No. 6 USC exorcises rivalry demons with win over No. 15 Notre Dame
QB Caleb Williams spectacularly cements his Heisman frontrunner status with an 18-for-22 show, scoring four TDs
Adam Grosbard (OC Register) — LOS ANGELES — In the grand scheme of this 96-year-old rivalry, six years is not a terribly long time. But for the players in the USC locker room, those six cycles around the sun might as well have been a lifetime. Entering Saturday’s regular-season finale, no Trojan had beaten Notre Dame, with four straight losses (and a DNP-COVID) haunting Los Angeles.
But that streak came to a cathartic end at the Coliseum Saturday, with No. 6 USC beating No. 15 Notre Dame 38-27.
If you couldn’t tell how much that meant to USC (11-1, 8-1 in Pac-12) based on its comments leading up to the game, the emotion was quickly evident. The Trojan defense strutted to the sidelines after linebacker Shane Lee stopped Notre Dame for a loss on third down on the Irish’s first drive.
The defense was throwing fists through the air when Ralen Goforth and Tyrone Taleni stuffed the Irish on a fourth-and-one run the next drive.
Four days after the College Football Playoff’s selection committee questioned the USC defense, the Trojans held Notre Dame to 90 yards rushing a week after the Irish put up 281 against Boston College.
And though it was his first game in the rivalry, head coach Lincoln Riley went deep into the playbook on USC’s opening touchdown drive. Tight end Lake McRee slipped through the line for a 31-yard reception on third down, which Riley followed with a reverse to Jordan Addison for another first down.
The drive ended with receiver Tahj Washington dancing through defenders to the end zone.
Returners like Washington who suffered through USC’s four-game losing streak to Notre Dame (8-4) got their pounds of flesh. The 5-foot-11 receiver went up and caught a terrific jump ball to set up a USC touchdown. That drive was set up by a fumble recovery from Goforth that ended a promising Notre Dame charge to open the second half, when the USC lead was just 10.
Tuli Tuipulotu had a monster sack to end the second quarter, and safety Calen Bullock’s fourth-quarter interception cemented the win for USC.
But the new blood that has revitalized USC played a pivotal role, too. Running back Austin Jones continued to fill in admirably for the injured Travis Dye, rushing 25 times for a career-high 154 yards. Freshman Raleek Brown was able to strut untouched into the end zone to give USC a 17-point third-quarter lead.
And, of course, there was quarterback Caleb Williams. The quarterback cemented his Heisman frontrunner status with an 18-for-22 performance, throwing one touchdown and running in three more.
He was immaculate with his decisions in read options, pulling one away from Jones at the last moment to scramble into the end zone. Then when Notre Dame respected his keeper ability, Williams handed off to Brown for his easy score.
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