Difference makers: Kedon Slovis, Amon-Ra St. Brown connect for 4 TDs in USC’s rout of Washington State

Amon-Ra St. Brown

Surprisingly, USC’s leading receiver through the first three games of the 2020 season was also the only one without a touchdown reception. That changed less than seven minutes into Saturday’s game and by the end of the first quarter, St. Brown had become the Trojans’ leader in touchdown catches, and by a significant margin. The talented outside receiver hauled in four passes – each of those touchdown passes – in the first quarter, tying the single-game conference and school record previously held by Robert Woods.

Kedon Slovis

The quarterback distributing the ball to St. Brown also had a record outing. The five touchdown passes thrown by Slovis were as many as he’d thrown the first three games of the year and tied the school record held by both Mark Sanchez and Matt Barkley. From the second quarter to the third quarter, Slovis at one point completed 18 consecutive passes before his 19th was broken up by the Cougars. Slovis, who’d thrown five touchdowns and two interceptions entering Sunday’s game, finished with five TDs and no picks against WSU, completing 25 of 32 passes for 287 yards.

Talanoa Hufanga

USC didn’t have a single playmaker who stood out head and shoulders from the other, but Hufanga may have been the most impactful Trojan on that side of the ball. In the first quarter, Hufanga tipped a Jayden de Laura pass to himself, then ran 37 yards the other way and hurdled the Washington State quarterback before being pushed out at the 4-yard line. Slovis threw USC’s fourth touchdown pass on the next play. Hufanga was the Trojans’ leading tackler with nine takedowns and also recorded a 5-yard sack in the third quarter with the game well in hand.