Week 1 game balls

Every week, someone steps up and seemingly wills his team to victory. In the locker room, these guys are awarded the game ball for an outstanding performance. But we're not in the locker room.

Instead, I'm handing out my own game balls, even though these guys have enough balls already.

North Carolina QB TJ Yates, who finished 28-for-46 for 412 yards and three touchdowns in a 30-24 loss to LSU. Yates single-handedly kept UNC afloat, leading a late comeback that ultimately fell short. But that wasn't Yates' fault. He accounted for 412 of the team's 436 yards, and found a new favorite target...

North Carolina WR Jheranie Boyd. He finished with six catches for 221 yards and a touchdown, but that touchdown was a 97-yarder in the fourth quarter that nearly swung the momentum in the Heels' favor.

Oklahoma State RB Kendall Hunter ran 21 times for 257 yards and four touchdowns in a 65-17 stomping of visiting Washington State. Wazzu was a 16-point underdog, but thanks to Hunter's performance, the Cowboys won by nearly 50 points. Hunter broke off runs of 66, 39, 22, 20, 18 and 17 yards, so it's not like most of his numbers came off one play.

Kansas State RB Daniel Thomas, another Big 12 running back, shares the limelight after a stellar Week 1 performance. Thomas carried 28 times for 234 yards and two touchdowns in a 31-22 win over UCLA.

TCU RB Ed Wesley, who was incredibly consistent at breaking off sizable runs in a 30-21 win over Oregon State. Wesley ran 17 times for 134 yards and one touchdown, but his longest run was 16 yards -- 10 of his 17 total rushes were for seven yards or more.

Maryland S Kenny Tate, whose last tackle was his biggest. Tate stuffed Navy QB Ricky Dobbs on the goal line when the Mids went for the win on 4th-and-1 from the Maryland 1-yard line. Maryland won 17-14, and Tate finished with 12 tackles (nine solo), two of which came for a loss.

Lastly, a joint game ball to Utah WRs DeVonte Christopher and Jereme Brooks. Brooks had two first-half touchdowns and finished with five receptions for 87 yards and two scores, while Christopher finished with eight catches for 155 yards and one touchdown, a huge 61-yarder in the fourth quarter.