Friday night's college football schedule belonged largely to the favorites, with USC, Oklahoma and Miami combining to outscore their opponents 135-6, while Michigan State had to work considerably harder to put away Toledo.
No. 14 USC delivered perhaps the most complete performance of the night, overwhelming Fresno State 39-0 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Quarterback Jayden Maiava was nearly flawless, completing 23 of 25 passes for 349 yards and three touchdowns. Freshman receiver Trent Mosley emerged as a major playmaker, catching four passes for 104 yards and two touchdowns, including a 68-yard score. USC finished with 552 yards while limiting Fresno State to only 116. The Trojans' defense even recorded two safeties in the shutout.
No. 10 Oklahoma was just as dominant in Norman, crushing UTEP 51-0. Quarterback John Mateer threw three touchdown passes as the Sooners raced to a 21-0 first-quarter lead and never looked back. Oklahoma also received a major special-teams contribution when Isaiah Sategna returned a punt 88 yards for a touchdown. The Sooners outgained UTEP 401-198 and averaged nearly seven yards per play in a convincing season-opening performance.
The most impressive individual performance may have come in Palo Alto, where No. 7 Miami dismantled Stanford 45-6. Duke transfer Darian Mensah looked immediately comfortable in his Miami debut, completing 27 of 30 passes for 401 yards and five touchdowns. His favorite target was Malachi Toney, who caught 12 passes for a school-record 234 yards and three scores. Miami accumulated 549 total yards and scored touchdowns in each of the first three quarters while preventing Stanford from reaching the end zone.
The evening's closest game came in East Lansing, where Michigan State defeated Toledo 30-20 to give new head coach Pat Fitzgerald a victory in his Spartans debut. Michigan State led 19-7 at halftime, but Toledo fought back and briefly took a 20-19 lead early in the fourth quarter on Connor Walendzak's 71-yard touchdown run. The Spartans answered with an Alessio Milivojevic touchdown pass to Rodney Bullard Jr. and a successful two-point conversion. Kicker Liam Boyd proved invaluable, making five field goals, including a 51-yarder that effectively sealed the victory.
Friday's biggest message was clear: USC, Oklahoma and Miami looked every bit like national contenders, while Michigan State showed enough resilience to begin its new era with a win.