“It’s not even a debate….What Christian has done is phenomenal…He could still play another quarter if we had to”. But the bigger gift eluded Stanford on Saturday when Alabama beat Florida in the Southeastern Conference championship game and Clemson handled North Carolina for the Atlantic Coast Conference title to deprive the Cardinal of any chance of appearing in the College Football Playoff.
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That something is a USC culture that has changed such that, in the end, the Trojans were really beaten by only three plays against a much more complete team.
Whatever drama awaits them, the Trojans are used to it by now.
“That’s a huge honor…That’s a guy I grew up with posters of on my wall”, McCaffrey said of Sanders.
Helton said he didn’t wait until after the bowl game to begin reshaping Sarkisian’s former staff because “I wanted to give them the best opportunity to move forward with their career”.
McCaffrey had 93 rushing yards after the first quarter (USC had 17 yards total) and then threw the touchdown pass to Hogan on a reverse on the first play of the second quarter.
On a night where Christian McCaffrey played Batman, it was Kevin Hogan’s Robin act that kept the Cardinal even keeled.
The Castle Rock, Colo., native said he’s never before been to NY, where the Heisman is presented.
Blake Martinez then sacked Kessler and caused a fumble on the next possession that Thomas scooped up and ran in for the score that made it 27-16.
“The biggest thing for us was corralling those receivers”, Stanford head coach David Shaw said about USC coming out strong in the second half. He needs 215 yards to catch the leader, Barry Sanders, who set the FBS record as a star running back for Oklahoma State in 1988.At a time when both defenses have struggled of late, yards and points may come in bunches once again.
McCaffrey rushed 32 times for 207 yards, including a 50 yard run.
The only touchdown in the first half came on McCaffrey’s trick play.
The Trojan offense had one possession in the first quarter and failed to score any points on their lone drive. Hogan found McCaffrey in an absurdly solitary place, right in the heart of USC’s defense, and he streaked 67 yards.
USC took the lead in the third quarter, but could not hang on.
“Has anybody ever seen a game where two different players rush for a touchdown, throw for a touchdown, and receive a touchdown?”
Stanford clinched a trip to the Rose Bowl and strengthened their case for a playoff spot by defeating USC. It takes all 11 guys on the field doing their job on the field to make it happen.
USC is starting to learn about Clay Helton, head coach, and here is the first lesson: Helton won’t be timid. USC (8-5) has a number of bowl possibilities.
Bush, who has been out for the season since suffering a knee injury when he slipped on concrete November 1 at the Edward Jones Dome, visited briefly with USC players before the game, a visit that a spokesman told the Times was not arranged by the school.
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The No. 7 Cardinal defeated USC 41-22 in the Pac-12 title game to claim its third Pac-12 title in the past four years, but there was no chaos above it in the CFP rankings, which could have cleared the way for the Cardinal to make a backdoor entrance into the top four.
