USC stomps Stanford 56-10 in final matchup as Pac-12 rivals

USC Trojans #13 Caleb Williams (QB) throwing a pass downfield to an open receiver. Photo by William Johnson/TGSportstv1

LOS ANGELES, CA – After more than a century of matchups with the Stanford Cardinal (1-1), the No. 6 USC Trojans (3-0) made sure to end their Pac-12 rivalry on a high note, annihilating their Northern Cal rivals 56-10 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Trojan quarterback Caleb Williams threw for 281 yards and had four combined touchdowns while playing in only the first half. USC came into the game 29-point favorites over the Cardinal, but the defending Heisman winner put the game out of reach midway through the second quarter before ending his night at halftime with the game comfortably in hand.

USC came out firing on all cylinders, with Williams completing his first six passes, driving the Trojans deep into Cardinal territory. Williams capped the drive off with a 21-yard scamper, steamrolling a Cardinal defender on his way into the endzone. The extra point by Denis Lynch gave the Trojans a 7-0 lead after going 75 yards on eight plays.

Three plays later, the Trojans defender Max Williams nearly had a pick-six intercepting Cardinal quarterback Ashton Daniels, returning it three yards shy of the goal line. Marshawn Lloyd rushed for a touchdown a few plays later, giving the Trojans a 14-point lead.

"I want to shout out the D-line because when they get pressure like they've been doing it makes our job in the secondary a lot easier," said Max Williams. "The front seven did an amazing job. When everybody does their job it's an elite defense."

USC Trojans #6 Austin Jones (RB) rushed for 33 yards and one touchdown against the Stanford Cardinal at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Photo by William Johnson/TGSportstv1.

The Trojans forced back-to-back Stanford punts before Caleb Williams led USC on a 93-yard drive culminating with an Austin Jones touchdown, giving them a 21-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Stanford opened the second quarter going three-and-out before USC's special teams blew the game wide open with a Zachariah Branch 75-yard punt return touchdown, giving the Trojans a four-touchdown lead. It is the second return touchdown through three games this season for the freshman phenom.

The Trojans defense recovered a fumble on the next Stanford drive, which led to Caleb Williams throwing a 19-yard strike to Dorian Singer, giving USC a dominating 35-0 lead.

Stanford began showing signs of life on their next drive with 19 and 29-yard runs, driving them deep into Trojan territory. However, mental errors ruined any endzone hopes with a pair of false start penalties by the Cardinal, resulting in a 38-yard field goal by Joshua Karty, cutting the lead to 35-3.

USC Trojans #2 Brenden Rice (WR) 75-yard touchdown pass from Caleb Williams. Photo by William Johnson/TGSportstv1.

That glimmer of hope for Stanford was erased on the next play, with Williams immediately launching a 75-yard bomb to Brenden Rice for the touchdown that left Cardinals players shaking their heads in disbelief.

The spectacular deep pass over the Stanford secondary looked eerily reminiscent of the old highlight reel plays from Joe Montana to Jerry Rice, Brenden's father. The rout was on with the quick touchdown score, giving the Trojans a 42-3 lead with just under seven minutes remaining in the second quarter.

"We practiced it all week, and I saw him in a look that we kind of liked," said Caleb Williams. "I actually kind of heard Coach yelling my name. I kept it and let it fly once I saw the safety come down."

"I was going to tell you to throw it to Brendan," laughed Head Coach Lincoln Riley.

USC capped off the first half with a Caleb Williams touchdown to Lake McRee in the final seconds as Stanford found themselves trailing 49-3 at halftime.

The Trojans ended the first half with 300 passing yards to the Cardinals 50 yards passing, with Williams completing all but three of his 22 passes. Stanford had three turnovers, resulting in 21 Trojan points.

"I'm going out there trying to go for the kill," said Caleb Williams on only playing one half. "We're trying to make everybody feel our pain."

With the Trojans enjoying a commanding lead to start the third quarter, both teams saw a heavy dose of their bench players in the second half. The offenses stalled as a result with neither team scoring until the final minutes of the fourth quarter, with the Trojans winning their first game of Pac-12 play this season, 56-10.

"We played a really, really good first half," said Riley. "All three sides of the ball really surged and got the momentum and kept it. It was fun to see the team really playing at a high level together for a sustained period."

USC has now scored 50-plus points in all three games this season, with Williams the clear Heisman front runner this season. He is trying to join Archie Manning as the only two-time Heisman winner.

With the Trojans winning the 103rd matchup between the schools, the rivalry now goes on an indefinite hiatus as both teams leave the Pac-12 after this season. Stanford heads to the ACC, while USC will join the Big 10.

The Trojans now enter their Bye week before heading to Tempe Arizona, where they will face Arizona State (1-1) at Sun Devil Stadium on September 23rd.