LOS ANGELES, CA — For much of Saturday night, Southern California looked like a team still searching for answers after a disappointing loss the previous week.
Then the defense took over.
No. 18 USC erased a double-digit second-half deficit, scored the game’s final 15 points and rallied for a 25-21 victory over Washington, giving the Trojans their first win over the Huskies since 2016.
The comeback not only kept USC’s season moving in the right direction, it provided some much-needed relief for coach Lincoln Riley, whose team had endured a difficult stretch and entered the night under increasing pressure.
At one point in the second half, chants of “Fire Lincoln! Fire Lincoln!” could be heard from the student section as USC trailed 21-10.
By the end of the night, the defense had silenced those concerns — at least temporarily.
The decisive play came late in the third quarter.
With Washington quarterback Demond Williams Jr. attempting to escape a collapsing pocket, USC’s defensive front forced a fumble. Defensive tackle Jahkeem Stewart, the 295-pound freshman known by the nickname “Thanos,” scooped up the loose ball and thundered 48 yards for a touchdown.
It was the turning point USC desperately needed.
“I made the quarterback step up, and thanks to Luke (Wafle) for getting the sack, and I picked the ball up and ran 22 miles per hour,” Stewart said with a grin.
The play gave USC its first lead since early in the game and injected energy into a stadium that had become increasingly restless.
But Stewart wasn’t finished making headlines after the game.
The Louisiana native ended his postgame news conference by talking about his appetite and his plans to eat “so much gumbo.”
Trojans Find Another Gear
USC quarterback Jayden Maiava finished with 245 passing yards and helped engineer the comeback.
The Trojans’ offense struggled to maintain consistency early, but Maiava connected with Tanook Hines for a crucial touchdown in the second half.
Hines made one of the game’s most impressive individual plays, ripping a 10-yard touchdown pass away from a Washington defensive back to keep USC within striking distance.
The Trojans then took advantage of the defensive turnover to seize control.
USC scored the final 15 points of the game, while Washington went silent offensively for the final 28½ minutes.
That defensive turnaround was especially important after the Trojans surrendered 42 points in last week’s loss to Oregon.
USC held Washington to just 123 yards in the first half and continued making critical stops as the Huskies tried to protect their lead.
The Trojans weren’t perfect.
Far from it.
USC committed nine penalties for 94 yards, including an illegal-formation penalty that erased a long touchdown pass. Two separate unsportsmanlike-conduct penalties also sabotaged scoring opportunities on either side of halftime.
Riley acknowledged afterward that the mistakes nearly cost his team.
“I felt like for a long period of the game, we were really outplaying them,” Riley said. “But when you make some of those mistakes and you just let them keep hanging around … with penalty after penalty, we’ve clearly got to do a way better job on that.”
Still, Riley found plenty to appreciate about the comeback.
“A lot to clean up, (but) a lot to be excited about,” he said. “We had to dig deep for this one.”
Washington Comes Close
Washington controlled much of the middle portion of the game and appeared poised to leave Los Angeles with a major road victory.
The Huskies took their first lead shortly before halftime when Kade Eldridge powered into the end zone.
Then Washington added another big play after USC’s mistakes continued to pile up.
Decker DeGraaf took a short pass and turned it into a 42-yard touchdown, breaking tackles and benefiting from several USC defenders who failed to get him out of bounds.
Suddenly, Washington had a 21-10 advantage.
But the Huskies couldn’t maintain their momentum.
Williams finished with 198 passing yards and nearly engineered one final miracle drive.
Trailing late, Washington took possession at its own 5-yard line and marched all the way to the USC 12.
The Huskies converted two fourth downs and a third-and-11 during the drive, repeatedly extending their season.
But USC finally closed the door.
On third down, Kameryn Crawford brought Williams down with a sack. With 39 seconds remaining, Williams tried to find a receiver in the end zone, but the pass sailed into double coverage and fell incomplete.
The comeback was complete.
A Costly Lesson for Washington
Washington had several opportunities to put the game away but couldn’t finish drives when it mattered most.
The Huskies have now lost two consecutive games by a combined seven points, turning what had been a promising start into a difficult stretch.
Receiver Dezmen Roebuck even threw a touchdown pass to Baron Naone earlier in the game, but Washington’s offense eventually stalled when it needed to produce the most.
Coach Jedd Fisch pointed to the Huskies’ struggles on third down.
“Right now it’s certainly challenging to get the sticks moving,” Fisch said. “It’s like you just feel that you have a third down that you’re looking to convert and something happens.”
Washington will need to find answers quickly.
Defense Changes the Conversation at USC
The Trojans entered the game needing a response after their loss to Oregon.
They got one.
The defense made the plays that mattered most, especially when the offense struggled.
Stewart’s fumble return was the signature moment, but USC’s ability to hold Washington scoreless for the final 28½ minutes was equally important.
The Trojans were also without linebacker Desman Stephens, who was serving a suspension following his ejection in the Oregon game for a late hit on Ducks quarterback Dante Moore.
Despite his absence, USC’s defense found a way.
For a team that had spent much of September searching for consistency, Saturday provided a reminder that there is still plenty of talent on the roster.
USC improved to 5-1 overall and 2-1 in the Big Ten, while Washington dropped to 3-2 and 0-2 in conference play.
The Trojans didn’t win cleanly.
They didn’t dominate from start to finish.
But they responded when the game demanded it.
And perhaps most importantly for Riley, his team showed the resilience to overcome adversity rather than allow another close game to slip away.
Up Next:
Washington: Hosts Iowa on Friday night.
USC: Travels to Penn State on Saturday, Oct. 10.
