Talanoa Hufanga drops jaws with tipped INT and hurdle for USC football (Video)

USC football safety Talanoa Hufanga picked up style points on an interception

USC football’s first-quarter performance against Washington State was highlighted by a spectacular interception return by Talanoa Hufanga.

The junior helped the Trojans shellshock the Cougars with an interception on quarterback Jayden de Laura and he did it all by himself.

Hufanga tipped the ball into the air and caught it before taking off running. He hurdled a defender with ease before being shepherded out of bounds just shy of the goal line.

The 37-yard return put USC in position to score on offense with ease. Kedon Slovis hit Amon-Ra St. Brown for his third touchdown reception of the night.

Talanoa Hufanga is USC football’s best defender and he’s showing it

Hufanga came into the game as USC’s leading tackler and top interceptor of the ball. He is now on a three-game streak with a pick after grabbing interceptions against Arizona and Utah.

The Trojans were back on the field on Sunday night because of a schedule change related to COVID-19. Both USC and Washington State had previous games canceled while they dealt with positive tests and contact tracing. The game, originally scheduled for Friday, was moved to Sunday in a bid to give the teams more time to get players back.

USC came out looking like the time off had no ill effects. They jumped out to a 28-0 lead in the first quarter while overwhelming the Cougars in the passing game and forcing mistakes on the other side of the ball. De Laura threw two interceptions in the opening period while a big punt return also gave USC’s offense short fields to work with.

A win over Washington State would keep USC as one of just two Pac-12 teams with a perfect record so far in 2020.