Last week, USC lost ugly. The defense played well, but not well enough to make up for USC’s listless offense. Forced to pound the rock, USC just could not do enough against a BYU team that played only three lineman to take away the Trojan passing game.
Luckily for USC, Utah failed to pick up on that strategy. Utah consistently rushed four defenders, allowing USC receivers more space than they had been allowed last week. And that one fewer defender made all the difference.
But that’s jumping forward too fast. This game began with USC driving and Kedon Slovis looking sharp.