#20 USC Trojans at #4 Washington Huskies
Saturday, November 12, 2016, 7:30 pm Eastern, TV: Fox
Husky Stadium – Seattle, Washington
Opening Line: Washington -8
Current Line: Washington -7 1/2
Opening Total: 61 1/2
Current Total: 60 1/2
Opening Money Line: Washington -335 / USC +270
Current Money Line: Washington -300 / USC +250
The Washington Huskies are having their best season in sixteen years. The Huskies are 9-0 and ranked #4 in the playoff rankings. Washington is tied for first the Pac 12 North with arch-rival Washington State at 6-0. The Huskies look to remain undefeated as they host the #20 Southern California Trojans Saturday. USC is 6-3 overall and tied for second with Utah in the Pac 12 South behind 5-1 Colorado. After a 1-3 start, the Trojans have won five straight games.
USC leads the series 50-29-4 against Washington including 19-17-4 in Seattle. USC has won 9 of the last 13 games in this series, but Washington has won 3 of the last 5 including 17-12 last year in Los Angeles.
Southern Cal is coached by Clay Helton. The Trojans have a neutral site loss to Alabama 52-6 in Arlington, Texas, plus road losses at Stanford 27-10 and Utah 31-27. USC has home wins over Utah State 45-7, Arizona State 41-20, Colorado 21-17, Cal 45-24 and Oregon 45-20 last week, plus a road win at Arizona 48-14. The Trojans were 17 point favorites against Oregon and the total was 76.5. USC is 5-4 ATS and the total is 2-7 this season.
Washington is coached by Chris Petersen. The Huskies have home wins over Rutgers 48-13, Idaho 59-14, Portland State 41-3, Stanford 44-6 and Oregon State 41-1. Washington has road wins over Arizona 35-28 in overtime, Oregon 70-21, Utah 31-24 and California 66-27 last week. The Huskies were 19 point favorites against California and the total was 73.5. Washington is 5-4 ATS and the total is 8-1 this season.
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USC is outscoring teams 32-24 this season. The Trojans are #49 or better in both categories. Southern Cal averages 475 yards per game on offense including 265 passing yards and 211 rushing yards. The Trojans are #35 or better in all three categories. On defense, USC allows 373 total yards including 221 passing and 152 rushing yards per game. USC is -1 in turnovers with 14 giveaways. The Trojans average 72 penalty yards and opponents average 43 per game. USC is 58/128 on third and fourth down conversions and opponents are 61/154. USC has forced 16 sacks and allowed 9 this season. The Trojans are 31/39 scoring in the red zone with 26 touchdowns and opponents are 23/28 with 18 touchdowns.
Quarterback Sam Darnold has completed 67.9% of his passes for 1,874 yards with 20 touchdowns and 4 interceptions, plus he also has 41 carries for 172 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns. He took over for Max Browne who has thrown for 507 yards with 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions.
Running back Ronald Jones II has 100 carries for 679 yards with 7 touchdowns, plus 7 catches for 62 yards and a touchdown. Justin Davis has 74 carries for 476 yards and 2 touchdowns and 10 catches for 89 yards. He is probable with an ankle injury. Aca’Cedric Ware has 70 carries for 366 yards and 2 touchdowns. He is also probable with an ankle injury.
Receiver Juju-Smith Schuster has 48 catches for 641 yards and 8 touchdowns. He is probable with a back injury. Darreus Rogers has 38 catches for 487 yards with 2 touchdowns. Deontay Burnett has 31 catches for 329 yards and 4 touchdowns. Steven Mitchell has 24 catches for 226 yards and a touchdown. He is out for the season with a knee injury. Tyler Petite has 10 catches for 156 yards and 2 touchdowns. Daniel Imatorbhebhe has 7 catches for 114 yards and 3 touchdowns. Five defensive players are on the injury report.
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Washington is outscoring teams 48-17 this season. The Huskies are #2 in scoring and #11 in points allowed nationally. Washington averages 499 yards per game on offense including 268 passing and 231 rushing yards. The Huskies are #31 or better in all three categories nationally. On defense, the Huskies allow 330 total yards including 182 passing yards and 148 rushing yards. Washington is #17 or better in total and pass defense. The Huskies are +15 in turnovers with 22 takeaways. Washington averages 45 penalty yards per game and opponents average 50. The Huskies are 48/101 on third and fourth down conversions and opponents are 55/163. Washington has forced 27 sacks and allowed 16 sacks this season. The Huskies are 38/41 with 33 touchdowns and opponents are 21/26 with 15 touchdowns. Washington has outscored teams 249-54 in the first half this season.
Quarterback Jake Browning has completed 67.7% of his passes for 2,273 yards with 34 touchdowns and 3 interceptions, along with 77 rushing yards on 41 carries and 4 touchdowns. He is a Heisman contender. K.J. Carta-Samuels has thrown for 104 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Running back Myles Gaskin has 151 carries for 952 yards and 8 touchdowns, plus 10 catches for 45 yards and a touchdown. Lavon Coleman has 66 carries for 600 yards and 3 touchdowns, plus 3 catches for 19 yards. Jamon Dotson has 55 carries for 255 yards and a touchdown, plus 3 catches for 67 yards and a touchdown.
Receiver John Ross has 44 catches for 742 yards and 14 touchdowns, along with 73 rushing yards and a touchdown. Dante Pettis has 37 catches for 574 yards and 11 touchdowns. Chico McClatcher has 18 catches for 356 yards and 4 touchdowns, plus 13 carries for 97 yards. Darrell Daniels has 14 catches for 239 yards and 2 touchdowns. Aaron Fuller has 10 catches and 2 touchdowns. Five other Huskies have a touchdown catch.
USC is 4-1 ATS in Pac 12 games, and overall, 4-9 after a cover, 5-12 after a straight up win, 2-5 on fieldturf, 8-21 in road games, 3-8 after a straight up win by 20 points or more, 1-4 against teams with winning home records, and 1-4 after allowing less than 100 rushing yards, and 1-5 after gaining 450 yards or more. The underdog is 4-1 ATS in this series recently. The under is 6-1-1 in this series recently.
Washington is 4-1 after gaining 450 yards or more, 6-2 in November, 8-3 on fieldturf, 9-4 after rushing for more than 200 yards, 1-4 after scoring 40 points or more and after a straight up win by 20 points or more. The home team is 5-2 ATS in this series recently. The Huskies are 4-1 ATS against the Trojans and have covered the last four games Seattle against USC.
USC has played really well after a slow start. Washington is on a mission though and does not have much margin for error if they want to make the playoffs. With a soft non-conference schedule, the Huskies will have to run the table in order to get into the semifinals. USC is 1-3 against ranked teams this season, and I think they lose this game too.