USC football comes up short in shootout vs. Washington
This is the Trojans’ second consecutive loss at home.
By STEFANO FENDRICH
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Fans packed into the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum expecting a shootout between Heisman-hopefuls junior quarterback Caleb Williams and senior quarterback Michael Penix Jr. Trojanites were not disappointed up until the very end when Penix Jr. and Washington got the last laugh by narrowly escaping USC and Williams 52-42.
Williams and USC (7-3, 5-2 Pac-12) fought as best they could against the undefeated Huskies (9-0, 6-0), but the Trojan defense could simply not stop Washington’s rush attack — a recurring trend all season.
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The Huskies rushed for 316 yards and just under eight yards per carry. Penix Jr. was 22-for-30 with 256 yards and three total touchdowns.
Williams kept the Trojans in the game, completing 27 of his 35 passes for 312 yards and four total touchdowns, but USC was held scoreless in the fourth quarter, hindering any hopes of making a comeback.
It was a high-scoring affair right from the jump, with both teams trading touchdowns to open the game. After stopping momentum by dropping a wide-open catch on third down, freshman wide receiver Duce Robinson redeemed himself by blocking a Huskies punt. The block set up a 1-yard keeper from Williams to give USC a 14-7 lead.
Time after time, USC allowed third-down touchdowns to the Huskies, highlighted by an untouched 52-yard third-and-three run by junior running back Dillon Johnson, but USC and Head Coach Lincoln Riley opened up the bag of tricks on the ensuing drive.
Freshman wide receiver Zachariah Branch received the ball from Williams in the backfield. After reversing field, Branch tossed it back to Williams, who launched it 41 yards to wide open redshirt senior wide receiver Tahj Washington for the score and the 28-21 lead.
After allowing another Penix Jr. passing touchdown that tied the game, Williams and the Trojans had just under 75 seconds left in the half to take the lead. On the first play of the drive, Williams spun into trouble and fumbled. The Huskies capitalized off the turnover and took a 35-28 lead into halftime.
Johnson was torching USC with 117 yards on the ground and three touchdowns in the first half alone. Washington’s 35 points were already the most it had ever scored on the Trojans in the 100-year rivalry.
But just when Penix Jr. and the Huskies were looking to pounce on USC to start the third quarter, the Trojan defense stepped up. Washington was just outside of the red zone when redshirt senior cornerback Christian Roland-Wallace jumped up and intercepted Penix Jr.
USC made the most of the opportunity on the ensuing drive. The Trojans went for it on fourth-and-one, and this time Williams was successfully able to spin out of trouble. He flipped his hips and launched the ball across the field, finding senior wide receiver Brenden Rice in the side of the endzone to tie the game at 35.
After trading touchdowns, the USC defense got a much needed stop. Junior inside linebacker Eric Gentry stopped Penix Jr. from escaping with a sack. Washington got away with a field goal and a three-point lead, but opened the door for Williams and USC.
The Trojans couldn’t make good of the opportunity and punted the ball away back to the Huskies, who continued to run the ball down USC’s throat. After a nine-play 91-yard drive, Johnson punched it in again for Washington to push the lead to 10 and crush the Trojans’ dreams of an upset.
