USC Advances To 4-0 Following Victory Over Washington State 38-13

The USC Trojans advance to 4-0 after a win over the Washington State Cougars 38-13 on Sunday night in Los Angeles.

In a dominant performance by the USC Trojans over the Washington State Cougars, USC takes the win 38-13, in week five advancing to 4-0 overall. Are you thinking what we’re thinking? Maybe USC should play on Sunday’s more often. The Trojans came out bold, firing on all cylinders tonight and executed well on both sides of the ball.

Yes, Washington State was out for two weeks prior to this game due to COVID-19. To add, they had to play their first game back on the grass away from home. However, the Cougars were out beat on both offense and defense all night which created a serious momentum swing for USC.

1st Quarter: 

USC scored right out of the gate, 8:46 into the game. Slovis found Amon-Ra St. Brown for a 7 yard touchdown which put the Trojans ahead 7-0. But this was just the beginning. 

At 5:11 3rd & 9 at WSU 22 Slovis found St. Brown yet again for a 22 yard pass, raising the score 14-0 USC. At 2:33 1st & Goal at WSU 4 Slovis and St. Brown connected yet again for a 4 yard pass (21-0). And with 0:44 seconds left in the 1st at 3rd & Goal WSU 2, Slovis and St. Brown did it again and brought the score to 28-0 with a 2 yard pass.

2nd Quarter: 

Going into the second quarter - the tone was set. You could visibly see a decrease of energy and frankly a loss of hope on Washington State’s sideline. As the Cougars faced a long uphill battle to victory, USC maintained control and scored yet again at 3rd & 1 WSU 35 with 7:11 left in the 1st half. Slovis found WR Tyler Vaughns for a 35 yard touchdown which brought the score to 35-0. 

The Cougars were able to make their way down to USC’s goal line and score just before the end of the first half. With 0:28 seconds left in the half, Washington State wide receiver Travell Harris made a 5 yard run into the end zone. Washington State place kicker Blake Mazza came in for the extra point but missed the kick.

END OF FIRST HALF USC 35 - WSU 6

3rd Quarter: 

Head coach Nick Rolovich must have given his team a good talking to in the locker room during the half, because Washington State came out with some energy in the 3rd quarter. Players on the Cougar’s sideline were shouting on nearly every drive early in the second half, trying to gain some momentum and energy back on their side. 

The Cougars defense showed up slightly more physical, as the Cougars sacked QB Kedon Slovis three times in the third quarter. 

Christian Mejia sacked Slovis for a loss of 5 yards to WSU 31. Brennan Jackson sacked Slovis for a loss of 7 yards to WSU 14. And Quinn Roff sacked Slovis for a loss of 11 yards to the WSU 42 for a forced fumble which was later recovered by Slovis at WSU 42. 

USC was able to advance the score slightly in the third quarter as freshman place kicker Parker Lewis came in for a 48 yard field goal to bring the score to 38-6.

4th Quarter: 

As the fourth quarter rolled around and USC lit the infamous torch in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, the Cougar's fate was sealed. 

Nick Rolovich rotated out freshman QB Jayden De Laura and tried both No.2 and No.3 options, Gunner Cruz and Cammon Cooper but the Cougar's struggled to advance enough to flip the score. At 2nd & 5th at USC 6, second string QB Gunner Cruz did find wideout Renard Bell for a 6 yard touchdown but a 13-38 score was not enough to find a victory over the Trojans in Los Angeles on Sunday night.

FINAL SCORE: USC: 38 | WSU: 13

FINAL STATS: 

Kedon Slovis finished the night 25/32 C/ATT, 287 YDS, 5 TD's and 0 INT. Jayden de Laura finished the night with 18/29 C/ATT, 134 YDS, 0 TD's and 2 INT. 

Kenan Christon was the leading rusher of the night for the Trojans with 3 CAR and 11 YDS. Deon McIntosh led the night for the Coug's with 10 CAR and 65 YDS. 

Drake London led the night for the receiver core in yards with with 5 REC and 92 YDS. However Amon-Ra St. Brown was the stand out player on offense with 7 REC, 65 YDS, 4TDS. On Washington State's side Renard Bell led the night with 11 REC, 76 YDS, and 1 TD. 

Total Rushing USC: 20 CAR, 5 YDS, 0 TDS.

Total Rushing WSU: 27 CAR, 73 YDS, 1 TDS.

Total Receiving USC: 26 REC, 282 YDS, 5 TDS.

Total Receiving WSU: 26 REC, 190 YDS, 1 TD.

[READ: USC vs Washington State: Halftime Update]

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