Just days after Lane Kiffin lobbied that he could ultimately be "one of the best receivers ever to play at USC," true freshman Marqise Lee (pictured below by LA Times)Â honored his head coach's high praise with a career-high eight catches, 144 yards and a touchdown en route to the Trojans' 48-41 victory over Arizona on Saturday afternoon.Â
"It's great to see Marqise [Lee] take that step from a true freshman to the next level," Kiffin said after the victory. "He even missed a series to have X-rays on his fingers, and then put himself back into the game even when doctors weren't sure he was going to be able to play. That says a lot about him."
Lee, a high school teammate (Serra High School) of USC's star sophomore wideout Robert Woods (who also had a career-high 255 yards receiving vs. Arizona), has started to create his own path at USC, recording three touchdowns in his last three games.
"He's better, faster and stronger than me," joked Woods. "Marqise is a great player and his play has really been excellent through five games. Just look for him to get better and to continue putting up numbers for our offense. It's humbling that he wants to model his game after me, but I know that he is his own person and his own player. It's exciting to see him grow and I'm just proud of him."
Through five games, Lee is second on the team in catches (21), receiving yards (323) and touchdown catches (3). But despite his early-season success, the Inglewood native is still referred to as No. 9 by Kiffin around the USC locker room.
"It's a tradition that [Kiffin] started with all of the offensive players," said Lee. "Until we have our first two-touchdown game, he only calls us by our number. I take it as motivation, and today I was so close to the two-touchdown game.Â
Lee's near second touchdown came on the first play of the 4th quarter, when he came down with a beautiful 45-yard catch on a jump ball pass from junior quarterback Matt Barkley (who set the single-game school record with 468 yards passing). While initially ruled a touchdown, Lee (pictured right by Danny Moloshok/AP)Â was eventually marked down at the one-yard line, with Barkley scoring on a QB sneak on the next play to make it 48-34.
The play also resulted in Lee's left hand being jammed against the Coliseum turf, and although the freshman had to undergo an X-ray, he insists that practicing this week will not be a problem.
"I couldn't feel my fingers for a little while," said Lee. "But I iced up, came back into the game and had a catch, so I will be just fine."
While Lee's performance also had wide receivers coach Ted Gilmore glowing afterwards "that he is mature beyond his years" and "an absolute pleasure to coach day in and day out," the 19-year-old wideout knows that there are still areas he can get better in. Heading into the bye week, Lee vowed to work towards playing a mistake-free game against California on Oct.13.
"I feel that I am still behind the expectations I set for myself at the beginning of the season," said Lee. "I am still making a few mental mistakes every game and that's where my focus will continue to be. The goal is for me to finish a game with no mistakes, to play the perfect game."
