For the second time this season, No. 11 Utah beat No. 4 Southern California. This time, it was for the Pac-12 championship. The Utes have now won back-to-back conference titles after cruising to a 47-24 victory on Friday.
The Trojans entered the second quarter with 14-3 lead, but it did not last long. Utah outscored USC 44-10 thereafter. The Trojans struggled to keep drives alive, going 1-12 on third down conversions (3-5 on fourth down) while the Utes went 5-11 on third downs.
FINAL STATS: How Utah upset USC — by the numbers
Defensively, Utah crushed the Trojans with seven sacks and 11 tackles for loss. Cameron Rising threw for 310 yards and three touchdowns.
For USC, Caleb Williams totaled 363 passing yards and three touchdowns. Williams appeared to suffer a leg injury in the first quarter but played through it. After the final sack to seal the game, Williams hobbled off the field limping.
OH MY WORD! 3rd and 19 and @Utah_Football gets the 1st down AND THE TOUCHDOWN! 😱😱 pic.twitter.com/g4P68Hc2RI
— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) December 3, 2022
This puts a damper on USC’s College Football Playoff hopes after cracking the top 4 in the most recent rankings.
While USC finishes its first season under Lincoln Riley 11-2 and likely out of the CFP, it’s a bit of a deja vu moment for the Utes. They beat USC, again, and captured the Pac-12 championship in Las Vegas for the second year in a row.
