LIVE: Fourth Quarter - USC 38, Northwestern 17

USC kicker Ryon Sayeri connects from 22 yards out and the Trojans push their lead to 38-17 with 4:40 remaining in the game.

USC gets a stop on fourth down as cornerback DeCarlos Nicholson swats away a pass. The Trojans have held Northwestern to just three points on the Wildcats’ last five full possessions and USC takes over at its 48-yard line with 9:19 remaining.

USC draws a pass interference flag on Northwestern on a flea flicker attempt to Ja’Kobi Lane in the endzone. One play later, Maiava pitches to Lemon on a reverse motion and Lemon gets into the endzone for a 4-yard score. It’s Lemon’s second touchdown of the game and he’s up to 156 total yards of offense. USC pushes its lead to 35-17 with 11:14 remaining in the game.

The USC defense bends but doesn’t break as the Trojans let Northwestern into the redzone but then hold with a third-down sack by Jide Abasiri. Northwestern kicker Jack Olsen connects from 33 yards and it’s 28-17 USC with 17 seconds left in the third quarter.

USC wide receiver Ja’Kobi Lane has made a handful of beautiful catches in this game. The latest is a one-handed grab in the endzone when he boxes out the Northwestern cornerback and somehow hauls in a juggling grab through contact. He’s up to six catches for 60 yards and a touchdown. It’s 28-14 USC with 7:56 remaining in the third quarter.

Score – USC 21, Northwestern 14
Total Yards – USC 264, Northwestern 177
Rushing Yards – USC 100, Northwestern 102
Passing Yards – USC 164, Northwestern 75
Yards per play – USC 7.1, Northwestern 6.1
Turnovers – USC 1, Northwestern 2
Sacks – USC 0, Northwestern 1
Third Down Conversions – USC 3-for-7, Northwestern 3-for-6
Fourth Down Conversions – USC 2-for-2, Northwestern 0-for-0

USC forces another Northwestern punt and will start at its own 23-yard line with one minute remaining before halftime, leading 21-14.

USC starting cornerback Marcelles Williams went down with an injury on USC’s last third-down stop. Braylon Conley has come into the game at cornerback to replace him.

King Miller goes into the endzone from 12-yards out and is up to 90 yards rushing on nine carries. It’s 21-14 USC with 1:24 remaining in the first half.

Jayden Maiava throws an interception that is nearly returned for a Northwestern touchdown. But Maiava make a bit hit right at the goal line to force a fumble that results in a touchback.

USC running back King Miller takes the next snap 55 yards to flip the field and set the Trojans up in scoring position at the Northwestern 25-yard line as we hit the 2-minute timeout.

There’s the first stop of the day for the USC defense as the Trojans force a three-and-out.

USC gets a touchdown taken off the board as offensive tackle Justin Tauanuu was flagged for an ineligible man downfield. Northwestern picks up a third-down sack to push USC out of field goal range and the Trojans have to punt. The Wildcats take over at their own 21-yard line with 5:16 to play and USC looking for its first defensive stop of the game.

Norhtwestern goes 75 yards in 7 plays and 4:01 to tied the game at 14 with 7:26 remaining in the first half. Northwestern running back Caleb Komolafe has 70 yards in eight carries and the Wildcats as a team are averaging 8 yards per rush. Northwestern has 150 yards of offense in two drives tonight.

USC quarterback Jayden Maiava is starting to use his legs a bit, just as he did in the second half at Nebraska last week. Maiava kept the ball for an 11-yard gain, and then later in the drive, scrambled for a 6-yard touchdown. USC goes 58 yards in nine plays to go back ahead, 14-7, with 11:27 remaining in the first half.

Facing fourth and six, USC lined up to punt but backup quarterback Sam Huard stands in as the punter wearing jersey No. 80 (same as USC punter Sam Johnson) and throws an absolute laser to Tanook Hines for a first down.

Northwestern puts together a 7-minute drive of its own as the Wildcats go 75 yards in 13 plays and score on a 4-yard touchdown pass from Preston Stone to Griffin Wilde. It’s 7-7 with just 45 seconds left in the first quarter.

USC takes the opening drive of the game 82 yards in 16 plays and 7:10 as Jayden Maiava connects with Makai Lemon for a 7-yard touchdown. It’s 7-0 USC with 7:46 remaining in the first quarter.

USC went 2-for-3 on third downs and converted a fourth down with a quarterback sneak. Lemon caught three passes for 26 yards and the touchdown.

Northwestern won the coin toss and elected to defer. USC will receive the opening kick.

USC will have the same starting offensive line tonight that started last week at Nebraska. That hasn’t been a consistent thing for the Trojans this season. They’ve started five different lineups along the offensive line. It’ll go, from left to right, Elijah Paige, Tobias Raymond, J’Onre Reed, Alani Noa and Justin Tauanuu.

USC legendary wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson is the tunnel captain for the game tonight, leading the Trojans out onto the field before the game. The last time these teams played was the 1996 Rose Bowl. Johnson caught 12 passes for 216 yards and a touchdown on his way to being named the MVP.

There don’t look to be any surprise injuries keeping USC Trojans out of this game. We broke down some takeaways from the Big Ten Availability Report.

USC will be without wide receiver Zacharyus Williams, defensive lineman Jamaal Jarrett, running backs Eli Sanders and Waymond Jordan, linebacker Anthony Beavers Jr. and defensive backs DJ Harvey and Prophet Brown.

Offensive linemen Micah Banuelos and Kilian O’Connor are both questionable, as are wide receiver Tanook Hines, defensive tackle Floyd Boucard and kicker Caden Chittenden.