USC vs. Washington State 2017: The matchup by the numbers

Friday night’s USC vs. Washington State game sees the Trojans go on the road for the second-straight time to take on the 16th-ranked Cougars. Here are 10 about the matchup.

Last week, the Trojans went on the road for the first time in 2017. Thanks to another stellar performance by the defense, they were able to leave Berkeley with a victory. This week marks the USC vs. Washington State game.

The Cougars are ranked 16th in the country and will be looking to confirm many people’s concern that this is a difficult test for the Trojans.

Let’s take a look at the USC vs. Washington State matchup, by the numbers…

10

Where Washington State defensive tackle Hercules Mata’afa ranks all-time in career sacks for the Cougars. Mata’afa has recorded 16.5 sacks since he began his career back in 2015. The 6-foot-2, 252-pound tackle will look to cause further problems for a USC offensive line that has struggled the last couple of weeks.

9

The number of touchdowns USC quarterback Sam Darnold has thrown this season. Last week at Cal, he had one of his worst games as a Trojan, constantly throwing into coverage and missing throws down field. Although there was progress, as Darnold recorded another multiple-pass-touchdown game, while cutting his interceptions down to one.

8

The number of pass breakups by USC outside linebacker Uchenna Nwosu, who is both the heart and soul of the Trojan defense and tied for first in the country with his PBUs. Against an air raid system like Washington State, Nwosu’s ability to get his hands up and deflect passes is going to extremely important for USC.

7

Friday against Washington State will be only the seventh time since 1990 that USC has played on a Friday night.  The six previous Friday games were against Syracuse (1990), Louisiana Tech (1999), Colorado (2011), Oregon State in (2013), Colorado (2015) and Utah (2016). The 2016 game in Utah was quarterback Sam Darnold’s first career start.

6

The number of touchdown passes Washington State’s Luke Falk threw against Oregon State. The senior quarterback tied his career high during the 52-23 win in Week 3. USC’s defense also had a season-high six takeaways last week at Cal.

5

The number of rushing touchdowns junior USC running back Ronald Jones II has in 2017, despite not making the trip to Cal last week. True freshman Stephen Carr did an excellent job filling in, though Jones’ presence was still missed. He returned to practice this week and looks like he could play Friday. With wide receivers Deontay Burnett and Steven Mitchell both missing practices, having Jones to lean on would be a plus for the Trojans.

4

The number of wins both the USC Trojans and the Washington State Cougars have in 2017. Both the No. 5 Trojans and the 16th-ranked Cougars enter Friday’s game with identical records. The 4-0 start is the best for USC since 2010, while the undefeated start is the best for the Cougars since 2005. A win for the Trojans would be the best start to a season since 2006, when USC finished 11-2 and won the Rose Bowl.

3

The number of times USC has lost on the road to Washington State in Pullman. While the Trojans lead the all-time series with the Cougars 59-9-4, only three of the nine losses have actually been on the road. The last time USC lost in Pullman was in 2002, when they lost 30-27 in overtime.

2

The number of consecutive games in which defensive linemen Christian Rector has forced a fumble. Rector, who started 2017 as a third down interior rush lineman, has evolved into a big-time playmaker. USC will be hoping the 6-foot-4, 275-pounder continues his excellent run of form, as they will need him to put pressure on Cougar quarterback Luke Falk.

1

Friday will be the first time any of the members of the 2015 recruiting class will play Washington State. Because of the rotation of the Pac-12 schedule, USC has not played the Cougars since 2014, meaning junior-year standouts like Ronald Jones, Sam Darnold, Cameron Smith, Iman Marshall, Deontay Burnett, Rasheem Green, Chuma Edoga, Tyler Petite and Marvell Tell have never played at Martin Stadium in Pullman.