USC
7-3 , 4-3
Stanford<br>(Homecoming)
7-3 , 6-2
Team Stats
STANFORD 7, USC 0
STANFORD - Marecic, O 4 yd pass from Luck, A (Whitaker, N kick) 12 plays, 71 yards, TOP 6:40
STANFORD 14, USC 0
STANFORD - Gerhart, T 1 yd run (Whitaker, N kick), 6 plays, 35 yards, TOP 2:42
STANFORD 14, USC 7
USC - Bradford, Allen 2 yd run (Congdon, Jordan kick), 9 plays, 80 yards, TOP 3:56
STANFORD 21, USC 7
STANFORD - Gerhart, T 3 yd run (Whitaker, N kick), 9 plays, 79 yards, TOP 4:50
STANFORD 21, USC 14
USC - Butler, Brice 36 yd pass from Barkley, Matt (Congdon, Jordan kick) 1 plays, 36 yards, TOP 0:08
STANFORD 28, USC 14
STANFORD - Luck, A 6 yd run (Whitaker, N kick), 11 plays, 68 yards, TOP 5:12
STANFORD 28, USC 21
USC - McKnight, Joe 28 yd run (Congdon, Jordan kick), 8 plays, 76 yards, TOP 3:42
STANFORD 35, USC 21
STANFORD - Fleener, C 24 yd pass from Luck, A (Whitaker, N kick) 9 plays, 79 yards, TOP 4:11
STANFORD 42, USC 21
STANFORD - Sherman, R 43 yd interception (Whitaker, N kick)
STANFORD 48, USC 21
STANFORD - Gerhart, T 6 yd run (Taylor, S rushfailed), 6 plays, 65 yards, TOP 3:42
STANFORD 55, USC 21
STANFORD - Gaffney, T 1 yd run (Whitaker, N kick), 7 plays, 44 yards, TOP 4:07
Players Mentioned
Trojans Fall To Cardinal, 55-21
November 14, 2009 | Football
Nov. 14, 2009
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LOS ANGELES (AP) -Toby Gerhart rushed for 178 yards and three touchdowns and No. 25 Stanford emphatically followed up its 2007 upset at the Coliseum by beating No. 11 Southern California on Saturday 55-21.
Andrew Luck threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score for the Cardinal (7-3, 6-2 Pac-10), who followed up their surprising rout of Oregon last week with a strong start and a big finish at the Coliseum, where the Trojans (7-3, 4-3) haven't lost to any other opponent since 2001, going 47-2.
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"To do that against a storied program, a perennial power, it's the greatest feeling in the world," said the Pac-10 rushing leader, whose Heisman Trophy hopes are gaining momentum. "It was just will. The offensive line just moved people. We got after them and got downhill, and it was just a good offensive day."
How good? The loss was the Trojans' worst since a 51-0 defeat at home against Notre Dame in 1966. Coach Pete Carroll lost in November for the first time at USC after 28 straight victories. And for the second time in three weekends, Carroll endured the worst loss of his nine seasons.
"I'm not sure I have the right words to describe being humbled like this," Carroll said. "I don't really know where to put it. ... We have fallen apart and given our opponents the opportunity to do whatever they want, but you have to give Stanford a lot of credit."
Richard Sherman returned an interception 42 yards for a score with 11:41 to play, part of a 27-point fourth quarter for the Cardinal. After the postgame handshsake, the Cardinal raised their helmets and raced to their cheering section for their second celebration at the Coliseum in three years.
Stanford's 24-23 victory as a 41-point underdog in 2007 was a major shocker, yet this win barely even qualified as an upset. That might be the most incredible thing of all about the Trojans' downward slide, which will end with a minor bowl berth -- and with more than two losses -- for the first time since 2001.
"We came out there, and there was something wrong," USC safety Taylor Mays said. "It is very disappointing. It's almost sickening. To be a senior and leave a legacy like this, it's sickening."
Two weeks after USC's 47-20 loss at Oregon, the Trojans' defense gave up 469 yards.
Barkley went 21 of 31 for 196 yards with three interceptions for the Trojans. Carroll has stuck with the freshman all season, but Barkley made turnovers on USC's first two drives to put the Trojans in an early 14-0 hole.
When Sherman jumped on Barkley's short pass and returned it down the USC sideline to put the Cardinal up 42-21, Coliseum fans headed for the exits with unfamiliar emotions.
"This isn't what we grew up watching," Barkley said. "I'm not used to this. ... I don't know what to think right now."
Joe McKnight rushed for 142 yards and a score for the Trojans, who fell behind 21-7 at halftime without top receiver Damian Williams, who has a sprained ankle. Brice Butler caught a scoring pass among his six catches for 96 yards, but USC's offense rarely found a rhythm after its first drive ended in a fumble by Barkley deep in Stanford territory.
After Gerhart's third touchdown, Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh even attempted a 2-point conversion, but USC stopped the try at the goal line.
Harbaugh's explanation for trying to pile on a couple more points: "I just honestly thought there was an opportunity coming off the ball, the way our backs were running and the way we were playing."
Said Carroll: "I don't know what they were thinking with that, but in that situation, they get to do whatever they want."
