11 National Championships 494 NFL Players 34 Bowl Victories 80 NFL 1st Round Draftees accolades 168 All-Americans 5 No. 1 Overall NFL Draft Picks 6 Heisman Trophy Winners 22 Academic All-Americans 2017 SCHEDULE (11-2) Release Date: Dec. 21, 2017 DATE OPPONENT TIME Sept. 2 W. Michigan W 49-31 Sept. 9 Stanford W 42-24 GAME 14 Sept. 16 Texas W 27-24 (2OT) 82nd Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic Sept. 23 at California W 30-20 USC Sept. 29 (Fr.) at Wash. St. L 27-30 Oct. 7 Oregon St. W 38-10 (11-2 overall, 8-1 Pac-12 South) Oct. 14 Utah W 28-27 vs. Oct. 21 at Notre Dame L 14-49 Ohio State Oct. 28 at Arizona St. W 48-17 Nov. 4 Arizona W 49-35 (11-2 overall, 8-1 Big Ten East) Nov. 11 at Colorado W 38-24 Nov. 18 UCLA W 28-23 Friday, Dec. 29, 2017, 7:30 p.m. CT, AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Tex. Dec. 1 (Fr.) Stanford (P12CG) W 31-28 Dec. 29 (Fr.) Ohio St. (Cotton) 7:30 p.m. CT (ESPN) NO. 8 USC FOOTBALL FACES NO. 5 OHIO STATE IN COTTON BOWL USCTROJANS.COM/FOOTBALL THEMES *In a matchup between traditional college football powers, Pac-12 champion No. 8 USC and Big Ten @USC_Athletics champ No. 5 Ohio State will travel to Texas to battle in the 82nd annual Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic. This is the earliest date that a Cotton Bowl has been played. *It’s the 24th meeting between the teams (the first since 2009), including the eighth time they’ve squared off in a bowl (but the first non-Rose). Troy has won the last 7 clashes and also historically has fared well /USCTrojans against Big Ten competition and in season enders. *USC is one of the nation’s premier bowl teams (51 bowls, 34 wins), as is Ohio State (47, 22). But it’s just #FIGHTON the second time each team has appeared in a Cotton Bowl. *It’s a rare indoor game for USC, but the second year in a row that the Trojans have played in 80,000-seat #TEAM125 AT&T Stadium. #ALLABOUTBALL *Traveler will be at the game, a rare road trip for USC’s white horse mascot. *Five USC players hail from Texas, as does Trojan head coach Clay Helton. USC defensive coordinator #FAITHFAMILYFOOTBALL Clancy Pendergast used to work for the Cowboys and Trojan ILB Levi Jones’ dad was a well-known Cowboy. Even the state’s governor has a USC link. TROJANS ON THE AIR *Five previous USC head coaches have an Ohio background, as does USC’s running backs coach Deland Live national TV: 5:30 p.m. (PT), ESPN/ McCullough. ESPN Deportes, Bob Wischusen, Brock *USC, which has won 20 of its last 22 games, is going after its fifth-ever 12-win season. Huard, Allison Williams. *Head coach Clay Helton’s Trojan team, which played its 12 regular season games in 2017 without a Live national radio: 5:30 p.m. (PT), bye, was the first South Division representative to win the Pac-12 Championship Game when it defeated ESPN Radio, Brad Sham, Rod Gilmore, Quint Stanford. USC’s offense, which is averaging 489.5 total yards (its highest average since 2005) and 34.5 Kessenich. Also on SiriusXM satellite radio points, has had 600-plus yards of total offense 3 times this season (the other Pac-12 teams combined (channels 80/80 and online channel 80). have done so just 6 times). QB , 20-3 as a starter, is Troy’s season total offense record holder Live local radio: 1:30 p.m. (PT), pre-game Sam Darnold shows on ESPNLA 710 Radio (KSPN-AM)/ and is on the verge of becoming the first Trojan signalcaller to throw for 4,000 yards in a season (he is game broadcast and post-game show on at 3,787, while completing 63.7% of his passes with 26 TDs). All-American TB Ronald Jones II, who has AM 690 (XEWW-AM), Pete Arbogast, John 1,486 rushing yards with 18 TDs in 2017 and 9 100-yard games, is fifth on USC’s prestigious career rushing Jackson, Jordan Moore, Shaun Cody, Chris list (3,555 yards), with 2 Heisman Trophy winners and 2 Heisman runners-up ahead of him. WR Deontay Fisher, Travis Rodgers, Dennis Thurman, Burnett, with 74 receptions and 9 TDs in 2017, is 25 yards shy of 1,000 receiving yards. USC’s defense, Rachel Frain (includes 4-hour pre-game which leads the nation in sacks (43) and has 24 takeaways in 2017, is led by ILB Cameron Smith (Troy’s and 2-hour post-game shows). Also on tackle leader—102—for the second year in a row), All-American OLB Uchenna Nwosu (13 deflections in 2017, the Trojan Radio Network--KSZL-AM 1230 the most by a Trojan linebacker since 1998), DL Rasheem Green (9 sacks in 2017) and S Chris Hawkins (24 in Barstow, KXPS-AM 1010 in Palm Springs tackles the past 2 games). Darnold, Jones, Smith, Nwosu and Green were among USC’s 7 All-Pac-12 first and KFNN-AM 1580 in Phoenix--as well as teamers in 2017. on USCTrojans.com and ESPNLA.com, on *Ohio State’s Urban Meyer (the nation’s winningest active coach) guides a strong, balanced team that is SiriusXM satellite radio and on the TuneIn sixth nationally in total offense (523.6), fifth in scoring offense (42.5), eighth in total defense (292.3) and Radio app. seventh in rushing defense (108.8). Dynamic QB J.T. Barrett, the winningest (37) quarterback in OSU history, USC Trojan Talk: 7 p.m. (PT), Thursdays, has thrown for nearly 3,000 yards with 35 TDs in 2017 and run for another 732 yards with 10 scores. He KSHP-AM 1400, and 11 a.m. (PT), Saturdays, owns 35 school and Big Ten records. RB J.K. Dobbins has rushed for a school freshman record 1,364 yards KMET-AM 1490, Harvey Hyde. and is complemented by RB (608 yards). Eleven OSU players have caught touchdowns, with Trojan Football Report: 9:30 p.m. (PT), Mike Weber Saturdays, KDWN-AM 720, Harvey Hyde. WR K.J. Hill the leader in receptions (55). Three All-Big Ten first teamers--All-American C Billy Price, the 2017 Rimington Trophy winner, OG Michael Jordan and OT Jamarco Jones--anchor the Buckeye offensive line. Ohio State’s top tacklers include LB Jerome Baker, S Jordan Fuller and S Damon Webb, along with All-Americans in CB Denzel Ward and DL Nick Bosa (14.5 tackles for loss, 7 sacks). *The game will be broadcast live in primetime on ESPN and ESPN Radio RANKINGS USC is ranked eighth in the AP sports media poll and seventh in the Amway coaches poll. Ohio State is fifth in both polls. 1 PAC-12 STANDINGS (pre-bowls) SERIES *USC holds a 13-9-1 series edge over Ohio State. The Trojans have won the past 7 meetings and 8 of the PAC-12 OVERALL last 9. W L W L *Seven of the 23 USC-OSU games have been decided by a TD or less and there have been 7 shutouts in SOUTH the series (5 by Ohio State). USC 8 1 11 2 *At least one of the teams has been ranked in 17 of the previous meetings (including 13 times when both ASU 6 3 7 5 were ranked), with 10 of the games featuring an AP Top 5 team (and 4 with an AP No. 1 squad). ARIZ 5 4 7 5 *Seven of the meetings have been on New Year’s Day in the Rose Bowl, where Troy owns a 4-3 mark. Five UCLA 4 5 6 6 of those Rose Bowl meetings carried national championship implications for one of the teams (USC won the UTAH 3 6 6 6 1972 and 1974 national crowns after Rose Bowl wins over Ohio State, while the Buckeyes won the 1954 and COLO 2 7 5 7 1968 titles after beating Troy in Pasadena; and a USC Rose Bowl win knocked Ohio State out of the 1979 top NORTH ranking). STAN 7 2 9 4 *The teams have met in September, October and January, but never in December until now. WASH 7 2 10 2 *In the latest meeting between the teams, USC beat Ohio State, 18-15, in Columbus in 2009. That came a WSU 6 3 9 3 year after a 35-3 Trojan victory in Los Angeles. See page 4 for a complete recap of that 2009 game. ORE 4 5 7 5 CAL 2 7 5 7 VERSUS BIG TEN CONFERENCE OSU 0 9 1 11 *USC is 75-28-3 (.722) against current Big Ten opponents, most recently posting a 52-49 win over Penn State in the 2017 Rose Bowl. Before that, USC had won 13 consecutive games against Big Ten foes before AP POLL COACHES POLL losing to Wisconsin in the 2015 Holiday Bowl, 23-21. Troy has won 35 of its last 44 games (and 42 of its last 52) versus the Big Ten. USC is 20-10 against the Big Ten in bowls and has won 9 of the last 10 bowl meetings. 1. Clemson 1. Clemson *On the other hand, Ohio State is 59-26-2 (.690) against current Pac-12 members. The Buckeyes’ most 2. Oklahoma 2. Oklahoma recent game against a Pac-12 foe was a 42-20 win over Oregon in the 2015 CPF final (following the 2014 3.