Thursday night wrap-up: Ohio State rides big plays to victory, Malzahn wins 1st UCF game

No. 4 Ohio State rode a plethora of big plays Thursday night to a 45-31 season-opening win at Minnesota.

The Buckeyes had 495 yards of offense in the first start for quarterback C.J. Stroud, who threw for 294 yards and four touchdowns. The Buckeyes scored four touchdowns of at least 56 yards, and all five of their offensive TDs covered at least 38 yards. They also got a 32-yard fumble return for a score by defensive tackle Haskell Garrett.

Ohio State’s first score came on a 71-yard run by Miyan Williams. Chris Olave scored on a 38-yard catch in the third quarter and a 61-yard reception in the fourth quarter. Garrett Wilson had a 56-yard TD reception in the third quarter. And TreVeyon Henderson scored on a 70-yard reception in the fourth quarter. It was the first career catch by Henderson, a running back who was one of the jewels of Ohio State’s deep recruiting class.

The Buckeyes’ five TD drives totaled 18 plays; their longest drive covered 14 plays and led to a second-quarter field goal.

Ohio State had trouble with Minnesota running back Mohamed Ibrahim, who rushed for 163 yards and two scores on 30 carries before leaving with an injury. It was Ibrahim’s ninth consecutive 100-yard game, dating to the 2019 season.

UCF outlasts weather, Boise State

Gus Malzahn got the win in his first game as UCF’s coach as the Knights downed Boise State 36-31 in a game that started almost three hours late because of a weather delay. The game ended at 1:26 a.m. ET.

The Knights got a 172-yard rushing performance from Northwestern transfer Isaiah Bowser to rally past the Broncos in a matchup of two of the best Group of 5 programs in the nation. Boise State led 14-0 at the end of the first quarter and 24-14 at halftime. But UCF dominated the third and fourth quarters, and Boise’s only second-half score came after a 31-yard drive set up by an interception. Boise’s first touchdown came on a 100-yard interception return in the first quarter.

UCF quarterback Dillon Gabriel threw for 318 yards and four TDs, his sixth game with at least four TDs in his past 11 outings. Also noteworthy was that UCF held Boise to 39 rushing yards; the Knights surrendered 192.6 rushing yards per game last season.

UCF didn’t have any sacks but did have 10 tackles for loss.

Wolfpack open with easy win

NC State is the second-best team in the ACC’s Atlantic Division, behind Clemson — the Wolfpack also might be the second-best team in the league overall — and it opened its season with a dominating 45-0 victory over USF.

There are high hopes this season for quarterback Devin Leary, but he didn’t have to do much because of NCSU’s strong 1-2 punch at tailback. Zonovan “Bam” Knight rushed for 163 yards and a TD on 16 carries, and Ricky Person added 105 yards and two TDs as part of a 293-yard rushing attack.

Leary did throw for 232 yards and a score as the Wolfpack scored on three of its first four drives on the way to a 24-0 halftime lead. In all, NC State piled up 525 yards of offense.

Presumably, NC State gets a tougher test next week at Mississippi State. The Wolfpack host Clemson on September 25; Clemson has won eight in a row in the series.

Elsewhere of note

• The first FBS team to fall to a FCS opponent is Tulsa, which was upset 19-16 by UC Davis. The host Golden Hurricane lost the turnover battle 3-0; Tulsa’s final turnover came on a fumble as it was going in to score with 4:06 left. UC Davis’ Isaiah Gomez kicked four field goals, including two in the fourth quarter that enabled the Aggies to rally from a 17-13 deficit in the final 15 minutes.

• No. 24 Utah blasted in-state FCS opponent Weber State 40-17. Quarterback Charlie Brewer, a transfer from Baylor, threw for 233 yards and a TD as the Utes blew it open in the second half. Utah led 19-7 at halftime. Utah had three sacks and seven tackles for loss. The Utes get another, tougher in-state foe next week when they play at BYU.

• No. 22 Coastal Carolina, one of three Group of 5 teams ranked in the preseason poll (Cincinnati and Louisiana were the others), opened its season with a 52-14 demolition of The Citadel. Coastal led 31-0 at halftime and rolled up 610 yards of offense. The Citadel, a FCS team, has a triple-option offense and finished with just 14 passing yards.

• Josh Heupel’s first game as Tennessee’s coach was a success as the Vols hammered Bowling Green 38-6. Tennessee got off to a fast start and led 14-0 just seven minutes into the game, but the offense sputtered for the rest of the half and the Vols led 14-6 at halftime. Still, there never was really any doubt in the second half. UT finished with 30 first downs and 471 yards of offense for Heupel, who is known for his offensive acumen. Bowling Green was just 2-of-14 on third down and finished with 219 yards.