University Southern California Trojans
Woods Catches 3 Barkley TDs In Scrimmage
August 21, 2011 | Football
Aug. 21, 2011
Quarterback Matt Barkley connected with wide receiver Robert Woods for 3 touchdown passes and Trojan quarterbacks threw 9 TDs overall to highlight USC's third intrasquad football scrimmage of 2011 fall camp on Sunday (Aug. 21) in the Coliseum.
Barkley, who was 15-of-25 for 261 yards with 5 touchdowns and an interception, hit Woods on scoring tosses of 22, 42 and 2 yards. Woods, who had been nursing an ankle injury, had 6 total catches for 122 yards.
Barkley's other TD passes were a 14-yarder to tight end Rhett Ellison and a 25-yarder to wide receiver Kyle Prater.
First-year freshmen quarterbacks Max Wittek (11-of-23 for 119 yards) and Cody Kessler (13-of-19 for 228 yards) each threw 2 TDs. Wittek hit tight end Randall Telfer for a 4-yard score and wide receiver Victor Blackwell for an 11-yarder. Kessler, who also threw an interception, hit fullback Soma Vainuku for a 6-yard score and wide receiver Marqise Lee on a 40-yarder.
Lee, a first-year freshman, had 7 catches for 165 yards overall, while Telfer had 5 grabs for 80 yards.
Placekicker Andre Heidari hit both of his field goal attempts, 48 and 32 yards.
Tailbacks D.J. Morgan (44 yards on 12 carries ) and Dillon Baxter (31 yards on 10 attempts) were the leading rushers in a 123-play scrimmage that focused on the passing attack.
Cornerback Nickell Robey provided scrimmage's defensive highlight, scooping up a fumble and racing 90 yards for a touchdown. The score occurred 4 plays after Robey fumbled away the ball while attempting to catch a punt. He had 5 tackles, including 2 for losses, on the day.
Linebacker Hayes Pullard led the defense with 6 tackles, while safety T.J. McDonald added 5 stops. For the second scrimmage in a row, safety Drew McAllister and cornerback Torin Harris both had interceptions.
"We got a lot of things done in this scrimmage that we were hoping," said second-year USC head coach Lane Kiffin. "The passing game really got going. We had already seen the running game in past scrimmages, so it was more critical to get the passing game going. It was great to see the effect a healthy Woods can have and Lee was phenomenal. Defensively, our first-team defense did really well against the run. But it's always hard to judge scrimmages, because when you're making big plays on one side, it means you're giving up something on the other side."
The Trojans open their 2011 season at home against Minnesota on Sept. 3, with tickets available online at USCTrojans.com or by calling the USC Ticket Office at (213) 740-4672.
