Football schedule released


By
 in ,

The Pac-12 Conference released the USC Trojans’ 2014 football schedule last Wednesday. It will feature six home games, some familiar rivals and a coast-to-coast trip in mid-September.

The Trojans, who finished 19th in the AP poll with a 10-4 record in the 2013 season, will open the season at home on Aug. 30 against Fresno State — a foe the Trojans vanquished by a score of 45-20 in the Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl in December. This marks the first time the Trojans have opened the season against the same opponent they ended the last season with since 1917, when the Trojans — then playing at Bovard Field — defeated Arizona in front of a crowd of 2,000.

The team will waste no time getting into the Pac-12 mix as it travels the next week to Palo Alto, Calif. to take on Stanford in a much-anticipated rivalry matchup on Sept. 6. The Cardinal, who finished the 2013 season ranked No. 11 in the AP Poll, will look to avenge their surprising defeat at the Coliseum last season.

From there, the Trojans will catch a flight across the country to take on Boston College on Sept. 13.

After a bye week, the Trojans return to action for back-to-back home games against Oregon State (Sept. 17) and reigning Pac-12 South champion Arizona State (Oct. 4). Their October tour through the Pac-12 will continue the next week in Tucson against Arizona on Oct. 11, return home to play Colorado on Oct. 18 and end up in Salt Lake City to square off against Utah on Oct. 25.

The Trojans will look to shake off one of the roughest moments of the 2013 season when the Trojans travel to Pullman, Wash. on Nov. 1 to take on the Cougars of Washington State. Then, on Nov. 13, the Trojans will play in a Thursday night home game for the second season in a row when they host California, who struggled last season under first-year coach Sonny Dykes.

The season will end in traditional style as USC takes on two of its biggest rivals. The Trojans will head to Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, Calif. for their final conference matchup against quarterback Brett Hundley and the UCLA Bruins in the crosstown battle for the Victory Bell on Nov. 22. The Trojans will  then return to the Coliseum to attempt to reclaim the Jewelled Shillelagh as they wrap up their regular season against Notre Dame. Should the Trojans finish atop the Pac-12 South, they will play in the Pac-12 Championship Game on Friday, Dec. 5.

Notable omissions from the 2014 schedule are Oregon and Washington, Pac-12 rivals who rotate with their “State” counterparts on a two-year basis. Both schools will replace Oregon State and Washington State on the Trojans’ schedule in 2015. Absent from the team’s nonconferance slate are Hawai’i and Utah State.