Revenge is a dish best served on a partly cloudy afternoon in Palo Alto. Or at least that’s how USC saw it.
Last season’s 42-28 Week 2 loss to Stanford was the first domino to fall, beginning the downward spiral that ended in a losing season for the Trojans. The Cardinal clinched their seventh win in the last 12 years. This time around, things were much different.
“This series has been extremely one-sided over the last 15 years, especially here, so we took that personal,” head coach Lincoln Riley said. “Look at 12 months ago. A lot has changed, and I’m proud of the way our guys responded.”
USC used its sheer offensive firepower and a few timely forced turnovers to overwhelm Stanford. The No. 10 Trojans avenged last year’s team with a near-inverse 41-28 score in a win over the Cardinal Saturday afternoon at Stanford Stadium.
As a unit, the Trojans’ offense gained 505 yards on the day, averaging just over eight yards per play. They scored on all but one drive in the first half — that one being the end of the half. And they moved quickly, with all but one of their drives lasting under four minutes.
USC didn’t even face a third down until the final minutes of the second quarter.
“We just executed as an offense overall, all 11 guys on one page,” sophomore quarterback Caleb Williams said. “We all executed as one.”
Williams was efficient as ever, making quick reads and giving the Stanford defense little time to close down on receivers. Williams finished 20-of-27, passing for 341 yards and four touchdowns.
Junior wide receiver Jordan Addison saw red early on. He took his first two catches to the Cardinal-colored end zone, the latter being a 75-yard deep shot courtesy of Williams. Addison finished with 172 yards on seven receptions.
“The offense, actually playing in it now, is way better than I expected it to be,” Addison said. “I’m having fun out there playing, so I can’t complain about nothing.”
Along with the aerial attack, the Trojans had a steady run game. Redshirt senior running back Travis Dye averaged 7.5 yards per carry on 14 rushes. In his own revenge game against his former team, senior running back Austin Jones had 69 all-purpose yards.
“It was great coming back here and getting a win,” Jones said. “We’re gonna go in there and get those tough runs … Instead of just getting all those easy, explosive runs, we need to work on getting between the tackles and grinding it out.”
Stanford moved the ball well itself in the first half, posting 319 yards to USC’s 366. But the Cardinal wasted key opportunities to put points on the board. Junior quarterback Tanner McKee threw a red zone pick in the first quarter, and junior running back E.J. Smith fumbled on the goal line in the second.
Turnovers ruled again, and this time it took USC’s defense just three plays to force one — yet another tipped interception, a new trend for the Trojans. Overall, USC posted four takeaways, bringing the season total to eight in just two games.
Redshirt junior Max Williams came up with the second interception of the day, with yet another tip on a jump ball in the end zone to set up another USC scoring drive.
“This time last year, I was rehabbing from an injury on the sidelines, watching, not being able to contribute,” Max Williams said. “It just makes me much more appreciative. I’m having fun out there, I’m healthy and it’s just a blessing to be back out there making plays.”
Despite two fumbles, Smith was a bright spot for Stanford, amassing 114 total yards. The USC run defense was hard-pressed to stop him and the rest of the Stanford rushers, allowing 221 yards on the ground.
“We’re still making a few too many mental mistakes throughout the course of the game,” Riley said. “When we’re not in the gap, when we’re not lined up, when we’re not playing a call the way that it’s designed … We’ve got to clean up the mental execution.”
The Trojans’ defense did tighten up down the stretch as the game slowed down, but that coincided with an offensive downturn as well.
Two games into a season with an overhauled roster, Riley said he didn’t want to make excuses about the team’s inexperience playing together.
“We’re just not gonna use that crutch,” Riley said. “Our opponents aren’t gonna play us any different. We know we gotta get better.”
USC will return to Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum to face Fresno State Saturday Sept. 17 at 7:30 p.m.