It was billed as a reality check for USC football. A matchup with a Top 10 Stanford team on the road would help give a better sense of the Trojans true level in 2018.
It was indeed a reality check. Just not a good one.
The Cardinal emerged on top with a 17-3 victory that exposed the Trojans flaws on offense so thoroughly even an admirable performance on defense couldn’t make a difference.
Here’s the unit-by-unit report card for USC football’s Week 2 loss:
USC’s defensive gave up 159 yards on the ground against Stanford, with a worrisome 5.