Arizona’s rally comes up just short against Caleb Williams, No. 10 USC

Arizona battled No. 10 USC deep into the second half. The Wildcats were a two-point conversion away from tying the score and sending Arizona Stadium into a tizzy.

Caleb Williams and the Trojans proved too much for the Cats to overcome.

USC’s star quarterback threw for 411 yards and five touchdowns in a 45-37 victory over Arizona on Saturday in front of an announced crowd of 44,006.

The victory was the Trojans’ 10^th in a row over the Wildcats in what could be USC’s last visit to Tucson. The Trojans (7-1, 5-1 Pac-12) are headed to the Big Ten in 2024.

Arizona (3-5, 1-4) lost its third in a row, and it doesn’t get any easier from here: The Wildcats' next two games are at No. 14 Utah and No. 12 UCLA.

"There was not a time in the game that we didn't think we were gonna win the game," UA coach Jedd Fisch said. "There was not a time in the game that we didn't feel we could go head to head with that team. And we did it. We went head-to-head, toe-to-toe. Had a chance for an onside kick there at the end of a one-possession game.

"That was as competitive of a football game as we’ve been in. We've had some really good ones since I've been here. But we are just getting better, and I think that was a step in the right direction on this build. I'm excited to see where our team can go."

Arizona allowed more than 40 points for the fourth time in its past five games — all losses.

UA quarterback Jayden de Laura finished 26 of 43 for 380 yards and three touchdowns. Dorian Singer caught all three as part of a career outing that saw him snag seven passes for 141 yards.

Arizona rallied in the second half despite back-to-back snaps in the third quarter that appeared to put USC in position to pull away.

De Laura was intercepted by Bryson Shaw on a pass over the middle. On the next play, Williams connected with Tahj Washington for a 47-yard touchdown to give the Trojans a 31-16 lead with 5:08 left in the period.

The Wildcats seemed to have all the momentum before that sequence. They stopped USC just outside the red zone, leading to a missed field goal. De Laura then scrambled for 34 yards, finishing the run by bowling over cornerback Ceyair Wright.

Down two scores, Arizona kept chipping away. The Wildcats drove 60 yards in four plays. Singer’s 19-yard touchdown reception, his second of the day, made it 31-23.

Arizona then forced a three-and-out. USC’s first punt of the game traveled only 27 yards, setting up the Wildcats at their 43. A 37-yard pass to Jacob Cowing, who’d been quiet up to that point, set up Michael Wiley’s 10-yard TD run. Arizona went for two to try to tie the score at 31 apiece, but the attempt failed.

The Wildcats appeared to force a field-goal attempt on the next series. But linebacker Jerry Roberts was whistled for a personal foul after Williams scrambled to the right sideline and threw the ball away. Roberts bumped Williams and jawed with him after the play, drawing the flag.

"There were some stops that weren't stops, but they felt like stops," Fisch said of the penalty against Roberts. "I thought we had a third-and-8 stop. That was my thought process at the moment. And then I saw a flag. I haven't seen the replay. I haven't seen what happened. I thought we got them off the field. I thought that was what was going to happen in that situation."

USC capitalized on the questionable call, with Williams hitting Kyle Ford for a 5-yard touchdown to make it 38-29.

Arizona couldn’t respond and had to punt. Travis Dye’s 2-yard touchdown run made it 45-29 with 6:24 to play.

Singer’s third touchdown, plus a successful two-point conversion, made it 45-37 with 1:26 remaining. After an unsuccessful onside kick attempt, Williams converted a fourth-and-1 to put the game away.

USC prevailed despite not being at full strength. The Trojans were missing several regulars because of injuries. The headliner: leading receiver and Biletnikoff Award winner Jordan Addison.

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Fellow wideout Mario Williams dressed but didn’t play. Caleb Williams seemed unfazed, completing passes to 10 receivers.

The Wildcats tried to throw different looks at the star sophomore. They included a 3-1-7 alignment with freshman Jacob Manu as the lone linebacker. Arizona also rotated more players up front than it had in any previous game. The Wildcats still couldn't register a single sack.

"He’s always hard to sack, not just tonight," Fisch said of Williams. "He's like Jayden. They're very elusive in their own ways, different ways.

"He's got a tremendous arm. He's big. He’s strong. He's a great football player. We all know that. When he chose to transfer from Oklahoma, they got a great quarterback."

Arizona trailed 17-13 at halftime. The Wildcats made it 17-16 via a field goal on the opening drive of the second half. At that point, Arizona had entered the red zone two times – and settled for field goals on both occasions. Fish knew that wouldn’t be good enough against USC, which entered Saturday averaging 40.4 points per game.

“When we get into that red zone, it's gotta be touchdowns,” Fisch said earlier in the week. “It's got to be touchdowns against USC if we're going to win this game. Otherwise, we're going to have a long, hard battle ahead of us.”

The teams played to a 10-10 draw in the first quarter. Arizona held USC to a field goal on the opening possession thanks to a tackle for loss by Jalen Harris on a third-down keeper by Williams. Dion Wilson Jr. and Manu were also in the vicinity.

The Wildcats grabbed the lead in spectacular fashion. Singer made a gorgeous one-handed grab in the left corner of the end zone to secure a 23-yard touchdown pass from de Laura.

"Dorian’s spectacular," Fisch said. "There are some catches out there, there's some plays that he makes that I don't even know what to say about them really. They're tremendous. They're fantastic. One-handed catch falling backwards with his left hand. There's some things that are just cool."

The Trojans quickly countered, going 75 yards in less than three minutes. Freshman tailback Raleek Brown finished the drive with a 6-yard TD catch from Williams. Brown beat fellow freshman Manu to the perimeter on the left side.

Arizona answered with Tyler Loop’s 42-yard field goal – set up by another one-handed catch, this one by Tetairoa McMillan for 33 yards.

USC made it three scores in three drives on the next possession, again marching 75 yards for a touchdown. Brenden Rice’s 2-yard grab in the back of the end zone made it 17-10 with 12:33 left in the half.

Arizona responded with a field goal – a disappointing outcome after the Wildcats had second-and-goal at the 1-yard line. Wiley got stuffed for a 7-yard loss on that play. De Laura connected with Singer on third down, but the receiver couldn’t get a foot down inside the left sideline.

Arizona then got its first stop of the day, thanks in large part to Harris drawing a holding penalty. USC coach Lincoln Riley elected to attempt a 56-yard field goal, which Denis Lynch hooked short and right.

The Wildcats drove into USC territory but failed to convert on fourth-and-4 from the 33.

The Trojans had 50 seconds left and one timeout. Williams’ 34-yard pass to Rice advanced the ball to the UA 10 with five seconds remaining. USC tried to spike the ball, but the officials re-spotted it at the last moment. That resulted in the clock expiring, the half ending and Riley fuming at the refs.

Extra points

• Two UA freshmen made their first career starts: cornerback Ephesians Prysock and defensive lineman Ta'ita'i Uiagalelei.
• Sam Langi started for Josh Donovan at left guard — the first change to Arizona’s starting offensive line this season. Donovan, who had been nursing a knee injury, entered in the second quarter.
• Wiley returned to the starting lineup after missing the Oct. 15 game vs. Washington. Arizona opened with two backs and gave the ball to freshman Jonah Coleman on its first play from scrimmage. Coleman got hurt on the play and did not return. Fisch said he could have come back in an emergency and should be available vs. Utah.
• Other USC players who were out included starting left guard Andrew Vorhees and linebackers Eric Gentry and Ralen Goforth.

Photos: No. 10 USC out-slugs Arizona, 45-37, at homecoming football game