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Two teams coming off impressive wins clash when the USC Trojans visit the BYU Cougars on Saturday afternoon.
USC beat then No. 23 Stanford 45-20 at home last Saturday while BYU upset Tennessee 29-26 in double-overtime. These two teams have met two times and USC won both contests, 35-18 on September 6, 2003 in Los Angeles, California and 42-10 on September 18, 2004 in Provo, Utah.
No. 24 USC Trojans (2-0) vs. BYU Cougars (1-1)
Saturday, September 14 at 3:30 PM ET
LaVell Edwards Stadium
Coverage: ABC
*All odds and betting info courtesy of OddsShark and originally posted by Pinnacle
- No. 24 USC -3.5 vs. BYU
- Over/Under: 55.5
USC Trojans
True freshman Kedon Slovis stepped up, completing 28 of 33 passes for 377 yards and three touchdowns to help USC upset No. 23 Stanford 45-20 last Saturday. Slovis replaced JT Daniels, who suffered a torn ACL and meniscus and will be out for the season.
Vavae Malepeai ran for 42 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries, Tyler Vaughns caught five passes for 106 yards and one touchdown and Amon-Ra St. Brown had eight receptions for 97 yards and two touchdowns. USC had 492 total yards and they were 5-for-9 on 3rd down conversions.
BYU Cougars
BYU bounced back from a 30-12 home loss against Utah in their season opener with a 29-26 double-overtime win at Tennessee. Ty’Son Williams ran five yards to score a touchdown in the second overtime after BYU tied the game with a field goal in the closing seconds of regulation.
Zach Wilson completed 19 of 29 passes for 232 yards and one touchdown, Ty’Son Williams ran for 92 yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries and Micah Simon had career-highs with seven catches and 127 yards, including a 64-yard reception to set up the game-tying field goal to go to overtime.
Trends and Prediction
The USC Trojans are:
- 5-2 ATS in their last seven games following a straight up win of more than 20 points
Wilson played well against Tennessee but his offensive line must do a better job of protecting him. BYU will play the first half of this game without defensive lineman Devin Kaufusi, who was ejected against Tennessee for targeting and overcoming his absence will be tough.
USC has an arsenal of big-time playmakers and while they are transitioning to an Air Raid offense, BYU has struggled against the run, giving up 502 rushing yards over the first two games.
Can Wilson match Slovis from the start? USC just has too many weapons and while playing in Utah is hard, last week’s win really helped strengthen USC’s mindset for the rest of the season.
Pick: USC -3.5
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USC vs. BYU Prediction: Betting Line, Odds & Pick