Pac-12 football roundup: USC rallies to beat Arizona State; Shough leads Oregon past Stanford

Drake London caught a 21-yard touchdown pass with 1 minute, 20 seconds to play, and No. 20 Southern California rallied from a late 13-point deficit for a 28-27 victory over Arizona State on Saturday in the Pac-12’s long-delayed season opener in Los Angeles.

Bru McCoy caught a deflected 26-yard TD pass with 2:52 left for the Trojans (1-0), and Max Williams recovered the onside kick. On fourth and 9, Kedon Slovis fired a pass down the middle to London, and the two-sport athlete beat double coverage to haul it in for an electrifying score.

USC’s defense stopped Arizona State (0-1) on downs near midfield with 50 seconds left to preserve an astonishing comeback for perpetually embattled coach Clay Helton’s team.

Until their rally, the Trojans were struggling through a game that began at 9 a.m. USC agreed to its earliest kickoff in at least 70 years for a national television audience, but it looked like another embarrassment for Helton and his Trojans – before it abruptly turned into a thrilling triumph.

(12) Oregon 35, Stanford 14: Tyler Shough picked up where Justin Herbert left off, throwing for 227 yards and a touchdown and running for another score to lead the Ducks (1-0) over the short-handed Cadrinal (0-1) in Eugene.

Stanford was hurt before game even kicked off when it was announced that starting quarterback Davis Mills was unavailable.

Receiver Connor Wedington and defensive end Trey LaBounty were also listed as unavailable because of COVID-19 testing results and contact tracing protocols.

Stanford did not specify whether the players had tested positive, but Wedington said on Twitter that he tested negative.

Colorado 48, UCLA 42: Tailback Jarek Broussard scored three times in his first start, Colorado’s defense produced two big fourth-down stops in the final quarter and the Buffaloes (1-0) opened the Karl Dorrell Era by holding off the Bruins (0-1) in Boulder, Colorado.

Associated Press