Players of the week
Players of the week · College · Week 1
Colorado's one-point win at Georgia Tech gave us two of the three: Lamont Lester Jr.'s three sacks and Boo Carter's block on the final play. Miami's Malachi Toney had the biggest receiving day in the country.
Offense
WR · No. 7 Miami
W Miami 45, Stanford 6 · at Stanford
12 catches, 234 yards, 3 TD
A school-record 234 receiving yards, per Walter Camp, and three touchdowns on the road in conference play. Toney caught 234 of Darian Mensah's 401 passing yards and three of his five touchdowns. Stanford isn't much of a test, which is the knock. Trinidad Chambliss beat the better opponent, Louisville in Nashville, and was our next choice.
Defense
DL · Colorado
W Colorado 14, Georgia Tech 13 · at Georgia Tech
5 tackles, 3.5 TFL, 3 sacks
Three sacks in a one-point road win over a Power 4 team. Georgia Tech's offense managed two field goals all night; its only touchdown came on a kickoff return.
Special teams
DB · Colorado
W Colorado 14, Georgia Tech 13 · at Georgia Tech
Blocked a 45-yard field goal try with 3 seconds left to save a 14-13 win; also 2 tackles and a fumble recovery
The game ended on his block. Georgia Tech lined up a 45-yarder to win it with three seconds left and Carter got a hand on it. Lucas Carneiro's 48-yarder at the gun to beat Louisville was the other candidate; a make and a block are worth the same three points, but Carter's came on the road.
One player per slot, judged the way the power rankings judge teams: what happened on the field, against whom and where. Production counts, and so does the opponent. A big game against a good defense or on the road beats the same numbers at home against a bad one, and a play that decided the game beats one that padded a lead. A great game in a loss can still win if nothing else comes close.
NFL awards follow the league's format, AFC and NFC, and go up on Tuesday morning, a day before the league names its own. College awards are national and go up on Sunday morning. Where there's an official pick (the NFL's, or Walter Camp's for college offense and defense), it's listed under ours, agree or not.
Sources: Walter Camp: Week 1 national players of the week · Colorado game recap. Stat lines from each game's ESPN box score.
Every player of the week this season → · College football Top 25 →