The Crimson Tide (1-0) shrugged off the absence of injured Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram and suspended defensive end Marcell Dareus in the opening mismatch.

The subs played much of the game, anyway, after the Tide raced to a 31-3 halftime lead over the Spartans (0-1).

McElroy mostly seemed to be playing pitch and catch, completing 13 of 15 passes and leaving after only one series of the second half. He threw a 48-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Marquis Maze.

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Julio Jones made a diving, one-handed grab for a 29-yard touchdown from backup quarterback A.J. McCarron early in the second quarter.

In Gainsville, Florida,  Jeff Demps had a long scoring run, John Brantley added a fluky touchdown pass late and No. 4 Florida overcame an error-filled game to beat Miami (Ohio).

The Gators (1-0) used four interceptions, several red-zone stops and two late touchdowns to avoid a meltdown. The bigger story was Florida’s anemic offense — the one quarterback John Brantley had hoped to “keep rolling” after waiting three years behind Tim Tebow.

There were fumbles, bad snaps, poor throws, several penalties and possibly more frustration in The Swamp than ever before.

Brantley completed 17 of 25 passes for 113 yards and two touchdowns. He had a 10-yarder to Omarius Hines that was the offense’s longest play of the day until Demps’ got loose for a 72-yard run in the fourth. Brantley also had a 25-yard TD pass to Chris Rainey with 1:21 remaining. That fourth-down pass bounced off a teammate.

In Houston, Tre’ Newton ran for three touchdowns, while quarterback Garrett Gilbert was up and down in his first college start for Texas.

Gilbert, who threw four interceptions filling in for Colt McCoy in the loss to Alabama in the BCS title game, didn’t turn the ball over in this one.

Texas (1-0) was stopped on fourth down at the 1-yard line on its first drive and settled for a 51-yard field goal on the second after another stalled drive. The Longhorns finally got going on their first full drive of the second quarter taking a 10-3 lead on a 1-yard TD run by Newton.

Then the defense came alive with a sack on Taylor McHargue that caused a fumble. Keenan Robinson returned it 10 yards for a score to push the lead to 17-3 and Texas was on its way.

In Arlington, Texas, Andy Dalton ran for two touchdowns and threw for another score to make up for his two interceptions and No. 6 TCU opened with a win over No. 24 Oregon State.

Dalton became TCU’s winningest quarterback, his 30th victory snapping a tie with “Slingin’ Sammy” Baugh, who had held the mark alone since the mid-1930s until being matched last year after the Frogs’ first undefeated regular season since 1938.

In Norman, Oklahoma, DeMarco Murray ran for 218 yards and two touchdowns and converted a key fourth down, helping No. 7 Oklahoma survive an unexpected scare from Utah State.

Jamell Fleming secured the 800th win in the program’s history by intercepting Diondre Borel’s pass in the final 5 minutes. The Sooners (1-0) are only the seventh Division I school to reach that mark, joining a handful of powerhouses including Michigan, Texas and Notre Dame.

In Lincoln, Nebraska,  Redshirt freshman Taylor Martinez ran for 127 yards and three touchdowns and passed for 136 yards in a sensational debut that led No. 8 Nebraska over Western Kentucky.

Martinez, the only redshirt or true freshman quarterback to start a season opener for Nebraska (1-0), ran 46 yards for a touchdown on the third play from scrimmage. Coach Bo Pelini kept the identity of his starting QB under wraps until about a half-hour before the game.

In Iowa City, Iowa, Adam Robinson ran for 109 yards and three touchdowns in the first half for Iowa.

Senior Ricky Stanzi threw for 229 yards and a touchdown for the Hawkeyes (1-0), who won their 10th straight season opener under coach Kirk Ferentz.

Iowa has its highest preseason ranking in 22 years, and the Hawkeyes made quick work of the FCS Panthers (0-1).

In Eugene, Oregon, Kenjon Barner replaced suspended running back LaMichael James for Oregon and ran for a career-high 147 yards and four touchdowns before catching another score.

Quarterback Darron Thomas, making his debut at starter for Oregon (1-0), completed 13 of 23 passes for 220 yards and two touchdowns. The Ducks had a record 720 yards in total offense.

Oregon went to the Rose Bowl last season as the Pac-10 champions before several players ran afoul of the law, including quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, who was dismissed from the team.

In Las Vegas, John Clay and Montee Hall each ran for two touchdowns to the Badgers.

Clay finished with 123 yards on 17 carries and Hall had 79 on 16 rushes. The Badgers outscored the Rebels 24-0 in the third quarter after leading 17-14 at half.

Badgers mistakes allowed the Rebels stay close.

Scott Tolzien threw for 197 yards on 15 of 20 passing for Wisconsin, but he threw an interception that was run back 19 yards for a touchdown by Will Chandler in the first quarter.

In Atlanta, quarterback Joshua Nesbitt ran for 130 yards and three touchdowns and Roddy Jones added two scoring runs for Georgia Tech.

With last year’s top receiver Demaryius Thomas and top rusher Jonathan Dwyer gone to the NFL, Nesbitt kept the offense moving despite his inability to establish a passing game. Nesbitt was only 1-for-6 passing for 8 yards with an interception in the Yellow Jackets’ run-based option offense.

In Fayetteville, Arkansas, Ryan Mallett looked like a Heisman Trophy candidate, throwing for 301 yards and three touchdowns to lead No. 17 Arkansas over Tennessee Tech.

The Razorbacks, sporting their highest preseason ranking since 1990, recovered quickly from a sloppy start as Mallett threw an 85-yard touchdown pass to Joe Adams in the second quarter. It was the longest completion of his Arkansas career, and the Hogs (1-0) led 23-3 at halftime.

In Atlanta, against all odds, undermanned North Carolina nearly rallied from a 20-point halftime deficit before losing to No. 21 LSU.

Patrick Peterson had 257 yards on kickoff and punt returns, leading LSU (1-0) to a 30-10 edge.

But the No. 18 Tar Heels, missing 13 key players because of an NCAA investigation over relationships with agents and possible academic violations, rallied with two second-half touchdowns.

In State College, Pennsylvania (AP) - Freshman Rob Bolden threw for 239 yards and two touchdowns and Chaz Powell had a 100-yard kickoff return for a score for Penn State.

Coach Joe Paterno got his 395th career victory by starting a true freshman at quarterback in a season opener for the first time in his 45 years as coach.

Brett Brackett caught two touchdowns for the Nittany Lions (1-0).

In Tallahassee, Florida, Christian Ponder threw four first-half touchdown passes and Greg Reid returned a punt 74 yards for another score as No. 20 Florida State celebrated Jimbo Fisher’s coaching debut with a rout.

The Seminoles (1-0) exploded for 35 points during an 11-minute span of the second quarter to build a 42-0 lead in the season opener for both schools.

In Auburn, Alabama,  Cam Newton ran for 171 yards and two touchdowns and passed for 186 yards and three more scores to help No. 22 Auburn beat overmatched Arkansas State.

Newton, a junior college transfer who started his career at Florida, dashed up the middle for a 71-yard touchdown in the second quarter.

Freshman running back Michael Dyer ran 14 times for 95 yards and one touchdown for Auburn (1-0).

In Athens, Georgia, Aaron Murray passed for three touchdowns and ran for another in his first college game to lead Georgia.

Despite the absence of top receiver A.J. Green, Murray completed 16 of 24 passes for 194 yards. Kris Durham caught two TD passes.

Murray ran four times for 41 yards. On a 16-yard scramble down the right sideline late in the first half, he reached out to hold the ball inside the front pylon for a 31-7 halftime lead.

In Morgantown, W.Virginia,  Geno Smith threw two touchdown passes and Noel Devine rushed for 111 yards and a score for West Virginia.

The Mountaineers (1-0) crawled to a 10-0 halftime lead but the offense, led by Smith and Devine, dominated the second half and the defense didn’t allow Coastal Carolina (0-1) inside the 20-yard line all game.

West Virginia earned its first shutout since a 38-0 win at Cincinnati in 2005 and its first home shutout since beating Rutgers 48-0 in 1997.