Tag: usc trojans

Dec 18, 2020; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans wide receiver Bru McCoy (4) is defended by Oregon Ducks cornerback Mykael Wright (2) during the Pac-12 Championship at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Oregon defeated USC 31-24. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

USC suspends WR Bru McCoy following arrest

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The University of Southern California has suspended wide receiver Bru McCoy following an arrest last month.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the 21-year-old sophomore was arrested on July 24 on suspicion of a felony and was released that night on $50,000 bail.

He was charged with intimate partner violence with injury, a Los Angeles Police Department spokesman confirmed to 247 Sports. He is scheduled to appear in court on Nov. 24.

“USC does not condone violence of any kind,” read a statement from the USC athletic department. “We are aware of the situation, and USC’s Office for Equity, Equal Opportunity, and Title IX is reviewing it. Because of federal student privacy laws, we are unable to share additional information at this time.

“The student-athlete has been temporarily removed from team activities.”

McCoy, a five-star recruit in the Class of 2019 from Santa Ana, Calif., caught 21 passes for 236 yards and two scores in six games with the Trojans as a redshirt freshman in 2020.

USC begins its fall camp on Friday.

–Field Level Media

Dec 29, 2017; Arlington, TX, USA; General overall view of the 2017 Cotton Bowl logo on the back of the helmet of Southern California Trojans long snapper Jake Olson at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

NCAA settles defamation lawsuit from former USC coach

Posted on | by Field Level Media

The NCAA settled a defamation lawsuit filed by former USC assistant coach Todd McNair, the two sides announced Monday — 10 years after the lawsuit was originally filed.

The legal action was first filed on June 6, 2011, in response to the NCAA claiming McNair violated ethical conduct rules while the college governing body investigated former Heisman Trophy-winning running back Reggie Bush over ties to two sports marketers during the 2005 season.

McNair, 55, was the running backs coach for the Trojans from 2004-10. He sued after alleging he could not find football coaching work after the scandal. He is currently the running backs coach for the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he has worked since the 2019 season.

The settlement was reached through mediation, and no further details were released.

–Field Level Media

Nov 27, 2020; Corvallis, Oregon, USA; Oregon Ducks quarterback Tyler Shough (12) throws against the Oregon State Beavers during the first half at Reser Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

Oregon to use lifeline against USC for Pac-12 title

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When the pandemic-delayed Pac-12 Conference football season started, Oregon and Southern California were the favorites to reach the title game.

The Ducks and No. 15 Trojans will indeed play for the Pac-12 championship on Friday night at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, but not without some twists and one final unexpected turn.

The Ducks (3-2) finished second in the Pac-12’s North Division behind Washington, but a COVID-19 spike in the Huskies’ program knocked them out of the title game Monday morning. Oregon’s game with Washington last weekend was canceled.

That left South Division champion USC (5-0) to start tweaking its game plan Monday afternoon.

“We control what we control, and that’s us,” USC coach Clay Helton said. “We’re just happy to be in this opportunity, and we’re going to make the most of it. We’re going to have a great plan, and we’re going to execute that plan because we’re going to do the things that we do well.”

The Trojans, who rallied from an 18-point deficit to defeat rival UCLA 43-38 on Saturday, knew there was a possibility Washington might not be able to play. So Helton had his coaching staff prepare for the Huskies during the day and the Ducks at night.

USC’s first three opponents of the season — Arizona State, Arizona and Utah – were playing their 2020 openers when the Trojans lined up against them, so the team is used to having limited game film to study.

“Not knowing who we’re going to play, I think our coaches make it easy on us,” said USC’s Amon-Ra St. Brown, who has a conference-leading 36 receptions. “I think it’s harder on them than it is on us. They’re making the game plan, doing all the hard work. If we listen to our coaches and go out there and do what they say, I think we’ll be fine.”

St. Brown’s 8-yard touchdown reception with 16 seconds remaining capped the comeback against UCLA, the third time this season the Trojans have rallied to win in the final seconds.

The Ducks were on pace to win the division title until dropping their past two games on the road:41-38 to Oregon State and 21-17 to previously winless California. Oregon was No. 21 in the College Football Playoff rankings before its latest loss.

“I see a team that’s really trying. I see a coaching staff that’s working their tails off,” Ducks coach Mario Cristobal said. “We haven’t done good enough the last two weeks.”

Oregon’s Tyler Shough is the conference’s top-rated passer, having completed 91 of 143 passes for 1,389 yards and 11 touchdowns against four interceptions. USC’s Kedon Slovis has thrown for a league-best 1,601 yards and 15 TDs, including five Saturday. He is 149-of-212 passing on the season.

The Trojans might be without their leading rusher, Vavae Malepeai, who sprained his knee late against UCLA. Malepeai rushed for 110 yards and a touchdown in the rivalry game.

Just having a chance to play is good enough for the Trojans.

“Having come from not having a season at all to being in the Pac-12 championship is awesome,” St. Brown said.

–Field Level Media

Dec 12, 2020; Pasadena, California, USA; UCLA Bruins quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson (1) throws the ball before the game against the Southern California Trojans at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

No. 15 USC holds off UCLA in final seconds

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Amon-Ra St. Brown caught an 8-yard touchdown pass with 16 seconds left to lift No. 15 USC to a 43-38 win against UCLA in a Pac-12 game on Saturday night at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif.

Nicholas Barr-Mira made a 43-yard field goal with 52 seconds left to give UCLA a two-point lead.

USC quarterback Kedon Slovis, a preseason all-conference first-team pick, completed 30 of 47 passes for 344 yards and five touchdowns. Tyler Vaughns caught eight passes for 128 yards and a touchdown. Drake London and St. Brown caught two touchdowns each.

Vavae Malepeai rushed for 110 yards on 19 carries and scored a touchdown for USC, which secured a berth in the Pac-12 championship game earlier Saturday when Colorado lost to Utah.

UCLA quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson completed 30 of 36 passes for 364 yards and four touchdowns. Greg Dulcich caught eight passes for 167 yards and a touchdown.

London had given the Trojans a 36-35 lead when he caught his second touchdown pass of the game with 8:09 left, but USC could not convert the two-point try, allowing UCLA to move ahead on Barr-Mira’s field goal.

The Bruins (3-3) took a 35-23 lead when Thompson-Robinson threw his fourth touchdown pass of the game, a 69-yarder to Dulcich, with 1:16 left in the third.

Malepeai answered with a 10-yard touchdown run to cut the lead to 35-30 with 11:40 remaining, and Talanoa Hufanga intercepted his fourth pass of the season on the next UCLA possession to set up London’s second touchdown.

UCLA took advantage of a slow start by the Trojans to score the first 14 points of the game and eventually take a 21-10 lead into the half.

Brittain Brown scored on a 15-yard run on the opening drive of the second half to extend the lead to 28-10, but Slovis came back with touchdown passes to Vaughns and St. Brown to cut the lead to 28-23 with four minutes left in the third quarter.

–Field Level Media

Nov 21, 2020; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; USC Trojans quarterback Kedon Slovis (9) throws the ball during the second quarter against the Utah Utes at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports

USC eyes Pac-12 title game berth in visiting UCLA

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Southern California will try to secure a spot in the Pac-12 Conference championship game when the No. 15 Trojans meet the host UCLA Bruins on Saturday afternoon at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif.

A win will also give the Trojans a 5-0 record for the first time since 2006, when they started 6-0.

USC put itself in position to play for the conference championship in Santa Clara, Calif., by beating visiting Washington State 38-13 on Sunday night.

The game was pushed back two days following a small COVID-19 outbreak on the USC team, a situation that initially forced the Trojans to cancel their game against No. 21 Colorado on Nov. 28.

The schedule adjustment shrank USC’s window to prepare for UCLA, but it hasn’t dimmed the excitement surrounding the crosstown rivalry.

“We’ve got a short week coming up against a really good team that’s hot right now,” USC coach Clay Helton said. “We’ve got a lot to play for, and that’s what you want in December.”

USC has won 16 of the past 21 meetings against UCLA and leads the all-time series 48-32-7.

“This is one of the best rivalries in college football,” Helton said.

The Bruins (3-2) are coming off a 25-18 win at Arizona State on Saturday night, their first win in the month of December since the 2013 Sun Bowl. The victory also lifted UCLA’s record above .500 for the first time since a win on Oct. 21, 2017, had them at 4-3.

UCLA has been particularly strong on defense, holding three of its past four opponents to two touchdowns or fewer.

“I’ve been really proud of how our defense has played all season long,” UCLA coach Chip Kelly said. “We have a bunch of kids over there that play football extremely hard. They do a really good job of rallying to the ball and gang tackling, and we talked about playing hard and playing hard for 60 minutes. You can’t play hard for 58. You have to play hard for 60.”

UCLA benefited last weekend with the return of quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson, who was among nine Bruins to miss two games because of COVID-19 concerns.

Thompson-Robinson completed 18 of 24 passes for 192 yards and a touchdown against Arizona State. He also rushed for 49 yards and a score.

“We’re taking it day by day and working very hard,” Thompson-Robinson said. “I’m very proud of this team and where we’re headed.”

Thompson-Robinson, a three-year starter, had one of the best games of his college career against USC last season.

He passed for 367 yards and three touchdowns in the 52-35 loss, while also rushing for 64 yards and a touchdown.

He was outperformed by USC quarterback Kedon Slovis, however.

Slovis threw for a school-record 515 yards and four touchdowns.

Slovis is also back this season, and he was sharp against Washington State, completing 25 of 32 passes for 287 yards and five touchdowns.

Amon-Ra St. Brown, held out of the end zone over the first three games, caught seven passes for 65 yards and four touchdowns, which tied a school and Pac-12 single-game record.

“There’s a reason that C is on Amon-Ra St. Brown’s chest, because he’s an unselfish player,” Helton said.

–Field Level Media

Nov 14, 2020; Tucson, Arizona, USA; USC Trojans quarterback Kedon Slovis (9) throws a pass against the Arizona Wildcats during the second half at Arizona Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Utah hoping to finally kick off season vs. No. 20 USC

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Utah coach Kyle Whittingham just wants opening kickoff to arrive as the Utes attempt to open their season for the third time when they host No. 20 Southern California on Saturday night in Pac-12 play at Salt Lake City.

Utah’s first two attempts were called off due to COVID-19 outbreaks. The school cited 17 confirmed positive COVID-19 tests within the program and another 11 program members in quarantine last Friday when it called off the following day’s game at UCLA.

But Whittingham indicated Tuesday that the situation has improved since the latest cancellation and he is highly optimistic that the season will get underway against the Trojans (2-0, 2-0 Pac-12).

“Things are trending in the right direction for us as far as getting back to health and getting guys back out on the practice field,” Whittingham said. “Right now, all of our efforts are geared toward getting ready for USC and we will hopefully be kicking off on Saturday night at 8:30 p.m. (10:30 p.m. ET) on ESPN, national television.”

Trojans coach Clay Helton also hopes to be standing on the sidelines of Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday night as he looks for the second 3-0 start of his five seasons as the school’s full-time coach.

“I’m hoping we get the opportunity to have a chance to compete with Utah,” Helton said. “It looks like it’s headed in that direction. Let’s say our prayers and hopefully both teams will stay safe and stay trending toward the same direction.”

USC took the hard route while winning its first two games as it scored late fourth-quarter touchdowns on both occasions.

Sophomore quarterback Kedon Slovis threw two touchdown passes in the final 2:52 to rally the Trojans from a 13-point hole and post a 28-27 home victory over Arizona State in the opener. Last Saturday, USC received an 8-yard scoring run from senior running back Vavae Malepeai with 25 seconds left to record a 34-30 road win at Arizona.

“When it mattered the most, I didn’t see any panic,” Helton said. “They showed great poise. We felt extremely comfortable. It’s what we do in practice each and every week. The guys executed to perfection.”

Slovis completed 71.4 percent of his passes with three touchdowns and one interception in the two wins. The Trojans averaged 527 yards of total offense but the defense has experienced issues while allowing 418 per game.

USC will be aiming to snap a three-game losing streak in Salt Lake City. But one of the challenges is how to prepare for a Utes’ squad that doesn’t have any 2020 film to break down.

Utah (11-3 in 2019) is being coy about its quarterback situation. Whittingham has reportedly decided on a starter but is listing seniors Drew Lisk and Jake Bentley and sophomore Cameron Rising as co-No. 1s on the depth chart.

Bentley started 33 games at South Carolina so he is easily the most experienced of the trio. Rising is a transfer from Texas while Lisk has thrown nine passes for the Utes.

Utah has known commodities on defense in junior linebacker Devin Lloyd (team-high 91 tackles last season) and junior defensive end Mika Tafua (tied for second in the nation with four fumble recoveries).

Whittingham said he is impressed with how his players have handled the disappointments of having their first two games canceled — the first was a Nov. 7 home game against Arizona.

Junior receiver Solomon Enis said the team’s mindset was the difference.

“You can’t stress about what you can’t control,” Enis said. “What you can control is your effort and what you put into practice every day. It is about showing up. At the end of the day, it hurts, especially the day before the game and it gets canceled, but you come into the next week and you work the same way you did before, and you hope it works out the rest of the week.”

–Field Level Media

Nov 14, 2020; Tucson, Arizona, USA; USC Trojans wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown (8) is unable to make a catch against Arizona Wildcats defensive back Christian Roland-Wallace (4) during the first half at Arizona Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

No. 20 Southern California rallies past Arizona

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Vavae Malepeai scored on an 8-yard run with 25 seconds left as No. 20 Southern California rallied for the second consecutive week, this time turning back Arizona 34-30 on Saturday in Tucson, Ariz.

USC (2-0, 2-0 Pac-12) went 75 yards in six plays for the winning points after Arizona slipped ahead with 1:35 to go on a 6-yard pass from Grant Gunnell to Stanley Berryhill. The Trojans won last weekend’s opener against Arizona State by scoring two touchdowns in the final three minutes.

The Wildcats (0-1, 0-1) reached their 47 in the final seconds but a final play with multiple laterals went nowhere. Arizona was playing its first game after its original opener at Utah was canceled due to a COVID-19 outbreak in the Utes program.

USC won its eighth consecutive game against Arizona. The Wildcats lost their eighth game in a row, dating to last season.

The USC offense lacked rhythm for much of the game, with Kedon Slovis’ stats looking better than his shaky throws. He finished 30 of 43 for 325 yards and one touchdown.

Gunnell was 24 of 36 for 286 yards, with three touchdowns and one interception. Gary Brightwell carried 21 times for 112 yards.

The Trojans did not commit a turnover but were sloppy throughout, committing 11 penalties for 110 yards.

Arizona took its first lead of the game at 23-20 when Lucas Havrisik kicked a 51-yard field goal with 7:49 to go.

The Trojans, who had come away with no points in their previous two red-zone chances, re-took the lead on a 6-yard touchdown pass to tight end Erik Krommenhoek at the 3:30 mark.

Earlier, Arizona tied the game at 20 with 9:45 left in the third quarter on a deep pass to Tayvian Cunningham, who pulled away from defensive back Greg Johnson into the end zone for a 75-yard score.

USC led 17-13 at halftime, even though Arizona had a 231-145 edge in total yards. But the Wildcats missed a 42-yard field goal and had to settle for two red-zone chip shots instead of touchdowns.

The Trojans also took advantage of Talanoa Hufanga’s interception on the third play of the game, setting up a 17-yard drive, capped by a 1-yard run by Markese Stepp.

–Field Level Media

Nov 7, 2020; Los Angeles CA, USA; Southern California Trojans wide receiver Tyler Vaughns (21) is defended by Arizona State Sun Devils defensive back Chase Lucas (24) in the second quarter at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

No. 20 Southern California rallies past Arizona State

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Bru McCoy caught a desperation, fourth-down heave for a touchdown, and followed it up by recovering an onside kick, and No. 20 Southern California rallied from down 13 points in the final 2:52 to defeat Arizona State 28-27 on Saturday at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Sloppy play shaped the season opener for both teams, but particularly so for the host Trojans (1-0, 1-0 Pac-12 Conference). USC committed four turnovers, three of which were coughed up in scoring territory.

But after going scoreless for more than 33 minutes of game time and falling behind 27-14, quarterback Kedon Slovis struck for a pair of fourth-down touchdown passes.

Twenty-six of Slovis’ 381 passing yards came on the first of those scores, a desperate toss into the end zone on fourth-and-13. The pass was tipped up, but McCoy was there to snag the carom for USC’s first points since the middle of the second quarter.

McCoy then came up with the ensuing onside kick, and Vavae Malepeai ran for 33 of his 60 yards to power the drive. Slovis capped the drive on a fourth-and-9 play — pushed back on five of USC’s 59 penalty yards — when he fired a strike through a tight window to a streaking Drake London for the 21-yard score with 1:20 to play.

Malepeai’s contributions to the game-winning drive made up for one of the critical turnovers that dug USC into a hole. The Trojans recovered a muff punt after their first possession, but Malepeai fumbled short of the goal line.

It was the first of two fumbles Arizona State defensive back Evan Fields forced, and one of two USC possessions to end inside the 10-yard line without producing points.

The Sun Devils (0-1, 0-1) also forced a turnover-on-downs in the second half with a pair of stuffed runs, and linebacker Merlin Robertson intercepted a Slovis pass at the 10-yard line just before halftime.

The last of USC’s four turnovers came on Fields’ second forced fumble. He jarred the ball loose from Markese Stepp with 11:23 remaining, putting the Sun Devils in position to run down the clock.

Their ensuing possession lasted just 1:36 and four plays, however, and they did not get possession back until they were trailing. Arizona State’s last-ditch effort fell short when quarterback Jayden Daniels threw four straight incompletions.

Daniels went 11-of-23 passing for 134 yards, playing without top target Frank Darby. He threw a 55-yard touchdown to Rachaad White. Freshman running back DeaMonte Trayanum rushed for two touchdowns and 84 yards on 12 carries, complementing Daniels’ 111 yards on 11 rushes.

London caught eight passes for 125 yards to lead all players. Teammate Amon-Ra St. Brown added 100 yards on seven catches, and McCoy finished with 51 yards on five receptions.

–Field Level Media