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USC Trojans' Lincoln Riley Confident in 'Warrior' Woody Marks Before Winning Touchdown

After transferring to USC following the 2023 season, Woody Marks made a huge impact for the Trojans in his first game under Lincoln Riley, scoring the game-winning touchdowns against LSU.

Randall Sweet

Sep 1, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Southern California Trojans running back Woody Marks (4) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the LSU Tigers during the second quarter at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 1, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Southern California Trojans running back Woody Marks (4) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the LSU Tigers during the second quarter at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports / Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
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On Sunday night, USC running back Jo'Quavious "Woody" Marks scored the game-winning touchdown for the Trojans as Lincoln Riley's team took down LSU 27-20 in Las Vegas, NV.

Marks' dagger against the Tigers came in his Southern California debut, as the redshirt senior tailback transferred from Mississippi State to USC over the offseason. Marks beat out former top-100 prospect Quinten Joyner for the Trojans' starting running back spot and had an impressive performance in the team's season opener.

Aside from running in the go-ahead score with less than 10 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, Marks was the game's leading rusher with 68 yards and two scores on 16 carries. The 5-foot-10 running back also tallied three catches for seven yards.

A strong, powerful back, Marks broke a handful of tackles on his final carry of the night following a remarkable reception from Kyron Hudson and a 15-yard targeting penalty on the same play.

With the game tied at 20 and the clock winding down, Riley elected to hand the ball to Marks again before kicking a field goal to try and win the game, a decision that paid off immediately.

Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley reacts in the first half against the LSU Tigers
Sep 1, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Southern California Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley reacts in the first half against the LSU Tigers at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

"I knew he was going to score," Riley said after the game. "We were certainly trying to get some more yards and position ourselves for a field goal if he didn't pop it. I mean, having the timeout, we knew we could be a little bit agressive there. It's funny, I had a flashback. You know, the last OU-Texas game that I coached was a very similar situation.

"We were a little bit further out, and we handed a ball off and it popped and I remember I had just a little flashback and I told somebody on the headsets. I was like, 'It wouldn't surprise me if he just creases this,' and of course, it happens. So, that was awesome, it was blocked up well. Great run by Woody (Marks), he was a warrior for us tonight and awesome to be able to finish it out that way."

In the 2021 Red River Rivalry, an annual rivalry game between Oklahoma and Texas, Kennedy Brooks ran in a 33-yard touchdown with less than 10 seconds left to give the Riley-led Sooners a 55-48 victory over the Longhorns.

After Marks' strong performance on Sunday night, the veteran tailback seems to have firmly established himself as the Trojans' lead back. As the newcomer continues to get more in-game reps playing in Riley's offense, there is a chance he develops into an even better player, as well.

The Atlanta, GA, product's poise shouldn't come as a surprise, with Marks tallying at least 300 yards and three touchdowns on the ground in each of his four seasons at Mississippi State. The former 4-star recruit's best performance came in 2022, when marks racked up a career-high 582 yards rushing yards and nine touchdowns.

If Marks is able to maintain his spot as USC's top back, he will have the chance to surpass his previous career bests in 2024.

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Randall Sweet
RANDALL SWEET

Randall Sweet is a Staff Writer for Sports Illustrated covering the Oklahoma Sooners, Oklahoma State Cowboys, USC Trojans, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets. Since graduating from the University of Oklahoma in 2022 with a bachelor's degree in journalism, Randall has covered professional, collegiate and high school sports across the country as a credentialed media member. While in college, Randall wrote for the OU Daily and logged bylines in The Norman Transcript in addition to working with Sooner Sports Pad and OU Nightly. Following his time at OU, Randall served as the Communications Coordinator at Visit Oklahoma City before leaving to join the team at Sports Illustrated.

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