March 28, 2024 7:21 AM
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Sun Devils Make USC Work

Photo: 4 Cam Skattabo played a big part in the Sun Devils game versus USC

The Arizona State Sun Devils left it all on the field, and despite the 42-28 loss, gave the USC Trojans something to think about in their final PAC 12 matchup in Tempe.

It was the first road game of the season for the Trojans, and it showed. USC coach Lincoln Riley said, “Tough road win for us tonight. Road wins are really, really difficult. That’s college football. When you play at programs like USC, you’re going to see a different atmosphere, inspired football team. Give coach Dillingham a lot of credit with all the injuries and adversity they’ve had, they obviously came out and did a lot of really good things, challenged us in a lot of ways. So give him and their program a lot of credit. Tough losses like they had the week before aren’t easy to come back from, and they certainly did that, so a lot of respect for those guys.”

Photo:  13 Caleb Williams rushing for the first touchdown of the game

Last year’s Heisman trophy winner Caleb Williams had good numbers 20-31-0, 322 yards, and three touchdowns, but was noticeably stressed in the first half.  Williams said, “Arizona State provided a challenge for us. Their crowd was loud and rowdy. It was a tough first road game. There are going to be things that happen on the road that don’t at home. I am glad we came out with the win. We have to get better because we are going on the road again.”

The Trojans struggled noticeably early, and off and on throughout because of the Sun Devils, and the sellout crowd that brought a big game atmosphere to the stadium in a matchup between (1-2) ASU and (3-0) USC.

The Sun Devil defense and the crowd had the Trojans pinned on the first drive, but Williams delivered with a first down, that ultimately led to Williams on a quarterback bootleg to just get across the goal line with his arm knocking the pylon down.

ASU came back to tie the game when Cam Skattebo powered his way in from 15 yards out. USC would score two more TDs in the first half, while ASU had to settle for a pair of field goals, giving the Trojans a 21-13 lead at the half.

The roles reversed in the third quarter with USC kicking a pair of field goals and ASU pulling within 27-21 when Elijhah Badgers pulled in a 25 yard pass from Drew Pyne. Skattebo was at first denied the two point conversion run, but replay overturned the call, counting the two points.

Once again USC found the end zone to go up 35-21 with about ten minutes remaining. Pyne connected out in the flats to Skattebo, who bowled his way through some Trojans, going 52 yards for the touchdown. The score pulled the Sun Devils within 35-28, but the ASU defense could not make the stop they needed, and the USC iced the game with a 45 yard touchdown pass from Williams to Tahj Washington.

Arizona State football coach Kenny Dillingham was proud of his team’s effort saying, “We were trying to attack. You have to play this game attacking if you want to win a game like that. You can’t play the game scared. We had some costly turnovers and penalties that really hurt us. We have to get better, I have to get better.”

Cam Skattebo who had 20 carries for 111 yards and a touchdown said, “We were super aggressive. We ran the ball a lot more than we have in the past. We were in downhill attack and knew we could run on those guys. We had a couple of mistakes that bit us towards the end. On the sidelines felt like more like a family. There was a lot more energy tonight, with all the fans still out there after halftime. Felt like they believed in us.”

Riley, in his second year at USC, added, “Certainly wasn’t our cleanest performance. We know we’re going to have to get a lot better. We know there are a lot of things to learn from, and I think this team will do so, and look forward to our next road challenge.”

Saturday, USC travels to face the Colorado, while ASU travels to Berkeley to play California at noon.

 

USC TROJANS 42, ARIZONA STATE SUN DEVILS 28

Score by Quarters-    1      2      3      4    –   T

USC                             14     7      6     15   –  42

ASU                              7      6      8       7   –  28

Scoring Summary

USC-Williams 1 yard run (Lynch kick)

ASU-Skattebo 15 yard run (Longhetto kick)

USC-Rice 43 yard pass from Williams (Lynch kick)

ASU-Longhetto 35 yard FG

USC-Williams 1 yard run (Lynch kick)

ASU-Longhetto 30 yard FG

USC-Lynch 53 yard FG

ASU-Badgers 25 yard pass from Pyne (Skattebo run)

USC-Lynch 36 yard FG

USC-Rice 29 yard pass from Williams (M. Williams pass from C. Williams)

ASU-Skattebo 52 yard pass from Pyne (Longhetto kick)

USC-Washington 45 yard pass from Williams (Lynch kick)

ATT:54,166

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