University of Washington
9-0 , 6-0
USC
7-3 , 5-2
No. 5 UW Gains 572 Yards Of Offense In 52-42 Win At No. 24 USC
November 04, 2023 | Football
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Dillon Johnson rushed for 256 yards and four touchdowns, Michael Penix Jr. passed for 256 yards and two scores and No. 5 Washington's prolific offense kept the Huskies unbeaten with a 52-42 victory over No. 24 Southern California on Saturday night.
Devin Culp and Ja'Lynn Polk caught TD passes from Penix, who also rushed for a score while the Huskies (9-0, 6-0 Pac-12) won a high-octane thriller featuring two elite offenses.
Johnson had the fifth-biggest rushing performance in Washington history and its first 200-yard game or four-TD game since 2017 while the Huskies racked up 572 total yards.
Caleb Williams passed for 312 yards and three touchdowns for the Trojans (7-3, 5-2), who have lost three of four to derail their championship hopes.
The offenses combined for 1,087 yards, but Washington repeatedly made bigger plays at key moments. The Huskies never trailed in the second half after Zion Tupuola-Fetui forced a fumble deep in USC territory which allowed Washington to take a 35-28 lead on Johnson's third TD run 20 seconds before halftime.
The Trojans tied the game at 42-42 late in the third quarter, but Washington's Grady Gross made a 43-yard field goal with 12:25 to play. The Husky defense then forced Williams to take a long sack that put the Trojans out of field-goal range on their next drive, and Washington marched 91 yards for Johnson's fourth TD with 2:20 left.
Penix threw a spectacular 22-yard TD pass to Culp while running out of bounds in the second quarter. USC answered with a 95-yard drive, but Johnson made an untouched 52-yard TD run moments later.
MICHAEL PENIX JR, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE??
— ESPN (@espn) November 5, 2023
A Heisman-worthy play from the Huskies QB ??
??@NissanUSA pic.twitter.com/BTncZaLfuq
With the score knoitted at 35-35, the Huskies calmly reclaimed the lead with a 75-yard drive ending in Penix's TD sneak.
After a two-game road stretch, the Huskies return home to host No. 18 Utah on Nov. 11 at 12:30 p.m. at Alaska Airlines Field at Husky Stadium. Limited tickets are available.
Team Stats
UW 0, USC 7
USC - Brown,Raleek 2 yd run (Lynch,Denis kick), 12 plays, 75 yards, TOP 06:04
UW 7, USC 7
UW - Johnson,Dillon 2 yd run (Gross,Grady kick), 10 plays, 75 yards, TOP 05:18
UW 7, USC 14
USC - Williams,Caleb 1 yd run (Lynch,Denis kick), 2 plays, 8 yards, TOP 00:49
UW 14, USC 14
UW - Culp,Devin 22 yd pass from Penix Jr.,Michael (Gross,Grady kick) 10 plays, 79 yards, TOP 03:53
UW 14, USC 21
USC - Barlow,Darwin 1 yd run (Lynch,Denis kick), 5 plays, 95 yards, TOP 02:02
UW 21, USC 21
UW - Johnson,Dillon 52 yd run (Gross,Grady kick), 5 plays, 75 yards, TOP 02:41
UW 21, USC 28
USC - Washington,Tahj 41 yd pass from Williams,Caleb (Lynch,Denis kick) 5 plays, 75 yards, TOP 02:40
UW 28, USC 28
UW - Polk,Ja'Lynn 4 yd pass from Penix Jr.,Michael (Gross,Grady kick) 8 plays, 70 yards, TOP 02:43
UW 35, USC 28
UW - Johnson,Dillon 1 yd run (Gross,Grady kick), 3 plays, 12 yards, TOP 00:47
UW 35, USC 35
USC - Rice,Brenden 25 yd pass from Williams,Caleb (Lynch,Denis kick) 8 plays, 80 yards, TOP 03:29
UW 42, USC 35
UW - Penix Jr.,Michael 1 yd run (Gross,Grady kick), 7 plays, 75 yards, TOP 03:39
UW 42, USC 42
USC - Williams,Mario 20 yd pass from Williams,Caleb (Lynch,Denis kick) 7 plays, 83 yards, TOP 02:33
UW 45, USC 42
UW - Gross,Grady 43 yd field goal 9 plays, 46 yards, TOP 04:08
UW 52, USC 42
UW - Johnson,Dillon 1 yd run (Gross,Grady kick), 9 plays, 91 yards, TOP 05:22
