The Arizona Wildcats pulled off a shocking 39-36 upset over the No. 9 USC Trojans in Tucson Saturday afternoon, as Matt Scott out-dueled Matt Barkley despite suffering a concussion late in the fourth quarter.
USC vs. Arizona 2012 final score: Matt Scott leads Wildcats to 39-36 shootout upset
Despite the fact that USC WR Marquis Lee racked up 345 receiving yards by himself, the Arizona Wildcats were able to pull off the upset with a courageous effort by QB Matt Scott.
Matt Kartozian-US PRESSWIRE
The Wildcats jumped out to a quick 10-0 lead in the first quarter, with Barkley throwing an interception and turning the ball over on downs on USC’s first two drives.
The Trojans offense exploded in the second quarter, though, as wide receiver Marqise Lee wrangled in catches of 50, 49, 32 and 28 yards. But after the 21 point outburst in that fifteen minute period, the USC offense was relatively quiet in the second half with only 15 points to Arizona's 26.
Lee caught a 44-yard touchdown on USC’s first drive coming out of the locker room, but the Wildcats then scored on four consecutive drives to take a 39-28 lead. Scott sustained what looked to be a concussion during that offensive eruption, but stayed on the field to lead the Wildcats on their game-winning drive despite vomiting following a shot to the head.
After the Trojans got a Silas Redd rushing touchdown and a two point conversion to cut the deficit to three points, the Wildcats took three and a half minutes off the clock with running back Ka'Deem Carey doing his job in clock-killing mode. Barkley and company were able to move to the Arizona 48 when the got the ball back with less then a minute left but his Hail Mary heave to Lee came up just a bit short.
Box Score Hero: Lost in all the commotion was Marquis Lee’s eye-popping final stat line of 16 receptions for 345 yards and two touchdowns. Scott got his stock in the Pac-12 raised, too, with 369 passing yards and 3 touchdowns against 1interception.
Rankings Ramifications: Don’t be surprised if the Wildcats get some top-25 consideration after this one, but the outcome will affect the Trojans more than anyone. They’ll be closer to the 20’s than the 10’s in the BCS’ eyes after racking up their second conference loss.
But Did They Cover? As 6-point favorites, the Trojans didn’t do their job.
Next Week's Schedule: The Wildcats will be looking to carry the strong play they showcased Saturday into next weekend's road matchup against the other Los Angeles school, the UCLA Bruins. The Trojans, on the other hand, will be getting their stiffest test of the season as No. 4 Oregon heads into town for a marquee Pac-12 showdown.
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