Post by DiamondThief on Nov 25, 2017 22:20:16 GMT -8
Stanford Cardinal vs. USC Trojans
What: The Pac-12 championship is up for grabs as the Cardinal face the Trojans.
When: Friday, December 1 at 5 p.m. (pacific).
Where: Levi's Stadium; Santa Clara, California.
Television: ESPN.
Stanford Radio: Cardinal Sports Network.
2017 Records: Cardinal 9-3 (7-2 Pac-12 North). Trojans 10-2 (8-1 Pac-12 South).
2016 Records: Cardinal 10-3 (6-3 Pac-12 North). Trojans 10-3 (7-2 Pac-12 South).
Previous: Cardinal def. Notre Dame 38-20. Trojans def. UCLA 28-23.
Head to Head: Trojans def. 42-24 on Sept. 9.
Head Coaches (overall records): David Shaw (73-20). Clay Helton (26-9).
Stanford Notes: Running back Bryce Love has been the rock for the Stanford offense all season. He started with 180 yards in the season-opening win over Rice in Australia. Over a two-game stretch in the middle of the season, he rushed for 564 yards in a pair of wins over Arizona St. (263 yards) and Utah (301). Love injured his left ankle in the first half of the Cardinal's win over Oregon. He missed the rest of the game and sit out the next week before returning against Washington St. on Nov. 4. He's been nursing the ankle over the final five weeks of the season. Love is second in the FBS total rushing yards with 1,848 and is third among running backs with 8.6 yards per carry. Love is expected to be a top-three finalist for the Heisman trophy. K.J. Costello has taken over as the starter under center four games ago, and provides a punch in the passing game. He has completed 6.1 percent of his passes for 1,169 yards with 9 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. JJ Arcega-Whiteside leads the receiving group with 41 receptions for 633 yards and 6 scores, while Trenton Irwin has 39 grabs for 436 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Nose tackle Harrison Phillips leads the defense in total tackles. Redshirt freshman kicker Jet Toner has made all 46 of his extra point attempts, and is 20 of 24 on his field goal tries over the course of the season.
USC Notes: Quarterback Sam Darnold entered 2017 as the Heisman trophy favorite and has enjoyed a great season. He's 12th in the FBS in passing yards with 3,462, having completed 260 of 411 attempts with 24 touchdowns and 12 picks. Though his name has dropped out of consideration for college football's most notable award, he's engineered the Trojans to a 10-2 mark and ran the table on Pac-12 South opponents, easily clinching the South Division title. Darnold is widely projected as a top five selection in next April's NFL Draft. Ronald Jones II has rushed for 1,346 yards on 212 carries with 16 touchdowns. That yardage ranks 14th in the nation among running backs and the 16 touchdowns are equal to that of Bryce Love of the Cardinal. The Trojans feature a trio of primary receivers for Darnold, led by Deontay Burnett's 73 catches for 966 yards and 9 touchdowns. Tyler Vaughns has 48 catches for 664 yards and 4 touchdowns, and Steven Mitchell Jr. has 39 receptions for 578 yards and four touchdowns. USC averages 488.6 yards of offense per game this season. The Trojans are ranked 11th in the FBS, being unlikely that they will advance to the College Football Playoffs' final four. The Trojans' most recent loss came on Oct. 13 when they were blown out by Notre Dame, 49-14 at South Bend, Indiana. Stanford defeated Notre Dame on Nov. 25, 38-20.
Fact: David Shaw and Clay Helton have only held head coaching jobs at their current schools.
Twitter: Stanford - USC
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