LOS ANGELES – Khalil Tate and the Arizona Wildcats won’t go away.
Despite generally being outplayed by No. 17 USC, the No. 22 Wildcats remain within striking distance through three quarters.
Arizona trails USC 28-20 through three Saturday night at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum.
Just when it seemed the Wildcats’ hopes of upsetting the Trojans were dying, Tate brought the Cats back to life.
Bottled up for most of the game, Tate finally broke free for a 32-yard touchdown run to make it 28-13. After the Arizona defense forced a three-and-out, Tate struck again.
On fourth-and-4 from the USC 30, Tate scrambled to his right. Shun Brown broke away from Ajene Harris. Tate hit Brown in stride. Suddenly, a potential blowout became a one-score game.
Tate has completed 12 of 26 passes for 119 yards. He has 79 rushing yards on 20 attempts.
USC has outgained Arizona 397-256 but has 12 penalties for 103 yards. The Wildcats have two for 17 yards.
HALFTIME UPDATE:
LOS ANGELES – The Arizona Wildcats’ four-game winning streak appears to be in jeopardy.
No. 22 Arizona trails No. 17 USC 21-6 at halftime of their game Saturday night at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum.
The No. 1 offense in the Pac-12 has had trouble moving the ball against the Trojans. And Arizona’s defense has had all kinds of problems against USC’s offense.
The Wildcats entered Saturday night averaging 45 points per game. Yet they have managed just two Lucas Havrisik field goals. USC has bottled up Khalil Tate, sacking him three times and limiting him to 59 yards of total offense.
On the other side of the ball, the Trojans basically have had their way. They started out running, which opened up passing lanes for Sam Darnold. Darnold has completed 10 of 15 passes for 147 yards and two touchdowns.
In some ways, Arizona is fortunate to be as close as it is. The Wildcats stopped Darnold on a fourth-and-1 sneak from the UA 17-yard line in the first quarter. Later in the period, Dane Cruikshank intercepted Darnold in the end zone.
Tate is 5 of 12 for 37 yards. He has just 22 rushing yards on 12 attempts.
USC has 308 total yards to Arizona’s 91.
FIRST-QUARTER UPDATE:
LOS ANGELES — Arizona can’t stop USC’s running game, but the Wildcats are hanging in there against the 17th-ranked Trojans.
Despite surrendering 126 rushing yards in the first quarter, No. 22 Arizona trails USC just 7-0 entering the second.
The Wildcats again are taking their bend-but-don’t-break defensive approach to the extreme.
First, Arizona stopped USC quarterback Sam Darnold’s sneak on fourth-and-1. The Wildcats then moved the ball from their 16-yard line to the 33.
On fourth-and-8, Josh Pollack lined up to punt. Donald Reiter’s snap was slightly low, and Pollack couldn’t handle it. When Pollack finally gained control of the ball, Michael Pittman was standing right in front of him. Pittman got credit for a block, and Jalen Greene returned the ball 11 yards for a touchdown and a 7-0 USC lead.
USC again marched downfield, reaching the 1-yard line. But on second-and-goal, Dane Cruikshank intercepted Darnold in the end zone.
USC has sacked Arizona QB Khalil Tate twice – the first two times he’s been sacked since becoming the regular quarterback.
Freshman free safety Scottie Young Jr. has returned to action for the Wildcats. He rotated into the secondary on the second series.
PREGAME UPDATE:
On the brink of the college football season, predicting that arguably the best head-to-head quarterback battle in the Pac-12 would come in Week 10 between Khalil Tate and Sam Darnold would be outlandish.
Here we are with both No. 22 Arizona (6-2, 4-1 Pac-12) and No. 17 USC (7-2, 5-1 Pac-12) preparing to duke it out on the national stage to control its destiny to a Pac-12 South title.
The quarterbacks are a big reason why both teams are in this position.
Tate has rushed for 840 yards in the last four games, an accomplishment no other FBS player has done in the last decade. Tate also showed off his arm last week against Washington State with 275 passing yards and two touchdowns, so now the rising star has proven to be a dual-threat quarterback.
Plus, Tate won Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week for the fourth consecutive time, the first time in conference history and has taken college football by storm.
However, Tate is lining up against a USC defense that has several players more than capable of playing in the NFL in their careers so Saturday night will be his biggest test.
Then there's Darnold, a once Heisman hopeful and potentially a top five pick in next year's NFL Draft. Darnold has thrown for 2,558 yards this season, but has thrown for 10 interceptions so Arizona's secondary will have to be on its toes.
The Wildcats' secondary will return Scottie Young Jr. who was out for the last two weeks with a knee injury. Young was listed as a co-starter with Jarrius Wallace at free safety and there still hasn't been word on who will start against the Trojans.
Kickoff from the L.A. Coliseum is set for 7:45 p.m. and will be televised on ESPN. Don't forget to follow the Wildcaster on Twitter for live in-game updates!
HUGE Pac-12 South showdown tonight between the Wildcats and Trojans. Who do you have winning tonight? pic.twitter.com/Q4yuWXRJ1f
— The Wildcaster (@TheWildcaster) November 4, 2017
