By Tim Peterson
(Los Angeles) – Caleb Williams threw for 188 yards and two touchdowns, both to Mario Williams, and Travis Dye rushed for over 100 yards as USC beat Washington State 30-14 Saturday Night before 63,204 fans at the LA Memorial Coliseum.
USC led 17-14 at the half and then held Washington State scoreless in the second half en route to the 16-point victory.
After holding Washington State on its first series USC marched right down the field going 82 yards on 8 plays. The Williams to Williams connection, Caleb to Mario, hooked up for a 37-yard touchdown.
On the next possession the Trojans drive was halted at the Cougars 14-yard line but Dennis Lynch kicked a 31-yard field goal for a 10-lead with 3:32 left in the first quarter.
Washington State then drove 92 yards on 8 plays and on the first play of the second quarter Cameron Ward hit Robert Ferrel on a 12-yard touchdown pass to cut the Trojan lead to 10-7.
Later in the quarter Washington State went 75 yards on 5 plays helped by a targeting penalty on the Trojans’ Calen Bullock. Bullock was ejected from the game. Nakia Watson finished the drive with a one-yard touchdown pass from Ward to give the Cougars a 14-10 lead. That was the last time the Cougs scored.
USC grabbed the lead for good on 4-yard run by Travis Dye to finish a 65 -yard drive. The Trojans were aided by a pass interference penalty on Washington State in the end zone. Dye punched it in with 2:10 left in the second quarter.
The Trojans took that lead into break.
Williams to Williams again hooked up in the third quarter to cap a 5-play, 62-yard Trojan march. This time Caleb hit Mario for a 24-yard touchdown strike. Washington State was hit with a holding penalty and a personal foul which extended the drive. USC was up 24-14 with 5:17 left in the third quarter.
Lynch booted a 27-yard field goal with 9:09 left in the fourth quarter to put the Trojans up 27-14.
Lynch added another 31-yard field goal with just over two minutes left for the final tally of the night. Meanwhile the Trojans defense kept the Cougars at bay the rest of the way.
For Washington State Ward completed 19 of 32 for 172 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. Jaylen Jackson rushed for 130 yards to lead the ground attack.
For USC Mario Williams was Caleb Williams’ favorite target with four receptions and 82 yards and the two scores. Brenden Rice caught three passes for 38 yards and Jordan Addison three for 37. Dye did the damage on the ground with 28 carries and the touchdown to go along with 149 yards.
USC improved to 6-0 overall and 2-0 in the Pac 12 Conference with the victory. The Trojans will travel to Utah next Saturday. Washington State fell to 4-2 on the year and 1-2 in the conference.
Take your dress of Aikman.
When I was watching the USC game the Colosseum wasn’t a sellout!
Lol! At least you still able to ranked team this year what has USC done?
Joe Biden needs to sign an executive order to force more people into the Rose Bowl seats, then the write-ups will come.
What was so impressive about it? Quit crying
And no write up about UCLA who had a far more impressive victory!
Congrats to Lincoln Riley for being the first SC coach to win his first six games since 1951. That said, his defense needs some work. What appears to be just fine is the running game, spearheaded by one Travis Dye, a kid who almost refuses to go down, plowing into the most congested of lanes, and coming out unscathed every time. It’s a great time to be an SC fan.