USC’s Halloween win over No. 2 Ohio State didn’t just shake up the rankings. It earned the Trojans a national weekly honor, too.
The Football Writers Association of America’s All-America Committee named USC the Pop-Tarts Bowl Crazy Good Team of the Week after the Trojans’ 30-18 victory on Oct. 31.
It’s USC’s fifth time taking home the award, and its first since the 20-17 win over No. 5 Stanford in 2013.
The Trojans have now been recognized for the honor after some of their biggest wins. USC also earned it in 2003 after a 23-0 road win at No.
6 Auburn, in 2005 after a 34-31 win at Notre Dame, and in 2008 after a 35-3 rout of No. 5 Ohio State.
Saturday’s result marked the second time USC has won the award by beating the Buckeyes.
The victory carried plenty of weight in the record book, too. It was USC’s highest win over a ranked opponent since the Trojans beat No.
2 Oklahoma in the 2004 season on Jan. 5, 2005.
It also gave USC its first home win over an Associated Press top-five team since 2015. The Trojans improved to 17 all-time wins against AP top-two teams, third-most in history, and snapped Ohio State’s 22-game road winning streak against unranked opponents.
After last week’s 24-7 loss at Wisconsin, USC answered with one of its sharpest offensive showings of the season. The Trojans scored more points against Ohio State’s defense than any team had in the Buckeyes’ previous 31 games. USC led 20-9 at halftime and pushed the margin to 27-9 in the third quarter before a rain-soaked Coliseum crowd stormed the field after the final whistle.
USC is now 7-2 overall and 4-2 in conference play. The win also moved the Trojans to No. 18 in the AP Top 25 and No. 17 in the AFCA Coaches Poll. USC now holds a 14-10-1 record against Ohio State.
Freshman wide receiver Trent Mosley got the night rolling early, hauling in a career-long 69-yard touchdown from quarterback Jayden Maiava on USC’s second offensive snap. Mosley finished with five catches for 101 yards and added a 44-yard punt return that helped set up Waymond Jordan’s nine-yard touchdown run.
Maiava went 15 of 22 for 222 yards and a touchdown without throwing an interception. Freshman tight end Mark Bowman added another big-play spark in the third quarter, turning a 70-yard reception into a highlight reel sequence by hurdling a defender and powering through multiple tackles before King Miller finished the drive with a one-yard touchdown run.
The kicking game delivered, too. Caden Chittenden hit field goals from 36 and 32 yards, while Ryon Sayeri drilled a 54-yarder that tied his career long and matched the second-longest field goal in USC history.
Defensively, USC kept Ohio State out of the end zone until 2:12 remained. The Buckeyes managed field goals on three of their first five possessions, and the Trojans came up with a key second-half takeaway when linebacker Desman Stephens II forced a fumble that defensive tackle Floyd Boucard recovered, setting up Miller’s touchdown. USC also stopped Ohio State on downs in the final minute after the Buckeyes reached the USC 12-yard line.
"That's two of the best teams in the country on the field right there," Riley said. "It's going to come down to who plays the situations best, and we did it tonight."
The FWAA has handed out its National Team of the Week honor since 2002, with weekly selections made by the All-America Committee. Each winning team receives assorted Pop-Tarts and a custom-crafted game ball from Big Game USA.
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