ARLINGTON, Texas – Dee Milliner and that Alabama defense showed they can still dominate.
Even after sending three starting defenders from last year’s national championship team to the NFL as first-round draft picks, the second-ranked Crimson Tide threw around eighth-ranked Michigan while pounding Denard Robinson in a season-opening 41-14 victory Saturday night.
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C.J. Mosley returned an interception 16 yards for a touchdown for the Tide. A.J. McCarron, no longer with third overall draft pick Trent Richardson as an option for handoffs, threw two touchdowns as Alabama won its 11th consecutive season opener.
Milliner deflected four passes in the first half and had an interception after shoving intended receiver Roy Roundtree to the ground and into the Alabama sideline. That set up a touchdown for the Crimson Tide, which shot out to a 31-0 lead.
While Michigan still can recover to contend for a Big Ten title and possible Rose Bowl bid, this could be a confidence-shaking performance. It certainly wasn’t what Michigan expected coming off an 11-win season under first-year coach Brady Hoke that ended with the Wolverines’ first BCS win since the 1999 season.
(1) USC 49, HAWAII 10: Marqise Lee caught a 75-yard touchdown pass on the first play from scrimmage and returned a kickoff 100 yards for a score, and the Trojans rolled to a win at Los Angeles.
Matt Barkley kicked off his Heisman Trophy campaign with 377 yards passing and four touchdowns, and Lee caught 10 passes for 197 yards.
(3) LSU 41, NORTH TEXAS 14: Kenny Hilliard rushed for 141 yards and two touchdowns, and LSU opened its season with an easy victory at Baton Route, La.
(6) GEORGIA 45, BUFFALO 23: Freshman Todd Gurley ran for three touchdowns, Aaron Murray threw three scoring passes and the Bulldogs overcame a sloppy first half at Athens, Ga.
Gurley didn’t start but had eight carries for 100 yards, including scoring runs of 10 and 55 yards. He added a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in the first quarter.
(7) FLORIDA STATE 69, MURRAY STATE 3: Lonnie Pryor, James Wilder Jr. and Debrale Smiley combined for seven rushing touchdowns to lead the Seminoles to a win at Tallahassee, Fla.
(10) ARKANSAS 49, JACKSONVILLE STATE 24: Tyler Wilson broke the school record for yards passing in a season opener, finishing 19 of 27 for 367 yards and three touchdowns in a victory at Fayetteville, Ark.
(11) WEST VIRGINIA 69, MARSHALL 34: Geno Smith threw for 323 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Mountaineers past the Thundering Herd at Morgantown, W.Va.
Smith kept the momentum going from his six-TD performance in the Orange Bowl, completing 32 of 36 passes. He broke the school record for career completions.
(12) WISCONSIN 26, NORTHERN ILLINOIS 21: Montee Ball rushed for 120 yards and a touchdown, and Wisconsin needed a big defensive play to survive a fourth-quarter scare at Madison, Wis.
Leading 26-7 in the fourth quarter, Wisconsin allowed Northern Iowa quarterback Sawyer Kollmorgen to throw a pair of long touchdowns to David Johnson. With the Panthers facing fourth-and-1 at the Wisconsin 41, defensive lineman Ethan Hemer tipped the ball at the line of scrimmage to stop the drive.
(14) CLEMSON 26, AUBURN 19: Andre Ellington rushed for 231 yards and DeAndre Hopkins set a school record with 13 receptions as Clemson opened the season with a victory in Atlanta.
(15) TEXAS 37, WYOMING 17: Joe Bergeron and Malcolm Brown each rushed for more than 100 yards and combined for three touchdowns to lead Texas past visiting Wyoming.
(17) NEBRASKA 49, SOUTHERN MISS 20: Taylor Martinez threw for a career-high 354 yards and matched his best with five touchdown passes to lead Nebraska at home.
(18) OHIO STATE 56, MIAMI, OHIO 10: Braxton Miller threw for two scores, including Devin Smith’s highlight-reel, one-handed catch, and stutter-stepped for a 65-yard score just 17 seconds into the second half as the Buckeyes beat the Redhawks at Columbus, Ohio.
(19) OKLAHOMA STATE 84, SAVANNAH STATE 0: Freshman Wes Lunt completed all 11 of his passes in a brief first outing as the new starting quarterback for the Cowboys at Stillwater, Okla.
(22) KANSAS STATE 51, MISSOURI STATE 9: Collin Klein threw for 169 yards and two touchdowns, John Hubert ran 95 yards for a fourth-quarter score and Kansas State pulled away late at Manhattan, Kan.
(23) FLORIDA 27, BOWLING GREEN 14: Mike Gillislee had a career-high 148 yards rushing and two touchdowns, helping the Gators beat the Falcons at Gainesville, Fla.
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