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No. 17 USC Football Hosts No. 23 Arizona In Homecoming Game
October 29, 2017 | Football, Features
*No. 17 USC continues its chase for the Pac-12 South Division championship when it hosts divisional contender No. 23 Arizona in a crucial matchup to start November play.
*It's Homecoming/Reunion Weekend at USC.
*The Trojans have won their last 14 home games.
*Troy has captured nearly 80% of its games against the Wildcats, with just 2 losses since 2001, and the Wildcats have only beaten USC 4 times in Los Angeles. However, nearly half of the games in the USC-UA series have been decided by 8 points or less.
*The game will air on ESPN, the 500th televised game in Trojan history. It also is USC's seventh night game of 2017.
*USC, under head coach Clay Helton, will aim to carry over the momentum of its dominant victory at Arizona State, in which the Trojans played one of their most complete games of the season. QB Sam Darnold, who is 16-3 as a starter (10-0 at home), is in USC's career Top 10 in passing and total offense. TB Ronald Jones II, coming off a 216-yard rushing show at ASU that upped his 2017 per carry average to 6.7, is nearing his second career 1,000-yard season and ranks ninth on Troy's all-time rushing chart. WRs Deontay Burnett (Top 25 nationally in receiving TDs, receiving yards and receptions) and Tyler Vaughns continue to haul in big plays. USC's offensive line showed an aggressive bent in Tempe that helped the runners gain 341 yards. The Trojan defense, behind 3 sacks apiece from OLB Uchenna Nwosu and DL Rasheem Green, limited ASU to just 79 rush yards. Other key USC defenders are ILB Cameron Smith (on his way to leading Troy in tackles for the second straight year), Ss Chris Hawkins and Marvell Tell III and CB Jack Jones.Thirten Trojan starters have missed at least a game this year.
*Arizona head coach Rich Rodriguez has seen his young team come alive recently, as the Wildcats have won their past 4 games (scoring at least 45 points each outing), including at home over Washington State this past weekend. They are undefeated on the road in 2017. UA's hot play coincides with the emergence of dynamic QB Khalil Tate, who is third nationally in rushing (154.3) and averaging 13.4 yards per carry. He is the first player since 1988 to win 3 consecutive Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week honors when he totaled 1,162 total yards versus Colorado (with an FBS quarterback record 327 rushing yards), UCLA and California. He guides an offense that is in the Top 6 nationally in scoring offense (45.0), rushing offense (338.6) and total offense (522.9). QB Brandon Dawkins also is dangerous, as are RBs J.J. Taylor and Nick Wilson. UA's top receivers are WR Shun Brown, who has 2 scoring punt returns, TE Bryce Wolma and WR Tony Ellison. The Wildcats' defensive leaders include CBs Lorenzo Burns and Jace Whittaker, LBs Tony Fields II and Colin Schooler and S Demetrius Flanigan-Fowles. The Wildcats have picked off 14 passes in 2017.
*The 2018 USC Athletic Hall of Fame class will be introduced at halftime and the 2018 Trojan men's and women's basketball teams will be saluted during the game.
*USC and Arizona will tangle in women's volleyball in the Galen Center the day after the football game.
