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Trojans escape Tempe with 14-9 victory over Arizona State
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(A/P Photo)
Turnovers and takeaways was the theme of the game between the Arizona State Sun Devils and the USC Trojans. Fortunately for the Trojans, they were doing most of the taking away in an ugly game between the two teams.
A Southern California defense kept the Trojans in it for much of the game and ultimately allowed USC to escape Tempe, Arizona, with a victory.
The Trojans' defenders forced four turnovers in Saturday night’s game, recovering one fumble and intercepting Arizona State quarterbacks three times.
Southern California's true freshman quarterback, Matt Barkley, looked like a true freshman for most of the game but did connect with dynamic wide receiver, Damian Williams, on a 75-yard touchdown in the third quarter.
Williams' touchdown proved the decisive score of the game as the Trojans held on after that to take home the 14-9 victory.
Barkley finished the game with a paltry 7 of 22 passing for 112 yards, including one touchdown and one interception on the night.
Barkley's one interception on the night made the game exciting near the end and made the situation for the Trojans a little too close for comfort as it came late in the fourth quarter and set the stage for an Arizona State comeback.
Luckily for Southern California, the defense came to play. The same cannot be said for the offense, which delivered a lackluster performance in the desert.
The Trojans were unable to do much of anything on offense for the first two quarters of play. Southern California's only first half points came in the waning moments of the second quarter when Will Harris intercepted a Danny Sullivan pass and returned it 55 yards for a touchdown.
Harris would add a second interception in the closing moments to bring an end to Arizona State's bid to win the game.
Arizona State's embattled quarterback, Danny Sullivan, finally was pulled from the game following his second interception as head coach Dennis Erickson decided to see what he had in 6-foot-8 true freshman, Brock Osweiler.
Fans have been clamoring to see the young Osweiler for the last few games and it is easy to see why.
The true freshman came into the game in the third quarter and promptly led the Sun Devils 80 yards for a touchdown with Osweiler connecting with wideout Chris McGaha for a 23-yard touchdown.
Osweiler finished the game with 153 yards passing on an 11 of 27 performance, including the one touchdown to McGaha, as well as one interception.
While the match up between the two true freshman quarterbacks was not exactly the prettiest thing to watch, the future holds bright for both Matt Barkley and Brock Osweiler, setting the stage for exciting head-to-head games in the coming years.
Speaking of the future, the Trojans head back to the confines of Southern California to take on the Stanford Cardinal in their homecoming game next Saturday.
In case you hadn't noticed, Stanford knocked off Oregon on Saturday to the tune of 51-42 in a game in which Cardinal tailback Toby Gerhart ran for 223 yards and 3 touchdowns on the day.
Southern California will need the entire team, both offense and defense, on the same page if they want to get the win against the surging Cardinal.
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