College Football

College Football Week 0: Top plays from Saturday's games

Updated Aug. 28, 2021 6:59 p.m. ET

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College football is finally here!

Week 0 of the new season kicked off with five games Saturday, starting with the Nebraska Cornhuskers visiting the Illinois Fighting Illini in a Big Ten showdown on FOX.

The Fighting Illini held off a late push from the Cornhuskers, winning 30-22.

Later, the UCLA Bruins took on the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors to keep the momentum going. The day's other games featured UConn at Fresno State, UTEP at New Mexico State and Southern Utah at San Jose State.

Let's hear it for college football!

Here are the top moments from Saturday:

Illinois Fighting Illini 30, Nebraska Cornhuskers 22

The Illini wasted little time getting things going.

For more up-to-date news on all things Illini, click here to register for alerts on the FOX Sports app!

And their special teams were bringing it early.

Now, that isn't to say the Cornhuskers were going easy on them.

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Raise your hand if you had the first points of the 2021 season coming via safety.

The Illini started heating up on the ground late in the first quarter …

… but it was the Huskers who brought fans the first touchdown of the 2021 season early in the second.

Many eyes were on Huskers QB Adrian Martinez in this matchup. He got things going to set up a Nebraska field goal.

Late in the half, the Illini worked their way down the field to even the score.

Things got a little wild in the final minute before the break. The Illini were driving again, but the Nebraska defense said no.

Just a few seconds later, the Illinois defense returned the favor — and turned it into six points.

The Illini kept their momentum going in the third quarter, padding their lead with this TD.

Cue DJ Khaled: And another one!

The Illini scored once more after this incredible catch set up a first-and-goal.

Martinez finally swung the momentum back in Nebraska's direction by breaking off for this run to make it 30-16.

The positive momentum for Martinez carried into the fourth quarter as well, with a touchdown pass to make it 30-22.

But for the second time in the game, the Cornhuskers missed a second extra-point attempt. 

Ultimately the Fighting Illini would hold on to win 30-22 to start their season 1-0.

Fresno State Bulldogs 45, Uconn Huskies 0

Meanwhile, UConn and Fresno State kicked things off on the West Coast.

For more up-to-date news on all things Huskies, click here to register for alerts on the FOX Sports app!

The first points of the game belonged to the Fresno State defense.

And it was all Bulldogs from there.

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Some Bulldogs were even breaking records.

The Huskies simply had no answer for the Fresno State offense.

The Bulldogs offense didn't slow down in the fourth quarter either, continuing to put points on the board.

This one was never in doubt, with Fresno State pitching a shutout en route to a 45-0 win.

UCLA Bruins 44, Hawaii Rainbow Warriors 10

The Rose Bowl played host to the third game of Week 0.

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With the help of an interception, two quick first-quarter touchdowns had UCLA up 17-0.

There was no slowing down Zach Charbonnet in the first half, with the running back scoring a second touchdown.

No, this isn't a replay – it's a third first-half touchdown from Charbonnet, which pushed his rushing yard total to 106 yards as well.

The UCLA offense was dominant against Hawaii, but their defense was just as impressive, turning a blocked punt into a touchdown.

It was smooth sailing for the Bruins, who went on to win 44-10 to get their first win of the season.

For more up-to-date news on all things college football, click here to register for alerts on the FOX Sports app!

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College Football

Nebraska Cornhuskers

Illinois Fighting Illini

UCLA Bruins

Hawaii Rainbow Warriors

Connecticut Huskies

Fresno State Bulldogs

UTEP Miners

New Mexico State Aggies

Southern Utah Thunderbirds

San Jose State Spartans

Adrian Martinez