Top 25 | Tide rolls by Clemson 34-10

ATLANTA — Nick Saban's plan to bring No. 24 Alabama back to prominence looks way ahead of schedule. As for No. 9 Clemson, another big game ended with the Tigers on the losing end.

The Crimson Tide had little trouble rolling past Clemson 34-10 at the Georgia Dome on Saturday night, the biggest victory in coach Saban's two seasons at Alabama.

Alabama's defense held Clemson to zero yards rushing and John Parker Wilson threw two touchdown passes as Alabama beat a top-10 opponent for the first time since topping No. 5 Florida in 2005. That was part of the last hurrah for former coach Mike Shula, who followed that 10-2 season with a 6-7 campaign that ended his time with the Tide.

Alabama lured Saban from the NFL last season to lead the 12-time national champs back to glory. Based on the opener, Saban and the Tide are on their way.

Wilson finished 22 of 30 for 180 yards and, with his career total completions now at 500, surpassed Brodie Croyle's old school record of 488.

The Crimson Tide defense held the Tigers' heralded "Thunder and Lightning" backfield of James Davis and C.J. Spiller to 20 yards combined.

Other Top 25 games

East Carolina 27,

No. 17 Virginia Tech 22

T.J. Lee blocked a punt and returned it 27 yards for a touchdown with 1:52 left to help East Carolina upset Virginia Tech in Charlotte, N.C.

The Hokies, long known for stout defense and special teams, seemed to have control of the game thanks to Stephan Virgil's 30-yard fumble return for a touchdown and his two-point conversion off a blocked extra point.

But it was the Pirates (1-0), who came up with the big plays on defense and special teams in the end, scoring the game's final 15 points.

Bowling Green 27,

at No. 25 Pitt 17

Tyler Sheehan ran 11 yards for a touchdown on a quarterback draw early in the fourth quarter as Bowling Green rallied to upset Pitt.

The Falcons, with their second win over a BCS conference school in as many season openers, bounced back from a 14-0 deficit for the first victory by a Mid-American Conference school in Pittsburgh. Pitt previously was 25-2 against the MAC, 8-0 in season openers and 24-0 at home.

At No. 1 Georgia 45,

Georgia Southern 21

Knowshon Moreno ran for three touchdowns and Georgia, ranked No. 1 to start a season for the first time, beat Georgia Southern to give new mascot Uga VII a win in his debut.

At No. 2 Ohio St. 43,

Youngstown St. 0

An eerie silence descended on Ohio Stadium when Ohio State's Heisman Trophy prospect Chris "Beanie" Wells went down with a foot injury in the third quarter.

The star tailback was hurt in the third quarter after taking a handoff from Todd Boeckman on first and goal at the Youngstown State 2. His feet slipped underneath him as he planted to make a cut, with the ball rolling free as he hit the turf.

Wells was helped off the field, and later returned to the bench in the fourth quarter wearing a boot on his right foot. X-rays showed no broken bones, the team said.

Before the injury, Wells ran for 111 yards, including a 43-yard touchdown run. Boeckman tossed two touchdown passes and freshman quarterback phenom Terrelle Pryor looked solid in his college debut.

At No. 4 Oklahoma 57, Chattanooga 2

Sam Bradford threw for 183 yards and two touchdowns, Chris Brown ran for three scores and only an hourlong rainstorm could slow down the Sooners.

The Sooners converted their first seven possessions into touchdowns and led 50-0 before a thunderstorm caused a lightning delay that extended halftime by 1 hour and 12 minutes.

At No. 5 Florida 56, Hawaii 10

Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow was 9-of-14 passing for 137 yards and a touchdown and the Gators handed Greg McMackin a lopsided loss in his debut as Hawaii's head coach.

At No. 7 LSU 41,

Appalachian St. 13

With a couple of inexperienced quarterbacks, all LSU had to do was hand off. And Appalachian State never had a chance at another upset.

Charles Scott rushed for a career-high 160 yards on 16 carries, including touchdowns of 8 and 29 yards for LSU.

At No. 8 West Virginia 48, Villanova 21

Pat White threw a career-high five touchdown passes and West Virginia beat Villanova, giving Rich Rodriguez's replacement, Bill Stewart, a successful regular-season debut.

At No. 10 Auburn 34,

Lousiana-Monroe 0

Ben Tate ran for 115 yards on 13 carries and No. 10 Auburn scored touchdowns on defense and special teams in an opening win over Louisiana-Monroe.

At No. 11 Texas 52,

Florida Atlantic 10

Colt McCoy passed for three touchdowns, ran for another and the Longhorns coasted to a win over Florida Atlantic that got testy at times when the Owls popped McCoy for three late hits.

At No. 13 Wisconsin 38,

Akron 17

P.J. Hill ran for 210 yards and two touchdowns, but Wisconsin needed a pair of third-quarter scores to shake free from pesky Akron.

At No. 14 Kansas 40,

Florida International 10

Todd Reesing threw three touchdown passes to Dezmon Briscoe and Kansas opened with a victory over Florida International.

At No. 16 BYU 41, N. Iowa 17

Max Hall threw for 486 yards and two touchdowns and BYU overcame four turnovers in the second half, beating Northern Iowa.

The Cougars extended the longest winning streak in the nation to 11 straight.

At No. 19 South Florida 56, Tenn.-Martin 7

Matt Grothe threw for two first-half touchdowns and South Florida scored on its first four possessions, bucking its tendency to play to the level of competition in a rout at Raymond James Stadium.