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USC football vs. Rice: Live updates recap, highlights from Trojans' 66-14 win

USC scored three defensive touchdowns and rolled up 66 points in Lincoln Riley's debut

All Trojans Staff

USC football vs. Rice: Live updates recap, highlights from Trojans' 66-14 win
USC football vs. Rice: Live updates recap, highlights from Trojans' 66-14 win /

The Lincoln Riley era has finally arrived for USC football. And the defense stole the show.

The Trojans kicked off their 2022 season on Saturday at home against Rice, and they looked like a different team. Led by an opportunistic defense that returned three interceptions for touchdowns, USC rolled to a 66-14 victory over Rice.

Check out all of the big play and scoring highlights as fans got their first look at Riley's high-octane offense and Alex Grinch's new-look defense.

FIRST QUARTER UPDATES

7-0 USC, 11:18 left: Well, that didn't take long. USC took the opening kickoff and marched down the field for a quick touchdown, culminating with a six-yard touchdown pass from Caleb Williams to Jordan Addison with 11:18 left in the first quarter.

7-7, 3:09 left: Not a great start for Grinch's defense. The Trojans couldn't get off the field on third down and Rice mounted a 16-play, 74-yard drive to tie the game with 3:09 left in the opener quarter.

SECOND QUARTER UPDATES

14-7 USC, 14:13 left: Stanford transfer Austin Jones scored on a 4-yard run to give USC the lead right back and cap an 11-play 84-yard drive. 

21-7 USC, 10:49 left: Raleek Brown is doing Raleek Brown things. The former Mater Dei star scored his first college touchdown on a 14-yard run to extend USC's lead. A true freshman, Brown is one of the fastest backs in the country, and he showed all of it here.

28-7 USC, 8:05 left: Calen Bullock with the pick six! The former Muir (Pasadena) High School star returned an interception 93 yards for a touchdown in the first big defensive play of the Grinch era.

Romello Height ejected, 3:48 left: Height, a sophomore edge rusher, was ejected for targeting on Rice quarterback TJ McMahon. It came on a third-down play and kept a drive alive for Rice. 

28-14 USC, 1:35 left: Rice took advantage of a third-down targeting call and the ejection of Height to put together a 10-play touchdown drive to cut USC's lead before halftime. Ari Broussard capped the drive with his second TD run of the half.

31-14 USC, halftime: Denis Lynch kicked a 25-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to extend USC's lead to 17 points.

THIRD QUARTER UPDATES

38-14 USC, 13:39: Another pick-six! Alabama transfer Shane Lee picked off a tipped third-down pass and returned it 40 yards for a touchdown to give USC's defense another huge play. Alex Grinch's defense has already scored two touchdowns in just over two quarters of play.

45-14 USC, 12:52 left: What is going on! Former St. John Bosco star Ralen Goforth came up with USC's third pick-six of the game, returning the interception 30 yards for a touchdown to effectively put the game away early in the third quarter. What a statement for Grinch's defense.

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52-14 USC, 9:12 left: The Trojans are piling it on now. Caleb Williams connected with Jordan Addison for the second time, this one a three-yard touchdown pass to give USC a 38-point lead.

59-14 USC, 1:29 left: Another explosive play from USC as Austin Jones scored on a 28-yard run to extend the Trojans' lead. It's Jones' second touchdown run of the game.

66-14 USC, 6:11 left: Darwin Barlow puts an exclamation point on this one with a two-yard TD run.

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All Trojans Staff
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