LOS ANGELES – No. 14 Utah stormed back late to beat No. 18 USC 34-32 on a last-second field goal by Utes kicker Cole Becker, likely knocking the Trojans out of the College Football Playoff for the second straight year be excluded. The Colorado transfer converted the 38-yard field goal attempt to give Utah a victory in the rematch of last season’s Pac-12 title game.
Utah (6-1, 3-1 Pac-12) improved to 3-0 against the Lincoln Riley and Caleb Williams-led Trojans and got back into play with a three-game sweep as five-game Pac-12 champions and remained on schedule . USC provided a spark late with a 61-yard punt return by star freshman Zachariah Branch, and a subsequent 11-yard touchdown run by Williams gave USC the lead with under two minutes left. But as has become common practice under Riley, the defense couldn’t get a final stop.
The Utes used a steady floor presence from Ja’Quinden Jackson and Sione Vaki to control time of possession and neutralize a lethal USC offense that averaged 47.3 points per game over the weekend. The Utes’ defense allowed 14 points in the first seven minutes of the game and settled down before the Trojans attempted a late comeback.
USC (6-2, 4-1 Pac-12) lost its second straight game after suffering a blowout loss to Notre Dame last weekend in South Bend, Indiana. The Trojans have lost three games to Pac-12 opponents in the Riley era – all three at the hands of this Utes program.
The Trojans allowed 483 yards of offense to a Utah team that ranked last in the Pac-12 in yards entering the game and played the season without starting quarterback and team leader Cameron Rising because of a serious knee injury he sustained in the Rose Bowl in January had suffered a loss to Penn State.
Utah backup quarterback Bryson Barnes stepped in for Rising this season and had the best performance of his college career against a lackluster USC defense. Barnes threw a career-best three touchdown passes and completed 14 of 22 passes for 235 yards.
Utah faces another critical test next weekend at home against No. 9 Oregon, while USC goes on the road to face Cal.
Utah right back in the Pac-12 title game mix
After Utah suffered a 21-7 road loss to Oregon State in late September, scoring three goals as conference champions looked difficult. The offense seemed sluggish and the Utes only managed 198 yards of total offense. Worst of all, in Rising’s absence, rotating Barnes and Nate Johnson, they struggled to find an identity at quarterback.
Just over a month later, Utah had its best offensive performance of the season against USC and Barnes had the best static performance of his college career. The win over USC gives Utah something to expand on offense as the Utes are back in contention to get back to the conference title game. A meeting next weekend with Oregon in Salt Lake City, Utah, could determine whether Utah will be one of the representatives in Las Vegas on December 1st. Utah controls its own destiny with games against the Ducks, Washington and Colorado on the schedule.
Another season wasted
There has never been a team with two losses in the College Football Playoff. With nine undefeated FBS teams remaining and several programs with just one loss in prime position to win their respective conferences, USC is essentially eliminated from CFP competition.
Last season, despite a midseason loss to Utah in the regular season, USC was on the doorstep of the CFP. All the Trojans had to do was beat Utah in the Pac-12 title game and they would be all but assured of a spot in the field. That didn’t happen and the Trojans ended the season with an embarrassing loss to Tulane in the Cotton Bowl. The bright spot was that reigning Heisman Trophy winner Williams returned. Because of the improved offensive weapons surrounding Williams and the work the Trojans did in the transfer portal, USC was in prime position to become the top team in the Pac-12. However, with back-to-back losses to Notre Dame and Utah, USC is closer to being eliminated from the rankings altogether than to securing a spot to play in a national championship.
USC’s defense has not improved under defensive coordinator Alex Grinch since last season. The Trojans are near the bottom of the conference in almost every statistical category on this side of the ball and it appears that the trouble early in Pac-12 play has finally caught up with them. With Williams set to enter the NFL Draft this spring, the Riley/Williams era will be remembered as a huge “what if” unless massive changes are made in the final weeks of the season.