Each week, TeamFB7 will recognize the 10 best individual performances across college football in our “Game Balls” spotlight. Cutting the list of deserving candidates down to 10 is an almost impossible task, but that leaves an exclusive list of the most incredible and impactful players each week.
The first full week of the college football season was loaded with early Heisman Trophy-relevant statement performances, dynamic debuts for players at new schools and true freshmen showing they’re ready to make an immediate impact.
We could have given out 40 “Game Balls,” but that’s not the way it works — the list has to be trimmed down to 10 each week, leaving behind incredibly difficult decisions and glaring snubs.
NOT making the cut this week were …
– USC QB Jayden Maiava (an honoree in Week 0) despite completing 23 of 25 passes for 349 yards, 3 touchdowns and 0 interceptions vs. Fresno State.
– Oregon QB Dante Moore, who led the Ducks to a come-from-behind win over Boise State while passing for 378 yards, 3 TDs and 0 INTs and five other QBs with at least 350 passing yards.
– Tennessee true freshman QB Faizon Brandon, who completed 13 of 17 passes for 226 yards, 3 TDs and 0 INTs while also rushing 10 times for 68 yards and 2 scores despite playing just two and a half quarters in 56-9 win. (It was against FCS-level Furman, which looked hapless on defense, but still …)
– Navy QB Braxton Woodson after rushing for 200 yards and 3 TDs vs. Towson.
– Florida RB Jadan Baugh, who rushed for 160 yards and 3 TDs on 11.4 yards per carry in a win over FAU, or Memphis RB Jaylin Carter, who rushed for 183 yards and 4 TDs on 9.6 YPC in a win over Arkansas State.
– Five WRs with at least 150 yards, including Ohio State’s Jeremiah Smith with 8 catches for 151 yards and 2 TDs all in the first half vs. Ball State, Wake Forest’s Carlos Hernandez with 5 catches for 165 yards (33.0 YPC) and a TD vs. Akron and Penn State’s Koby Howard (6-161-1, 26.8 YPC vs. Marshall).
– Southern Miss CB Kobi Albert, who had 3 interceptions in a 49-3 win over Alcorn State, and Colorado DL Lamont Lester Jr., who had 3 sacks in the Buffs’ 14-13 win at Georgia Tech
That’s how hard it was to make the list this week.
Week 1 College Football Top Performances
Here are the 10 honorees for Week 1 …
Miami WR Malachi Toney
Malachi Toney was one of the most electric talents in college football as a true freshman last season, but apparently that was only a tease as to what is still to come for the dynamic playmaker from Miami.
By halftime of the No. 7-ranked Hurricanes’ season-opening win at Stanford last week, Toney had already set a new career-high for receiving yards and wasn’t about to slow down from there.
In the end, he piled up 12 receptions for 234 yards and 3 TDs in Miami’s resounding 45-6 road win.
Goodness …
Toney finished last season with 109 receptions for 1,211 yards and 10 TDs, plus 113 yards and a TD rushing and 2 passing TDs for good measure.
He looks intent on sailing past those numbers as a sophomore, setting up an incredible Biletnikoff Award battle with Ohio State’s Jeremiah Smith (and others) to be crowned the top receiver in college football while the Heisman Trophy might be in play as well.
Pittsburgh QB Mason Heintschel
Mason Heintschel seized control of the starting QB job at Pitt early into last season as a true freshman and had four 300-yard passing performances in his first five starts before tailing off down the stretch.
So what to expect from the Panthers’ QB as a sophomore? Apparently, 2025 was just a tease for the talented passer.
Heintschel set career-highs in Pitt’s 59-14 win over Miami (Ohio) while throwing for 453 passing yards, 7 touchdowns and 0 interceptions in a sensational start to the season. The 7 touchdown tosses (which all went to different targets) tied the Panthers’ program record, set by Pete Gonzalez against Rutgers in 1997.
Pitt remains unranked, but if Heintschel is going to be lighting up the scoreboard like that then the Panthers need to be on everyone’s radar.
Miami QB Darian Mensah
Toney wasn’t the only Hurricane wreaking havoc on Stanford last week — new Miami quarterback Darian Mensah was every bit as sensational while completing 27 of 30 passes for 401 yards, 5 TDs and 0 INTs in that 45-6 win.
The yards and touchdowns were both career-highs for Mensah, the high-profile Duke transfer who threw for 3,973 yards, 34 TDs and 6 INTs last season with the Blue Devils.
Mensah is the latest in the line of marquee QB transfers coach Mario Cristobal has brought into Miami, following Cam Ward and Carson Beck, but he very well may be the best yet.
Mensah’s near-perfect Hurricanes debut moved him to No. 1 on DraftKings Sportsbook’s Heisman Trophy odds list at +600.
Minnesota WR Javon Tracy
Redshirt senior Javon Tracy had a night to remember in Minnesota’s season-opening 59-7 win over Eastern Illinois last Thursday.
Not only did he lead the Gophers in receiving with 5 catches for 98 yards, including a 55-yard reception, but he had punt return touchdowns of 87 and 69 yards.
To put that in perspective, only five players across the FBS level had multiple punt return touchdowns all of last season.
Tracy, who started his college career at Miami (Ohio), is looking to build on his solid first season at Minnesota in which he had 37 receptions for 454 yards and 6 TDs.
He is the younger brother of New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr.
Duke RB Nate Sheppard
With Mensah and former Blue Devils top receiver Cooper Barkate both transferring to Miami, running back Nate Sheppard is now the star of the Duke offense as a true sophomore.
And he showed why in the Blue Devils’ season-opening 17-3 win over Tulane, carrying the ball 35 times for 227 yards and both Duke TDs while adding 19 receiving yards.
He had nine rushes of at least 10 yards, including a long of 47 while far surpassing his previous career-highs of 23 carries and 170 yards.
Sheppard finished his freshman season with 1,132 rushing yards, 286 receiving yards and 12 total TDs and looks to be on his way to blowing past those numbers in 2026.
Rutgers WR KJ Duff
How good is KJ Duff?
Well, Rutgers managed to lose its season opener 37-21 to Massachusetts while starting quarterback Dylan Lonergan didn’t make it even one game before getting benched and losing his job after 3 interceptions. The Scarlett Knights managed just 346 offensive yards.
And yet KJ Duff was individually unstoppable for a team that couldn’t do anything else right, catching 9 passes for 196 yards and all 3 of Rutgers’ TDs.
Duff broke out last season with 60 catches for 1,084 yards and 7 TDs, and it doesn’t seem even bad quarterback play can keep him from passing those numbers as a junior.
Ole Miss WR Deuce Alexander
No. 9-ranked Ole Miss played one of the biggest games of Week 1 vs. No. 24 Louisville, narrowly pulling out a 41-38 win in a high-stakes opener, which makes Deuce Alexander‘s performance one of the most clutch from the week.
The Rebels lost five of their top six pass-catchers from last season to either the NFL or transfer portal, with Alexander the lone impact target returning to the team after catching 44 passes for 684 yards and 2 TDs.
Saturday night, he showed he’s more than capable of stepping up into the WR1 role, hauling in 5 receptions for a career-high 159 yards and 2 TDs.
It was Alexander’s first career 100-yard game and couldn’t have come at a better time. Both of his TDs were 62-yard receptions that helped give Ole Miss a 24-16 lead at the time in the tightly contested game.
Iowa RB Kamari Moulton
Kamari Moulton was used sparingly in Iowa’s season-opening 40-0 destruction of Northern Illinois, and that was only merciful for the Hawkeyes do for the Huskies.
Because Moulton was nearly unstoppable when he touched the ball, rumbling for a career-high 183 yards and 2 TDs on just 11 carries for an average of 16.6 yards per attempt.
Seven of those touches went for at least 10 yards, including touchdown runs of 50 and 37 yards. Both scoring scampers were part of a 132-yard first quarter for the senior to help put the game out of reach early.
Moulton broke out last fall for 878 rushing yards and 5 TDs, but it looks like he has even bigger things in store for his final season.
Mississippi State QB Kamario Taylor
Kamario Taylor got two starts late last season for Mississippi State, and he mostly flashed his elite rushing ability in those games including 173 yards on the ground and 2 TDs vs. Ole Miss.
Well, in the Bulldogs’ season opener Saturday, Taylor showed how dangerous he can be with his arm too, completing 22 of 34 passes for 354 yards, 4 TDs and 0 INTs while also rushing 6 times for 59 yards and a score.
There’s an exceedingly high probability this is not the last time this season Taylor will make the “Game Balls” cut.
Auburn S Eric Winters
As we often say here, making it on the “Game Balls” list isn’t just about raw statistics — impact on the game and big moments resonate just as much.
That’s why the last spot for Week 1 goes to Auburn sophomore safety Eric Winters, who had his imprint all over the Tigers’ dramatic season-opening 17-16 win over Baylor on Saturday.
Sure, Winters led Auburn with 11 tackles (9 solo), but it’s two plays in particular that earn him a spot on this list.
Baylor had driven inside the Tigers’ 30-yard line on its opening possession when quarterback DJ Lagway took off running on third-and-short and tried to hurdle another Auburn defender. While in the air, Winters corralled him and jarred the ball loose for a clutch forced fumble to thwart that promising drive.
In a game where both offenses struggled and points were at a premium, every missed opportunity was costly.
But none more so than the final play for the Bears …
Baylor scored a touchdown with 9 seconds left to make it 17-16, but instead of tying the game with an extra point the Bears opted to try for the win. Lagway rolled to his left and found Gavin Freeman (the Bears’ star of the game with 12 catches for 154 yards and a TD) right in front of the goal line. But Winters immediately wrapped up Freeman, not allowing him to gain even an extra inch while denying the two-point conversion to preserve a big win in coach Alex Golesh‘s debut.
The play is even more impressive when noticing where Winters started before the snap and how quickly he read the play and closed on the tight end for the tackle.
