← The College Football Belt
Reign #254 · Game 1,337 of 1,634
August 28, 2004 Week 1 · Regular Season Belt defended

USC defends the belt, 24–13, on the road at Virginia Tech.

Home · Challenger
Virginia Tech 13
AT
Away · Defending Holder
USC 24
AI-Written

Recap

USC's high-powered passing attack proved too much for Virginia Tech to handle in this early-season matchup, as the Trojans methodically dismantled the Hokies' defense to retain the belt with a 24-13 victory. Matt Leinart orchestrated three touchdown passes, including a 53-yard strike to Reggie Bush in the third quarter that broke the game open after Virginia Tech had stayed competitive through the first half. Bryan Randall's consistent ground game kept the Hokies in the contest early, and Virginia Tech's defense forced an interception in the first quarter, but USC's balanced offensive approach and turnover-free performance ultimately proved decisive. The Trojans' fourth-quarter field goal by Ryan Killeen with under a minute remaining sealed a dominant road win for the defending belt holder.

Written by Claude from the box score and play-by-play on this page — a plain-English recap of the numbers below, not a substitute for them.

Full Box Score

Team stats

CFBD box score
 Virginia TechUSC
Total yards294373
Rushing yards141101
Passing yards180284
First downs1816
3rd down conv.5/136/14
Turnovers30
Penalties–yards0–00–0
Time of possession19:3017:08

Full team box score from CFBD’s /games/teams data. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have team-level stats that far back.

Play By Play

Key plays

CFBD play-by-play
WhenTeamYardsPlay
Q1 11:41USC+23 ydLenDale White (USC) rushed left side for 23 yards.
Q1 8:47Virginia Tech+32 ydBryan Randall (VT) pass across the middle intercepted by Lofa Tatupu (USC). Returned for 32 yards.
Q1 10:13Virginia Tech+23 ydBryan Randall (VT) rushed left side for 23 yards.
Q1 6:06USC+35 ydMatt Leinart (USC) pass across the middle complete to Reggie Bush (USC) for a 35 yard touchdown.
Q1 5:59USC+0 ydExtra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good.
Q1 5:59Virginia Tech+21 ydBryan Randall (VT) rushed left side for 21 yards.
Q1 1:47Virginia Tech+35 yd35 yard field goal by Brandon Pace (VT) is good.
Q1 4:40Virginia Tech+20 ydBryan Randall (VT) rushed left side for 20 yards.
Q2 13:59USC+26 ydMatt Leinart (USC) pass left side complete to David Kirtman (USC) for 26 yards.
Q2 15:00USC+0 ydTrojans fumble by Alex Holmes (USC), recovered by Alex Holmes (USC), advanced for no gain.
Q2 11:37USC+35 yd35 yard field goal by Ryan Killeen (USC) is no good.
Q2 6:25Virginia Tech+12 ydBryan Randall (VT) pass right side complete to Josh Hyman (VT) for a 12 yard touchdown.
Q2 6:19Virginia Tech+0 ydExtra point by Brandon Pace (VT) is good.
Q2 8:52Virginia Tech+22 ydBryan Randall (VT) pass across the middle complete to Jeff King (VT) for 22 yards.
Q3 7:24Virginia Tech+22 ydBryan Randall (VT) pass right side complete to Jared Mazzetta (VT) for 22 yards.
Q3 2:43Virginia Tech+29 ydPunt by Vinnie Burns (VT) returned 29 yards by Reggie Bush (USC) to the Trojans 34.
Q3 2:03USC+53 ydMatt Leinart (USC) pass left side complete to Reggie Bush (USC) for a 53 yard touchdown.
Q3 1:55USC+0 ydExtra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good.
Q4 8:00Virginia Tech+42 yd42 yard field goal by Brandon Pace (VT) is good.
Q4 6:05USC+46 ydMatt Leinart (USC) pass across the middle complete to Steve Smith (USC) for 46 yards.
Q4 5:42USC+29 ydMatt Leinart (USC) pass right side complete to Reggie Bush (USC) for a 29 yard touchdown.
Q4 5:35USC+0 ydExtra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good.
Q4 5:35USC+30 ydKickoff returned by Eddie Royal (VT) for 30 yards.
Q4 2:09Virginia Tech+0 ydHokies fumble by Bryan Randall (VT), recovered by Ronald Nunn (USC), returned for no gain.
Q4 0:59USC+40 yd40 yard field goal by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good.

Scoring plays, turnovers, and gains of 20+ yards, pulled from CFBD’s play-by-play. This section only appears for belt games with play-by-play on file (2003 onward).

Box Score

Player stats

CFBD player stats

Passing

PlayerC/ATTYDSAVGTDINTQBR
Bryan RandallVirginia Tech14/291535.31151.6
Matt LeinartUSC19/292729.43072.9

Rushing

PlayerCARYDSAVGTDLONG
Bryan RandallVirginia Tech17824.8023
Justin HamiltonVirginia Tech8334.1016
Cedric HumesVirginia Tech9262.908
LenDale WhiteUSC15785.2023
Reggie BushUSC9273.0012
Steve SmithUSC1-1-1.000
Matt LeinartUSC4-3-0.807

Receiving

PlayerRECYDSAVGTDLONG
Jeff KingVirginia Tech46516.3022
Richard JohnsonVirginia Tech3279.0016
Jared MazzettaVirginia Tech12222.0022
Josh HymanVirginia Tech11212.0112
Cedric HumesVirginia Tech294.505
John KinzerVirginia Tech188.008
David ClowneyVirginia Tech177.007
Justin HamiltonVirginia Tech133.003
Reggie BushUSC512725.4353
Steve SmithUSC46817.0046
David KirtmanUSC33210.7026
Lee WebbUSC11414.0014
Alex HolmesUSC2126.008
Chris McFoyUSC2115.507
Dwayne JarrettUSC284.009
Show more stats (4 more categories)

Interceptions

PlayerINTYDSTD
Lofa TatupuUSC1320

Kicking

PlayerFGPCTLONGXPPTS
Brandon PaceVirginia Tech2/2100.0421/17
Ryan KilleenUSC1/250.0413/36

Punt Returns

PlayerNOYDSAVGLONGTD
Richard JohnsonVirginia Tech11010.0100
Reggie BushUSC46015.0270

Punting

PlayerNOYDSAVGTBIn 20LONG
Vinnie BurnsVirginia Tech522945.80058
Tom MaloneUSC521442.80053

Full player stats from CFBD’s /games/players data. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have player-level stats that far back.