USC secures bowl game berth with 19-13 win over bitter rivals UCLA
Lincoln Riley and Southern California weren't fazed when they were trailing going into the fourth quarter of Saturday night's game against crosstown rival UCLA.
Considering what they had already faced this week, it was just another hurdle.
The Trojans had 27 players plus staff members out with the flu when they practiced on Tuesday. USC was able to get through the week and then rallied for a 19-13 victory over the Bruins at the Rose Bowl in the 94th edition of the Crosstown Showdown.
"Awesome win," Riley said. "It was an interesting week, and we just decided from the very beginning that nothing out of our control was going to be an excuse. The only thing I can compare it to is maybe having gone through a COVID football season."
Jayden Maiava passed for 221 yards, including a 4-yard touchdown to Ja'Kobi Lane midway through the fourth quarter, as the Trojans (6-5, 4-5 Big Ten) became bowl eligible with the victory.
Woody Marks rushed for 76 yards and Michael Lantz kicked four field goals
It is the fifth straight year the road team has won in the series. The Trojans have won 19 of the last 26 meetings.
"These wins are special. We know how much it means to this city, how much it means to this university," Riley said.
Ethan Garbers was 20 of 29 for 265 yards for the Bruins (4-7, 3-6). J.Michael Sturdivant had five receptions for 117 yards and T.J. Harden rushed for 98 yards.
"We let one slip through our hands. All of these losses have come to, pretty much, us letting it slip through our hands. We got to find a way to finish games," Bruins coach DeShaun Foster said.
On first-and-goal at the UCLA 4, Maiava took a deep drop back and avoided being sacked by UCLA's Jacob Busic at the 11 before scrambling left and then finding Lane in the back corner of the end zone.
The Trojans go-ahead touchdown was set up one play earlier when Makai Lemon completed a 39-yard pass off a lateral to Kyron Hudson.
"Ja'Kobi, he's a great player and a great athlete. If he's out there, I'm going to obviously throw it to him. He came down with the catch, an unbelievable catch," said Maiava, who completed 19 of 35 passes.
On UCLA's ensuing drive, Garbers was stopped on a QB sneak on fourth-and-1 at the Bruins 34 to turn it over on downs. Lantz extended the lead to six with a field goal.
The Bruins had one last chance to mount a go-ahead drive, but Garbers had four straight incomplete passes.
"I can't say enough about us defensively, how well we played to hold them down," Riley said. "Obviously the big stops. We were just pretty awesome defensively, we really were. Played at a really high level."
UCLA trailed 9-3 at halftime but went on top with 9:37 remaining in the third quarter when Garbers hit Moliki Matavao on a tight end screen for a 10-yard touchdown.
The Bruins extended their lead to 13-9 late in the third quarter on Mateen Bhaghani's second field goal.
UCLA got the opening kickoff and scored on Bhaghani's 51-yard field goal. The Bruins caught a break when Garbers appeared to turn it over when he fumbled while being sacked by USC linebacker Easton Mascarenas-Arnold. However, a replay review determined Garbers was in the act of throwing and overturned the call to an incomplete pass.
The Trojans drove inside the UCLA 10 three times in the first half but could only settle for field goals by Lantz.
Rare sight
UCLA kicked off from its own 5 to start the second half after being called for three unsportsmanlike conduct penalties at the end of the second quarter.
The Trojans started on their own 48 after Lemon's 16-yard kick return but turned it over on downs when Lane dropped what would have been a 5-yard completion on fourth-and-3.
"Cannot retaliate. Cannot. I've played in this game. I know exactly what it's going to be, exactly what's going to happen. I know exactly what kind of stuff that's going to be said, and I let my guys know you can't retaliate," Foster said.
The takeaway
USC: The Trojans improved to 3-5 in one-possession games.
UCLA: The Bruins have dropped two straight and saw their bowl hopes dashed.
Up next
USC: Hosts No. 6 Notre Dame next Saturday.
UCLA: Hosts Fresno State next Saturday.
