USC
Iowa
Players Mentioned
No. 22 USC Football Faces No. 16 Iowa in SDCCU Holiday Bowl
December 20, 2019 | Football, Features
THEMES
*No. 22 USC and No. 19 Iowa, winners of 5 of their last 6 games, meet for the first time in 17 years when they battle in the Holiday Bowl on FS1.
*Something has to give between USC's productive Top 20 offense and Iowa's stingy Top 20 defense.
*USC has a big edge in its series versus Iowa (riding 6 wins in a row) and against the Big Ten (13 wins in the last 15 games).
*USC, one of the nation's premier bowl teams (52 bowls, 34 wins), is visiting the Holiday Bowl for the third time in 6 years.
*This will be USC's third Friday night game of 2019 and its ninth night contest.
*It's a homecoming for 5 Trojan San Diegan players. USC's new A.D. once worked there and a famous Trojan alum was a noted news anchorman in San Diego. Troy has played 8 games in the city, a 2-hour drive from Los Angeles.
*Head coach Clay Helton's youthful USC team (4 senior starters) successfully battled through an injurymarred season in which 26 starters or key backups missed action. Two of Troy's losses were by a field goal (including one in overtime on the road). USC finished just behind No. 11 Utah in the Pac-12 South and gave the Utes their only regular season loss. The Trojans' Air Raid-style Top 20-ranked offense is averaging 463.7 total yards (335.9 passing) and 33.2 points. Record-setting QB Kedon Slovis, the Pac-12's Freshman Offensive Player of the Year who became the first Trojan to pass for 400 yards 4 times in a season, is in the national Top 20 in 5 passing stat categories: completion percentage, yards, TDs, efficiency and completions. USC has the nation's best group of wideouts: WRs Michael Pittman Jr. (the Pop Warner Award winner and Biletnikoff Award finalist has 95 catches and 11 TDs and is in the national Top 15 in receptions and receiving yards and TDs) along with Tyler Vaughns (ninth on USC's career receiving list) and Amon-Ra St. Brown, who both have 68 catches and 6 scores, and true frosh basketballer Drake London. USC has gotten solid ground contributions from TBs Vavae Malepeai, Stephen Carr, Markese Stepp and true freshman speedster Kenan Christon. OT Austin Jackson, an All-Pac-12 first teamer, and OG Alijah Vera-Tucker headline Troy's effective offensive line. USC's young defense (9 freshman and sophomore starters, including the entire secondary) is captained by ILB John Houston Jr., the team's tackle leader (100). Among the impressive young defenders are Ss Isaiah Pola-Mao (4 picks) and Talanoa Hufanga (76 tackles), DLs Jay Tufele (an All-Pac-12 first team pick) and Marlon Tuipulotu and dominating freshman DL Drake Jackson (11.5 tackles for loss). PK Chase McGrath has been near perfect this year, hitting all 51 PATs and 13-of-15 field goals, while Australian P Ben Griffiths has put almost half of his punts within the 20-yard line.
*Iowa, under 21st year coach Kirk Ferentz, lost its 3 games in 2019 by 14 points combined. The staunch Hawkeye defense is fifth nationally in scoring defense, 10th in pass defense, 12th in total defense and 25th in rushing defense. MLB Kristian Welch (80) and S Jack Koerner (73) top the team in tackles, while 2-time All-Big Ten first team DE A.J. Epenesa is in the nation's Top 20 in forced fumbles and sacks. Iowa's offense is directed by 3-year starting QB Nate Stanley. WRs Nico Ragaini, Tyrone Tracy, Ihmir Smith-Marsette and Brandon Smith have combined for 155 catches and 13 TDs this year, while RBs Tyler Goodson, Mekhi Sargent and Toren Young have a totalled 1,500-plus rushing yards with 9 TDs. All-American OT Tristan Wirfs was the Big Ten's Offensive Lineman of the Year. All-American PK Keith Duncan, the Big Ten's Kicker of the Year and a finalist for the Groza Award, tops the nation in field goals (his 29 field goals this season are a Big Ten record).
RANKINGS
*USC currently is ranked 22nd in the AP sports media, 23rd in the Amway coaches poll and 22nd by the BCS. Iowa is ranked 19th by AP and the coaches and 16th by the BCS.
SERIES
*It has been 17 years since USC and Iowa last played. The Trojans hold a 7-2 series edge over the Hawkeyes, winning the last 6 meetings. USC has outscored Iowa, 282-91.
*The teams' last meeting came in the 2003 Orange Bowl (following the 2002 season). No. 5 USC--behind a balanced offense and a stingy defense--staked its claim as one of the nation's top teams of 2002 as it swamped No. 3 Iowa, 38-17. It was the teams' first meeting in a bowl. See page 4 for a complete recap of that 2003 Orange Bowl.
*Before that Orange Bowl, USC and Iowa hadn't played for 26 years. The teams met in 1976 in Los Angeles, a 55-0 Trojan win behind QB Rob Hertel's school-record-tying 4 TD passes and 100-yard rushing performances by TBs Ricky Bell and Charles White (it was USC's biggest margin of victory in any game since 1931). USC's other wins came in 1925 (18-0 at home), 1962 (7-0 on the road), 1970 (48-0 on the road), 1974 (41-3 at home) and 1975 (27-16 on the road). Iowa's victories were in 1950, when the Hawkeyes upset No. 12 USC, 20-14, in the Coliseum on a touchdown with 10 minutes to play (the first time USC lost a night game) and 1961, when the top-ranked Hawkeyes won, 35-34, in the Coliseum (Troy trailed 34-20 with less than 5 minutes to play before a pair of Bill Nelsen-to-Hal Bedsole TD passes closed the gap, but the Trojans failed on a 2-point conversion for the win with less than a minute left). USC came into the Iowa games ranked in the AP Top 13 in all but 2 of the 9 meetings (in the pre-ranking year of 1925 and then in 1961).
VERSUS BIG TEN CONFERENCE
*USC holds a 75-29-3 record against Big Ten teams. Despite dropping its last 2 meetings against Big Ten foes, Troy has won 13 of its last 15 games against the conference, as well as 35 of its last 45 and 42 of its last 53. The Trojans' last game against a Big Ten squad came in the 2017 Cotton Bowl, a 24-7 Buckeye victory.
*Iowa, on the other hand, is 29-38-1 versus Pac-12 teams. The Hawkeyes' last meeting against a Pac-12 foe came in the 2016 Rose Bowl (after the 2015 season), a 45-16 loss to Stanford.
SEASON ENDERS
*USC is 69-44-11 (.601) in all season finales (not including 1 win and 1 loss vacated due to NCAA penalty; original record: 70-45-11, .599.).
FRIDAY GAMES
*USC has played 12 Friday games since 1990: versus Syracuse in the 1990 Kickoff Classic in East Rutherford, N.J., versus Louisiana Tech in 1999 in the Coliseum, at Colorado in 2011, at Oregon State in 2013, at Colorado in 2015, at Utah in 2016, 3 times in 2017 (at Washington State, against Stanford in the Pac-12 Championship Game and against Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl), versus Washington State in 2018 in the Coliseum and twice so far in 2019 (versus Utah in the Coliseum and at Colorado). All were wins except the 2016 Utah and 2017 Washington State and Ohio State contests.
*In the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, USC played occasional Friday night games in the Coliseum when sharing the stadium with UCLA.
IN DECEMBER
*USC has a 42-28-7 (.591) all-time record while playing in the month of December (not including 2 wins vacated due to NCAA penalty; original record: 44-28-7, .601).
AT NIGHT
*USC owns a 182-66-4 (.730) all-time record at night, including 107-30-4 in the Coliseum, 59-29 on the road and 15-7 at neutral sites. (Does not include 5 wins and 1 loss vacated due to NCAA penalty; original record: 186-67-4, .732 overall, 110-30-4 in the Coliseum, 17-8 at neutral sites.) *This week's Holiday Bowl will be the Trojans' ninth night game in 2019 (the school season record is 10, in 2010 and 2017).
USC IN SAN DIEGO
*USC has played just 8 games in San Diego, sporting a 3-4-1 record. The games were against: San Diego YMCA in 1897 (18-0 loss), San Diego High School in 1910 (32-0 win), 21st Infantry (U.S. Army) in 1917 (3-0 win), San Diego Navy in 1943 (10-7 loss while ranked fourth) and 1945 (33-6 loss while ranked sixth), San Diego State in 1992 (a season-opening 31-31 tie in Jack Murphy Stadium in the inaugural Ralph's Holiday Classic), Nebraska in the 2014 Holiday Bowl (a 45-42 win) and Wisconsin in the 2015 Holiday Bowl (a 23-21 loss).
*Also, USC has a 5-0 record against San Diego teams in the Coliseum, beating San Diego Navy in 1944 (28-21), 1951 (41-7) and 1952 (20-6) and San Diego State in 1998 (35-6) and 1999 (24-21).
USC'S SAN DIEGO CONNECTIONS
*USC has 5 players who prepped in the San Diego area: TB Kenan Christon (Madison HS), CB Isaac Taylor-Stuart (Helix HS), S Richard Hagestad (Bishop's School), QB Trevor Scully (La Jolla HS) and WR Chris Caulk (Cathedral Catholic HS/San Diego Mesa JC).
*USC offensive line coach/run game and pass protection coordinator Tim Drevno was the offensive coordinator and offensive line coach at San Diego (2003-06).
*USC offensive quality control analyst Lenny Vandermade was a graduate assistant at San Diego State in 2007, then the tight ends coach at San Diego in 2008.
*USC wide receivers coach Keary Colbert's cousin is Clarence Oliver, a defensive back at San Diego State in 1967-68.
*USC head athletic trainer Russ Romano is a graduate of San Diego State.
*USC athletic director Mike Bohn was the A.D. at San Diego State (2003-05).
*Former USC sports information office intern Will Ferrell portrayed fictional San Diego television newscaster Ron Burgundy in the movie, "Anchorman."
USC-IOWA CONNECTIONS
*USC has no players from Iowa, while Iowa has one Californian (QB Spencer Petras from Marin Catholic HS in Greenbrae).
*USC special teams coordinator/tight ends coach John Baxter began his coaching career at his alma mater, Loras College in Dubuque, Ia., where he served for 5 seasons (1981-85) as a student assistant (working with the running backs). He then moved on to Iowa State for 2 seasons (1986-87) as a graduate assistant working with the defensive line and special teams.
*Legendary USC head football coach Howard Jones (1925-40), who won 4 national championships and 5 Rose Bowls with his "Thundering Herd" teams at Troy, also was Iowa's head coach (1916-23), where he won the 1921 national title. He also served as the Hawkeye athletic director (1917-24) and baseball coach (1919).
USC IN HOLIDAY BOWL
*This will be USC's third trip to the Holiday Bowl, where it has a 1-1 mark, all in the past 6 years.
*In 2015 in Troy's most recent visit to the Holiday Bowl, PK Rafael Gaglianone kicked 3 field goals, including a 29-yarder with 2:27 to play, to give No. 23 Wisconsin a 23-21 victory over USC. It was USC's first loss to Wisconsin in 7 meetings (the teams last played in 1966) and it snapped Troy's 13-game winning streak over Big Ten squads (including 8 straight in bowls). USC trailed the entire game before taking a 21-20 lead with 10:19 to play on a 7-yard touchdown pass from QB Cody Kessler to WR Darreus Rogers. But later in the final quarter, the Badgers drove 42 yards into position for Gaglianone's game-winning 3-pointer.
*In 2014 in Troy's first appearance in the Holiday Bowl, No. 24 USC used QB Cody Kessler's 3 touchdown passes, a pair of scores by both TB Javorius Allen and CB-WR-RET Adoree' Jackson, a pair of fourth quarter fourth-down defensive stops and a batted-down Hail Mary pass at the gun to hold off No. 25 Nebraska, 45- 42, in a wild shootout. The win kept USC undefeated against Nebraska in 5 meetings (it was the first time the teams met in the post-season). It was USC's 13th straight win over a Big Ten team, including 8 in a row in a bowl. The teams combined for 1,040 total yards and 87 points, with 4 touchdowns measuring more than 40 yards. There were 27 points scored in the first quarter and 38 in the third. It was the last time that a Pac-12 team has won in the Holiday Bowl. USC'S MOST RECENT BOWL
*No. 5 Ohio State took advantage of No. 8 USC's 4 turnovers, 8 allowed sacks and red zone inefficiency to post a 24-7 victory in the 2017 Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic in AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Tex. The victory snapped USC's 7-game winning streak over Ohio State. Despite the score, USC dominated many of the statistics, outgaining the Buckeyes 413 to 277 while getting more plays (81-55) and first downs (23-13) and holding the ball for 34:56. USC limited Ohio State to just 2-of-12 on third downs. The Buckeyes jumped out to a 24-0 lead before USC scored late in the first half. USC held OSU scoreless the rest of the way, allowing only 94 yards and 4 first downs in the second half (and 0-of-5 on third downs). USC got into the red zone 3 times in the fourth quarter but came away with no points on a missed field goal, a lost fumble and an unsuccessful fourth down try. For USC, QB Sam Darnold was 26-of-45 for 356 yards, WR Deontay Burnett caught a Cotton Bowl record 12 passes for 139 yards, WR Tyler Vaughns had 6 receptions for 119 yards and TB Ronald Jones II ran for 64 yards on 19 tries (with a 1-yard TD).
IOWA BOWL HISTORY
*Iowa is 16-15-1 (.516) in bowl games. The Hawkeyes are 2-0-1 alltime in the Holiday Bowl, defeating San Diego State (39-38) in 1986 and Wyoming (20-19) in 1987 and tying Brigham Young (13-13) in 1991. NATIONAL AWARDS
*WR Michael Pittman Jr. won the 2019 Pop Warner College Football Award (senior who made an impact on the field/classroom/community). He was a finalist for the Blietnikoff Award (top receiver) and is a finalist for the Witten Award (College Man of the Year) and a semifinalist for the Lombardi Award (performance/leadership/character/resilience).
ALL-AMERICAN
*WR Michael Pittman Jr. was named to the 2019 AP All-American second team, Football Coaches All-American second team, Football Writers All-American second team, Walter Camp All-American second team, CBSSports.com All-American second team, The Athletic AllAmerican second team and Pro Football Focus All-American honorable mention. OG Alijah Vera-Tucker made the 2019 Pro Football Focus AllAmerican third team. DL Drake Jackson made the 2019 247 Sports Freshman All-American first team and Pro Football Focus Freshman AllAmerican second team. QB Kedon Slovis made the 2019 Pro Football Focus Freshman All-American third team. WR Drake London made the 2019 Pro Football Focus Freshman All-American third team.
ALL-PAC-12
*WR Michael Pittman Jr., OT Austin Jackson and DL Jay Tufele were named to the 2019 All-Pac-12 first team, while QB Kedon Slovis was selected as the Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year. Additionally, OG Alijah Vera-Tucker, DL Drake Jackson, S Talanoa Hufanga and KOR Velus Jones Jr. made the All-Pac-12 second team, as did Pittman as a special teams player. Drake Jackson also made Pac-12 Defensive Freshman of the Year honorable mention. USC's All-Pac-12 honorable mention choices were: Slovis, ILB John Houston Jr., WRs Tyler Vaughns and Amon-Ra St. Brown, CB Olaijah Griffin and PK Chase McGrath. Of USC's 13 selections for the various All-Pac-12 teams, just Pittman and Houston are seniors, while only Austin Jackson, Jones and Vaughns are juniors. Slovis is the fourth Trojan to be the Pac-12 Offensive Freshman of the Year, joining wide receivers Robert Woods (2010) and Marqise Lee (2011) and quarterback Sam Darnold (2016).
USC TEAM AWARDS
*WR Michael Pittman Jr. was named the MVP of the 2019 USC football team. He also won the Community Service Award and Lifters Award. ILB John Houston Jr. was the Most Inspirational Player. WR Tyler Vaughns was the Offensive Perimeter Player of the Year, while Ss Talanoa Hufanga and Isaiah Pola-Mao were the Defensive Perimeter Players of the Year. OG Alijah Vera-Tucker was the Offensive Lineman of the Year, while DL Jay Tufele repeated as Defensive Lineman of the Year. PK Chase McGrath was the Special Teams Player of the Year. WR Amon-Ra St. Brown won the Trojan Way Leadership Award and DL Christian Rector won the Trojan Commitment Award. TEs Sean Mahoney and Scott Voigt were the Offensive Service Team Players of the Year, while ILBs Matt Bayle and Grant Jones were the Defensive Service Team Players of the Year. QB Kedon Slovis was the Player of the Game Versus UCLA. OG Jacob Daniel won the Howard Jones/Football Alumni Club Academic Award. TE Erik Krommenhoek won the Bob Chandler Award, OT Drew Richmond won the John McKay Award, TB Quincy Jountti won the Joe Collins Walk-on Award and the Lifters Award, OT Austin Jackson won the Chris Carlisle Courage Award and QB Matt Fink won the Jack Oakie "Rise and Shine" Award.
LOOKING TO 2020
*On USC's current 48-man 2-deep (including the punter and kicker), 43 players (19 offense, 20 defense, 4 specialists) are non-seniors, including 20 starters (9 offense, 9 defense, 2 specialists). That does not include potential non-senior 2-deepers who are injured or any non-seniors who might leave early. USC's graduating starters are WR Michael Pittman Jr., ILB John Houston Jr., DL Christian Record and OT Drew Richmond.
INJURIES
*USC has had a number of starters and key backups miss games with injuries in 2019. They include (with games missed): ILB Jordan Iosefa, knee (12), ILB Solomon Tuliaupupu, foot (12), DL Jacob Lichtenstein, knee (12), OT Clayton Bradley, hand (12), QB JT Daniels, knee (11), OG-OT Andrew Vorhees, ankle (10), CB Max Williams, knee/ankle (2/3), OLB Eli'jah Winston, ankle (6), TB Vavae Malepeai, knee (5), OLB AbdulMalik McClain, knee/shoulder (4/1), TB Markese Stepp, ankle (5), WR Munir McClain, knee (5), ILB Palaie Gaoteote IV, ankle (5), OT Liam Jimmons, concussion/elbow (1/3), TB Stephen Carr, hamstring (3), S Talanoa Hufanga, concussion/shoulder (1/2), DL Christian Rector, ankle (3), OLB Hunter Echols (3), shoulder CB Olaijah Griffin, back (2), TE Josh Falo, ankle (2), DL Drake Jackson, ankle (2), CB Greg Johnson, shoulder/ concussion (1/1), C Brett Neilon, calf (2), WR Velus Jones Jr., ankle (1), CB Chase Williams, foot (1), QB Kedon Slovis, concussion (1), CB Isaac Taylor-Stuart, concussion (1), CB Chris Steele (1), knee, and DL Marlon Tuipulotu (1), back. In 2019, USC has started 3 different quarterbacks and has entered games down to a fourth-string tailback or with 4 defensive starters out or missing both starting cornerbacks or both starting defensive ends.
