While it has not been the season that USC football fans dreamt of in August, the Trojans had a big-time night Saturday in Pasadena — riding a second-half comeback to best their bitter crosstown rivals UCLA 19-13 at the Rose Bowl Stadium.

The Trojans (6-5, 4-5 Big Ten) were unable to find the end zone in the first three quarters of the game, but when it mattered most, Head Coach Lincoln Riley and co. made no mistake, scoring their first touchdown after an electric series of plays. On second and 4 from the UCLA (4-7, 3-6) 43-yard line, some Trojan trickery caught the Bruins off guard — a pair of wideouts connected on a double pass, with sophomore Makai Lemon finding a wide-open senior Kyron Hudson for a 39-yard gain.

On the very next play, after a Caleb Williams-esque escape from redshirt sophomore quarterback Jayden Maiava in the pocket, the redshirt sophomore found sophomore wide receiver Ja’Kobi Lane in the left corner of the end zone, putting USC up 16-13 with 6:55 remaining in the fourth quarter. 

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The Trojans trailed deep into the second half, but with about nine minutes left, it was the USC defense which was able to turn the tides. On third and 5 from UCLA’s 31-yard line, D’Anton Lynn brought the heat — sending both of his middle linebackers at redshirt senior quarterback Ethan Garbers. Senior linebacker Easton Mascarenas-Arnold got home, bringing down the redshirt senior signal caller and forcing a punt.

From the start of the game, Maiava and the Trojans were able to move the ball consistently — amassing 239 yards of first half offense. However, USC was unable to punch the ball in, repeatedly stalling out in the red zone after a series of flailing shotgun runs and unsuccessful fade attempts to the corner of the end zone. 

Riley’s offense had -2 yards in goal-to-go situations across the opening 30 minutes, as the offensive guru displayed a lack of creativity in search of the game’s first touchdown. The Trojans settled for three consecutive chip shot field goals from redshirt senior kicker Michael Lantz to carry a 9-3 lead into halftime.

In the third quarter, it was the Bruins who finally found the end zone — on a clever screen pass to senior tight end Moliki Matavao which went for 10 yards and a score. The touchdown came after a methodical seven-play, 54-yard touchdown drive. 

The momentum stayed with the Bruins throughout the third and beginning of the fourth quarter, as USC struggled to stop the UCLA offense or find a consistent rhythm on the other side of the ball. A 10-play, 80-yard field goal drive extended their lead to 13-9, and on the following possession, Maiava took a brutal sack on 3rd and 9 from the Bruins’ 32-yard line to take the Trojans out of field goal range with 12:02 remaining in the game.

But after some magic from the USC offense, the Trojans took the lead with just under seven minutes remaining and on the very next drive, Lynn’s defense came up just as big, when on fourth and 1 from his own 34-yard line, Garbers attempted a quarterback sneak and was stuffed by redshirt senior linebacker Mason Cobb. 

USC got the ball back with 4:59 to go, taking advantage of the excellent field position to tack on a field goal and extend its lead to 19-13.

And with 1:52 remaining, the Trojans got the final stop they needed, as Garbers could not find Matavao on fourth and 10. A few kneel downs from Maiava later, USC secured a huge road win over its biggest rival.