By Matthew E. Milliken
MEMwrites.wordpress.com
Sept. 12, 2021
Visiting Stanford recorded a stunning 42-28 victory over 14th-ranked USC Saturday night in the conference opener for both teams, potentially upending expectations for the young Pac-12 football season.
First-time starter Tanner McKee, the highly touted sophomore quarterback, led a Cardinal offense that looked completely different from the often confused and sluggish unit that had taken the field a week earlier in a season-opening 24-7 loss against Kansas State. The Corona, Calif., native threw for two touchdowns and ran for another without committing a turnover, compiling 234 yards while completing 16 of 23 attempts.
The teams played relatively evenly through the first 16 and a half minutes. Junior running back Nathaniel Peat opened scoring with an electrifying 87-yard touchdown run for unranked Stanford in the first quarter. The Trojans (1-1, 0-1 Pac-12) tied the game early in the second on a two-yard touchdown rush by Keaontay Ingram following a goal-line scrum somewhat reminiscent of USC’s infamous 2005 “Bush push” at Notre Dame.
The game started to change on the very next drive. Stanford (1-1, 1-0) moved from the visitor 25 to the home 9 with relative ease, mainly thanks to a 25 yard reception by senior wideout Brycen Tremayne and a 16-yard pass-interference penalty assessed against USC on a McKee throw to sophomore receiver John Humphreys. When a stout Trojans run defense left the Cardinal facing goal to go on fourth down at the 7, Stanford head coach David Shaw sent sophomore kicker Joshua Karty on to boot a 25-yard field goal to reclaim the lead. The kick was not very strong, but it cleared the uprights, appearing to give the visitors a 10-7 advantage.
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