USC Football: Studs and duds from USC’s win over rival UCLA

USC football’s 52-35 victory over the UCLA Bruins at the Coliseum was highlighted by key performances from Kedon Slovis and Michael Pittman.

Saturday in the Coliseum, the USC Football team took on their crosstown rivals, the UCLA Bruins, in the final regular season game of 2019. It what seemed like a laugher early, USC, in total USC fashion, allowed UCLA to hang around much longer than they should’ve.

Whether it was special teams penalties, illegal hands to the face or not being able to properly play Cover-3 defense, the Trojans made sure the game was never truly out of hand.

Luckily for USC, their playmakers kept making plays and they were able to eventually put the Bruins down for good, winning 52-35.

Let’s take a look at the studs and duds from Saturday’s win.

Studs

Kedon Slovis

The true freshman continued to show the poise, decision making and accuracy that puts him in a serious position to be the quarterback of USC’s future, no matter who he competes against next summer. He was 37-of-47 passing for a school record 515 yards and four touchdowns. An absolute stud.

Michael Pittman

The senior receiver handled his final game in the Coliseum like you have come to expect: 13 catches for 104 yards and two touchdowns. That was all while making key blocks for other members in the receiving corps and setting the tone with his tough, physical play.  A perfect way for him to end his regular season career with USC.

Drake London

While we say salutations to Michael Pittman and the force that he had become for USC, we don’t have to look far for his heir apparent. Drake London burst on to the scene the last few weeks for USC and his hot streak continued Saturday against UCLA. The freshman pass-catcher finished with eight catches for 142 yards and a touchdown. Having London work inside and create mismatches is a huge bonus in the air raid, where he looks right at home.

Duds

Special Teams

Nothing is more frustrating than watching the defense do its job, only to have the special teams mess it up. If USC is going to make the jump from just a Pac-12 competitor back to a national competitor, this is an area that is going to need to be cleaned up.

Amon Ra St. Brown

It’s crazy to put Amon-Ra St. Brown on this list, especially with his ridiculous stat line of eight catches for 128 yards. However, despite putting up those numbers, St. Brown had a couple of crucial drops in Bruin territory and the muffed punt which helped UCLA stay in the game early. A completely uncharacteristic game for St. Brown, who has had an amazing season for USC.

Clancy Pendergast

The second half decision to play zone against UCLA was not working. It’s understandable why you play zone against a quarterback like Dorian Thompson-Robinson, because it limits his scrambling ability. However giving up deep seam routes to the tight ends was not the answer either. Had Pendergast been able to change it up a little more on third down —and maybe if John Houston plays the man and not the ball on fourth down— it doesn’t bother us as much. But, that’s how it unfurled, and how Pendergast wound up on the duds list this week.