Colorado Buffaloes vs USC Trojans Match Player Stats On Oct 18, 2014

SportsDirect Inc. staff
Oct 18, 2014

No. 25 USC 56, Colorado 28: Cody Kessler set a school record with seven touchdown passes, including four in the first quarter, as the host Trojans had little trouble with the Buffaloes.

Kessler eclipsed the record set by Matt Barkley while going 19-of-26 for 319 yards for USC (5-2, 4-1 Pac-12), which led 28-0 after one quarter and 35-7 at halftime. Nelson Agholor caught six passes for 128 yards while recording a career-high three touchdowns, freshman Bryce Dixon caught two passes - both for scores - and freshman JuJu Smith (104 receiving yards) and Steven Mitchell each recorded their first collegiate TD as the Trojans improved to 9-0 against Colorado.

Javorius Allen, the leading rusher in the Pac-12 with 909 yards, rushed for 128 and a touchdown while Justin Davis added 97 as the Trojans amassed 532 total yards - 210 in the first quarter. Sefo Liufau was 23-of-35 for 143 yards with two scores and two interceptions, and Nelson Spruce caught his nation-best 11th touchdown for the Buffaloes (2-5, 0-4), who lost their 10th straight conference road game and fell to 4-27 in the Pac-12 since joining the league in 2011.

Kessler, who tied a school record with five touchdown passes in the first half, wasted little time as he capped a 94-yard drive on the game's first possession with a 16-yard scoring strike to Agholor. USC's defense got into the act late in the first quarter when safety Gerald Bowman delivered a big hit on Bryce Bobo as he attempted to make a reception and the ball popped right to cornerback Kevon Seymour, who returned the interception 23 yards to the Colorado 27.

Dixon's first touchdown catch - a 15-yarder - came two plays later and his 9-yard reception finished the scoring in the first half. Agholor caught his third touchdown on the Trojans' first possession of the second half - a career-long 75-yard reception on a stop-and-go route - and Kessler broke Barkley's record with a 24-yard toss to Mitchell on his final pass of the game to make it 49-14 with 6:30 left in the third quarter.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Sophomore Jordan Gehrke replaced Liufau late in the third quarter and was 7-of-13 for 71 yards while scoring his first touchdown with the Buffaloes - a 9-yard run in the fourth quarter to complete the scoring. ... Barkley threw six touchdown passes in a game three times during the 2011 and 2012 seasons - twice against Colorado - while Matt Leinart (twice) and Mark Sanchez also threw five TD passes in the first half. ... USC has outscored the Buffaloes 195-80 in four games since Colorado became a member of the Pac-12 and 333-104 all-time.