University Southern California Trojans
6-Points: USC 31, Colorado 20
October 14, 2018 | Football, USC Ripsit Blog, Features
The Trojans have now won 19 straight games in the Coliseum.
Playing Downhill
The USC defense was the story. Facing the Pac-12's second-best offense, the Trojans completely dominated the line of scrimmage, recording 16 tackles-for-loss, their most in a game since the 2009 season opener. "Every kid just came in and made plays," said a grateful Clay Helton. "We needed more pressure on the quarterback and needed to play in the backfield more. Great plan by Clancy [Pendergast] and great execution by our kids." Colorado came into the game averaging 6.5 yards per play but was held to a measly 3.2 yards per play on the night.
Let It Fly
The USC offense was held scoreless in the first quarter, but broke the game open with 21 points in a second quarter spurt after making a key adjustment. "It was literally man coverage, one-on-one situations all night and we trusted our kids," Helton said. "I told Tee [Martin] to green light it and take as many shots as needed to back these guys up." Veteran receivers Michael Pittman Jr. (5 catches for 144 yards and 2 TD) and Tyler Vaughns (5 catches for 86 yards and 1 TD) took the game over. "He was really out there doing his thing," Vaughns said of Pittman. "He does it in practice every day. It was just great to see him show it on the field."
The Understudies
USC captain and leading tackler Cameron Smith was held out with a hamstring injury, leaving true freshman Palaie Gaoteote in his place to start. "[Gaoteote] goes out there and leads us in tackles in literally a half of football," Helton said. "I thought he was all over the place." The first-year player hit everything in sight, making 9 tackles, including two for loss, before knocking himself out with a monster collision in the third quarter. Next man up, former walk-on Reuben Peters, who spent much of his career playing fullback, took over Mike linebacker duties and performed admirably as well (6 tackles, including 2 TFLs). "Coach Helton talks about it all the time, prepare as a starter regardless of where you are on the depth chart," Peters said. "[Gaoteote] stepped up and played awesome today and then I just knew if he were to come out for whatever reason, be ready for my moment."
Kid Composure
True freshman QB JT Daniels threw an interception on his first pass of the night and then followed it with another first quarter pick. "He just shook it off," Vaughns said about his QB. "It didn't really faze him. He knew he messed up and had to correct it. We just have to support him and be out there with him." Daniels responded by throwing for 272 yards (255 in the first half) and 3 TDs. "He looked at me and said, 'You thought I sucked for a second there, didn't you?'" Helton and Daniels shared a sideline laugh. "Great job by him of just keeping his poise and that's part of his strength."
Shhh-nault
Laviska Shenault, the nation's leading receiver, was held to 9 catches for 72 yards. "It was a challenge, but we were ready to step up to the plate," said CB Ajene Harris who manned him in the slot. "We come out here looking forward to compete every week." Shenault did break a 49-yard touchdown out of the Wildcat package, but the USC secondary canceled that out when Harris returned a pick for six.
Two Step
With the victory, the Trojans ascended to the top of the Pac-12 South, but the job is far from done. USC needs a win next Saturday in Salt Lake City to maintain control of its own destiny. "Who is next is a really good football team that may be playing the best ball in our conference right now in Utah," Helton said. "You look at what they've done to Stanford and Arizona in the last two weeks, it's been really impressive."
The USC defense was the story. Facing the Pac-12's second-best offense, the Trojans completely dominated the line of scrimmage, recording 16 tackles-for-loss, their most in a game since the 2009 season opener. "Every kid just came in and made plays," said a grateful Clay Helton. "We needed more pressure on the quarterback and needed to play in the backfield more. Great plan by Clancy [Pendergast] and great execution by our kids." Colorado came into the game averaging 6.5 yards per play but was held to a measly 3.2 yards per play on the night.
Let It FlyThe USC offense was held scoreless in the first quarter, but broke the game open with 21 points in a second quarter spurt after making a key adjustment. "It was literally man coverage, one-on-one situations all night and we trusted our kids," Helton said. "I told Tee [Martin] to green light it and take as many shots as needed to back these guys up." Veteran receivers Michael Pittman Jr. (5 catches for 144 yards and 2 TD) and Tyler Vaughns (5 catches for 86 yards and 1 TD) took the game over. "He was really out there doing his thing," Vaughns said of Pittman. "He does it in practice every day. It was just great to see him show it on the field."
The Understudies
USC captain and leading tackler Cameron Smith was held out with a hamstring injury, leaving true freshman Palaie Gaoteote in his place to start. "[Gaoteote] goes out there and leads us in tackles in literally a half of football," Helton said. "I thought he was all over the place." The first-year player hit everything in sight, making 9 tackles, including two for loss, before knocking himself out with a monster collision in the third quarter. Next man up, former walk-on Reuben Peters, who spent much of his career playing fullback, took over Mike linebacker duties and performed admirably as well (6 tackles, including 2 TFLs). "Coach Helton talks about it all the time, prepare as a starter regardless of where you are on the depth chart," Peters said. "[Gaoteote] stepped up and played awesome today and then I just knew if he were to come out for whatever reason, be ready for my moment."
Kid Composure
True freshman QB JT Daniels threw an interception on his first pass of the night and then followed it with another first quarter pick. "He just shook it off," Vaughns said about his QB. "It didn't really faze him. He knew he messed up and had to correct it. We just have to support him and be out there with him." Daniels responded by throwing for 272 yards (255 in the first half) and 3 TDs. "He looked at me and said, 'You thought I sucked for a second there, didn't you?'" Helton and Daniels shared a sideline laugh. "Great job by him of just keeping his poise and that's part of his strength."
Shhh-nault
Laviska Shenault, the nation's leading receiver, was held to 9 catches for 72 yards. "It was a challenge, but we were ready to step up to the plate," said CB Ajene Harris who manned him in the slot. "We come out here looking forward to compete every week." Shenault did break a 49-yard touchdown out of the Wildcat package, but the USC secondary canceled that out when Harris returned a pick for six.
Two Step
With the victory, the Trojans ascended to the top of the Pac-12 South, but the job is far from done. USC needs a win next Saturday in Salt Lake City to maintain control of its own destiny. "Who is next is a really good football team that may be playing the best ball in our conference right now in Utah," Helton said. "You look at what they've done to Stanford and Arizona in the last two weeks, it's been really impressive."
Players Mentioned
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