Getty Matt Fink passed for 351 yards in USC's win over Utah.
The USC Trojans visit the Washington Huskies in a big Saturday afternoon game with Pac-12 positioning on the line.
USC enters this contest with an encouraging offense that is averaging 33.3 points per game and they’re 3-1 after wins against Fresno State, Stanford and Utah and an overtime loss at BYU.
Washington lost a lot of talent from last year’s team and they’re coming off back-to-back dominant wins against Hawaii and BYU after a tough 20-19 home loss against California. USC leads the all-time series 59-10 and they won the last meeting, 39-36 on September 21, 2018.
No. 21 USC Trojans (3-1) vs. No. 17 Washington Huskies (3-1)
Saturday, September 28 at 3:30 PM ET
Husky Stadium
Coverage: FOX
*All odds and betting info courtesy of OddsShark and originally posted by Loose Lines
- No. 21 USC vs. No. 17 Washington -10.5
- Over/Under: 61
USC Trojans
PSA: @MikePitt_Jr is every defense’s nightmare. 👻
He ranks 3️⃣rd in FBS in receptions and 2️⃣nd in conference in YPG.
USC lost JT Daniels in the season opener because of a knee injury, then his backup Kedon Slovis was knocked out in last week’s 30-23 win against Utah and remains in concussion protocol, giving junior Matt Fink the chance to step up and he delivered, completing 21 of 30 passes for 351 yards and three touchdowns with one interception.
Michael Pittman Jr. caught 10 passes for 232 yards and one touchdown, Amon-Ra St. Brown had five receptions for 68 yards and one touchdown and Tyler Vaughns had four catches for 49 yards and one touchdown but the ground game lacked production and the offensive line struggles in pass protection at times. Utah outgained USC 457-381, they had 27 first downs to USC’s 16 and won the time of possession 38:12 to 21:48 but the big plays downfield Pittman, St. Brown and Vaughns made a difference
Washington Huskies
Jacob Eason‘s ability to stretch the field was a huge asset for the Washington offense and he was stellar against BYU, completing 24 of 28 passes for 290 yards, three touchdowns and one interception in the 45-19 win. Sean McGrew ran for 110 yards on 18 carries and Aaron Fuller caught eight passes for 91 yards and one touchdown.
Wideouts Aaron Fuller, Hunter Bryant and Andre Baccellia can be a handful for the USC secondary, which could be without two safety Talanoa Hufanga and cornerback Olaijah Griffin. Washington outgained BYU 477-356, they had 27 first downs to BYU’s 21 and won the time of possession 34:30 to 25:30.
Trends and Prediction
The USC Trojans are:
- 19-39-1 ATS in their last 59 games following a straight up win
- 8-19-1 ATS in their last 28 games overall
- 8-22-1 ATS in their last 31 road games against a team with a winning home record
- 4-11 ATS in their last 15 games in September
- 5-14-1 ATS in their last 20 games after allowing more than 450 total yards in their previous game
- 3-10-1 ATS in their last 14 road games
- 3-13-1 ATS in their last 17 games after accumulating more than 280 passing yards in their previous game
- 1-6 ATS in their last seven games on FieldTurf
- 0-6 ATS in their last six games after accumulating less than 100 rushing yards in their previous game
The Washington Huskies are:
- 6-2 ATS in their last eight games after scoring more than 40 points in their previous game
- 8-3 ATS in their last 11 games after accumulating more than 280 passing yards in their previous game
- 5-2 ATS in their last seven home games against a team with a winning road record
- 5-2 ATS in their last seven games overall
Jacob Eason has played really well, excluding his performance in the 20-19 loss to a California team with a deadly defense. Eason has completed 87 of 119 passes for 1,063 yards and 10 touchdowns with two interceptions in four games and he was particularly effective in the 45-19 win against BYU last week.
USC lost 30-27 in overtime against that same BYU team on September 15 and they will have their third-string quarterback Matt Fink under center. He shined in last week’s 30-23 win against then No. 10 Utah but this a letdown spot for this team and he could regress here.
Pick: Washington -10.5
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