USC made quite an impression in its first game as a member of the Big Ten, taking down the No. 13 ranked LSU Tigers 27-20 in Las Vegas last Sunday. The Trojans jump ten spots to No.13 in the latest AP Poll thanks to their week one victory.
A huge reason USC was able to take down the Tigers was new QB Miller Moss, who threw for 378 yards and a touchdown while completing 75% of his passes. ESPN’s “College Gameday” guest Kirk Herbstreit ranked Moss No. 3 in his top week one performers list, just behind Arizona WR Tetairoa McMillan and Miami QB Cam Ward.
Moss was able to find a plethora of receivers in Sunday’s game. Ten different Trojans caught a pass, with redshirt junior receiver Kyron Hudson leading the way with 85 yards. Standout sophomore Zachariah Branch was second in receiving, catching four passes for 54 total yards.
USC’s ground game was also a huge reason they were able to pull this game out in the final seconds. Running back Woody Marks totaled 82 yards on the ground while also finding the endzone twice, one of which was the game-winning score with 13 seconds left in the game.
It seems that USC head coach Lincoln Riley has struck gold yet again with the quarterback position. We’ll see if Moss and the Trojan offense can keep up the momentum on Sept. 7 when USC hosts Utah State.