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LOS ANGELES — A lot of talk has been about USC's defensive performance against Utah State on Saturday; but what we're overlooking is the phenomenal display of defense Utah State put on in the second half of that game, that ultimately, gave the Aggies a chance to win.
USC's offense had rhythm in the first half; they established the run game with Tre Madden, 15 carries for 71 yards, and 4.4 yards per carry. The highest yards per carry a runner has had against Utah State this season. This allowed the Trojans to set up their play action pass, leading to Cody Kessler's touchdown pass to Xavier Grimble in the second quarter.
In the second half, it was a much different story. Utah State made adjustments and USC could do nothing against the Aggie defense in the second half. In the third quarter, they were able to hold USC to just 12 yards rushing on seven attempts and gave up 58 yards through the air.
USC 3rd Quarter Offense
| Rush Attempts | Rush Yards | Pass Attempts | Pass Completions | Pass Yards | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 12 | 8 | 5 | 58 | 0 |
The fourth quarter, even better; USC was 0-6 throwing the ball and held to 25 yards on the ground on 11 attempts. Madden was held to just 27 yards on nine carries in the second half; in fact, the defense held Madden to 98 yards on 24 carries for the entire game; it's the first time this season Madden has failed to reach 100 yards in a game.
USC 4th Quarter Offense
| Rush Attempts | Rush Yards | Pass Attempts | Pass Completions | Pass Yards | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | 25 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
Utah State did exactly what they needed to in the second half, they took away the run from USC which eliminated their play-action pass game, their bread and butter. When they couldn't play fake, they couldn't move the ball. The only time they put points on the board is when they started in field goal range on the 24 yard line, after Jaron Bentrude shanked a punt for 12 yards.
Which brings me to my next point; what makes this performance even more impressive is when you look at USC's field position for the entire second half.
In the third quarter, with a little help from the bad punt, the Trojans average starting position was the 50 yard line; with drives beginning at the USC 47, USC 34, USC 44, and USU 24. The fourth quarter, their average starting position was the Utah State 37 yard line; with drives beginning at the USU 34, this was a result of the failed fake punt, the USU 30, and the USU 47, after the failed fourth down conversion.
That is about as lopsided as field position can get and USC was only able to get three points out of an average starting field position of the Utah State 44 yard line in the second half.
Sure, you can point to USC's inconsistencies on offense, but the reality is, no matter how average an offense is, to be held to such a low score in prime field position takes a monumental performance from a defense.
While the outcome of the game is not what the Aggies wanted, moving forward, they can take a lot of confidence away from their defensive performance in the second half.
