heintschel was electric in a 59-14 win over Miami (Ohio), throwing for 453 yards and an ACC-record seven touchdowns.
What made it even more striking was the distribution: all seven scoring throws went to different receivers, with Cataurus Hicks leading the way at 114 yards. Offensive coordinator Kade Bell has clearly pushed Pat Narduzzi toward a more aggressive passing identity, and for now, the Panthers look like they’ve got a star in the making.
On the other end of the spectrum, Oklahoma State walked straight into a mess. After one of the most talked-about offseasons in the Big 12, the Cowboys brought in the core players and brain trust from North Texas, including five-star transfer quarterback Drew Mestemaker and No. 1 transfer running back Caleb Hawkins.
The result was a 24-10 loss to Tulsa that looked far too familiar. Tulsa beat Oklahoma State for the second straight season, the first such losing streak to the Golden Hurricanes since 1952.
Mestemaker was outplayed by Baylor Hayes, and Tulsa finished the job with a 29-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. First-year coach Eric Morris added more than 90 new players in his first offseason, so the growing pains are already here.
Oregon entered the season with national title buzz and a defensive front loaded with big names, but that group didn’t control Boise State the way it was supposed to. Bear Alexander, A'Mauri Washington, Teitum Tuioti, and Matayo Uiagalelei all arrived with heavyweight expectations, and the Ducks did log three sacks on Maddux Madsen.
Still, the game never tilted fully in Oregon’s favor, and half of Boise State’s last eight drives ended in points. If the Ducks are going to live up to the hype, that line has to be the best unit on the field.
USC, meanwhile, got exactly the kind of defensive statement it needed. After a slow finish in Week 0 against San Jose State, Gary Patterson’s group slammed the door on Fresno State in a 39-0 shutout.
The Trojans allowed just 116 total yards and only 1.3 yards per carry, and four different players recorded sacks. Kennedy Urlacher had two of them.
With Lincoln Riley heading into a make-or-break season and USC having landed the No. 1 recruiting class in the country, the gamble on Patterson looks a lot smarter when the defense is playing like this.
Then there was UMass, which produced one of the loudest results of the young season. The Minutemen were 29-point underdogs against Rutgers and came in riding a 16-game losing streak, including every game under second-year coach Joe Harasymiak.
None of that mattered. After allowing an opening touchdown drive, UMass ripped off 30 unanswered points and finished with a 37-21 win, powered by three touchdown passes from breakout quarterback Pop Watson.
Whether it turns into something bigger remains to be seen, but for one night, the Minutemen authored the kind of upset that changes the tone around a program.
Bowling Green also landed in the loser column after a 20-13 loss to Tarleton State. The game was expected to be tight, with the Falcons only 2.5-point favorites, but the bigger issue was how thoroughly Tarleton moved the ball.
Tylan Hines ran for 250 yards, and the Texans piled up 464 yards of offense overall. For Tarleton, it was another notable step forward after back-to-back wins over FBS opponents.
For Bowling Green, it was a rough opening to the season.
In Other News...
USC Has A Freshman Turning Heads As Young Defenders Step Up
Trent Mosley wasted no time making his presence felt, and for USC that has been one of the brighter early developments of the season. The freshman receiver opened his college career with seven catches for 118 yards and a touchdown against San Jose State, then followed it up with another strong outing the next game, adding multiple touchdowns and drawing notice from teammates and coaches alike.
Mosleys emergence has helped soften some of the attention on a defense that has also been getting useful early contributions from young players. Nickel Kennedy Urlacher, Alex Graham and Jide Abasiri have each shown up in recent games, giving USC signs that some of its younger defenders are beginning to settle in and play meaningful snaps when the Trojans need them most. [Read more 🡒]
USC's Rout Put New Draft Attention On More Than One Trojan
USCs blowout of Fresno State at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum drew more than attention from the scoreboard. NFL scouts from five franchises were in the building, turning a September game into another reminder that the Trojans are still a weekly stop on the pro personnel circuit. With former USC names already scattered across the league, the presence of those evaluators added a little extra weight to a rout that otherwise could have been just another easy win.
The most visible reasons were on the field. Quarterback Jayden Maiava continued to give scouts a look at how he handles an offense under little pressure, while defensive players Jide Abasiri and Kennedy Urlacher also stood out in the kind of game where evaluators are often looking for who keeps competing after the outcome is settled. For USC, the broader takeaway is familiar: when the Trojans play well, the NFL tends to show up, and not just for the obvious headliners. [Read more 🡒]
USC Freshman Is Giving Lincoln Riley A New Receiver Problem
USCs 2-0 start has already included a welcome bonus for Lincoln Riley: a freshman receiver who looks ready for more than a depth-chart cameo. Trent Mosley has been one of the early bright spots for the Trojans, making his presence felt right away with key catches, yardage, and touchdowns that have helped him stand out in the opening weeks of the season.
For Riley, that kind of emergence creates the sort of good problem coaches like to have and opponents hate to solve. Mosleys production has quickly raised expectations for what he can mean in the offense moving forward, and it also adds another layer to a USC passing game that already had enough weapons to keep defenses busy. [Read more 🡒]