No. 9 Virginia Tech 17, East Carolina 7

No. 9 Virginia Tech 17, East Carolina 7

BLACKSBURG, Va. — After 41⁄2 months of mourning, Virginia Tech was ready to celebrate. It took a while for the Hokies to give their fans something to cheer about. Getting off to a sluggish start in what figures to be an emotionally charged season, Virginia Tech struggled to beat East Carolina, even hearing boos from a home crowd that honored a plea not to jeer the Pirates. The Hokies appeared a bit overwhelmed by the burden of what they’ll face all year: rallying a school that is desperate to move on from the worst mass shooting in modern American history. The 32 victims of April’s campus massacre were honored in a heart-tugging pre-game ceremony, which was followed by an uninspiring performance on the field. The running game struggled. Quarterback Sean Glennon threw an interception, lost a fumble, was sacked four times and continually missed open receivers with errant passes. The defense had to save the day.

No. 6 Florida 49, W Kentucky 3

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Tim Tebow and Florida had an even easier day than expected against Western Kentucky. The Gators didn’t even have to play 60 minutes. Tebow threw for 300 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another score, and the Gators opened defense of their national championship with a rout of Western Kentucky that was called with 8:23 left in the fourth quarter because of lightning.

No. 14 UCLA 45, Stanford 17.

STANFORD, Calif. — Ben Olson helped UCLA spoil Jim Harbaugh’s debut at Stanford. Olson threw five touchdown passes and Kahlil Bell ran for a career-high 195 yards to lead the Bruins in Harbaugh’s first game as the Cardinal coach. Olson’s cool efficiency in his return to the starting lineup and 20 returning starters for the Bruins (1-0, 1-0 Pac-10) were too much for the emotion-fueled Cardinal (0-1, 0-1), who tried to match the high energy level of their new head coach. Coaching across the street from where he went to high school, Harbaugh’s imprint on Stanford’s offense was evident as the Cardinal moved the ball much better than they did in a 1-11 season a year ago that led to Walt Harris’ firing.

But Harbaugh still has a long way to go to make Stanford a winner as the defense still struggled with missed tackles and gave up 624 total yards.

No. 20 Nebraska 52, Nevada 10

LINCOLN, Neb. — Marlon Lucky upstaged the debut of quarterback Sam Keller by running for a career-high 233 yards and three touchdowns and catching a pass for another score. The Cornhuskers found immediate success running at the outmanned Wolf Pack. They rushed for 413 of their 625 total yards, held a 35-9 advantage in first downs and won their nation-leading 22nd straight season opener. Nebraska led 21-10 at the half and broke open the game with three touchdowns and a field goal in the third quarter.

No. 22 TCU 27, Baylor 0

FORT WORTH, Texas — Even without standout defensive end Tommy Blake on the field, TCU’s dominating defense pitched a season-opening shutout. The No. 22 Horned Frogs gave up some yards before halftime, but not any points. Andy Dalton threw for 205 yards and a touchdown in his first college start, and Justin Watts and Ryan Christian ran for scores as the Frogs won their ninth straight game. Chris Manfredini kicked two field goals after missing wide right on a 29-yard attempt the opening drive.

No. 13 Georgia 35, Oklahoma St. 14.

ATHENS, Ga. — Thomas Brown ran for two first-quarter touchdowns, Matthew Stafford threw two second-half scoring passes. Stafford, a sophomore beginning his first full season as the starting quarterback, was 18-for-24 passing for 234 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. Georgia (1-0) led 21-14 at halftime and Stafford put the game out of reach with touchdown passes to Bruce Figgins, a freshman tight end, and Michael Moore.

Associated Press