USC defends the belt, 23–17, at home over California.
AP poll, week 7: California No. 7 at USC No. 1 · No. 1 that week: Maryland. The belt vs. the polls →
Where this game sits in the lineage
USC came in 282 days into reign #258, which began with a win over Michigan, with 4 defenses already behind it; this was its 5th defense. USC went on to defend it 20 more times before Texas took it on January 4, 2006, 734 days after the reign began.
For California this was its 16th shot at the belt; it had held the belt twice before.
It was the 5th of 6 belt games between the two; going in, USC led the belt series 4–0; all-time USC leads 6–0. Every meeting →
Recap
USC's defense dominated early, with Matt Leinart leading scoring drives that built a 16-3 halftime lead capped by a 42-yard field goal with six seconds left in the half. California fought back in the second half behind Aaron Rodgers, scoring touchdowns to McArthur and Lynch to briefly threaten, but USC's defense held firm when it mattered. A crucial Reggie Bush kickoff return for 84 yards after Lynch's touchdown shifted momentum back to the Trojans, and despite an interception late in the third quarter, USC's defense forced five California turnovers to preserve the belt. The Trojans controlled the game with efficient scoring despite accumulating just 205 total yards, while California's 424 yards and time of possession advantage ultimately went to waste.
- Leinart's 45-yard completion to Steve Smith and subsequent field goal in Q1 set the tone for USC's early dominance
- Ryan Killeen's three field goals (31, 33, 42 yards) kept USC ahead despite limited offensive production
- Reggie Bush's 84-yard kickoff return in Q3 after Lynch's touchdown reversed momentum when California threatened to take control
- Five California turnovers, particularly in the fourth quarter, prevented the Bears from capitalizing on their statistical advantage
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.
Team stats
CFBD box scoreFull 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.
Key plays
CFBD play-by-play| When | Team | Yards | Play |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 7:40 | USC | +5 yd | Matt Leinart (USC) pass across the middle complete to LenDale White (USC) for a 5 yard touchdown. |
| Q1 7:40 | USC | +0 yd | Extra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good. |
| Q1 2:04 | USC | +45 yd | Matt Leinart (USC) pass across the middle complete to Steve Smith (USC) for 45 yards. |
| Q1 0:09 | USC | +31 yd | 31 yard field goal by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good. |
| Q2 10:25 | California | +39 yd | 39 yard field goal by Tom Schneider (CAL) is good. |
| Q2 10:14 | USC | +0 yd | Trojans fumble by Josh Pinkard (USC), recovered by Josh Pinkard (USC), advanced for no gain. |
| Q2 8:00 | California | +0 yd | Golden Bears fumble by Tim Mixon (CAL), recovered by Eric Wright (USC), returned for no gain. |
| Q2 6:21 | USC | +33 yd | 33 yard field goal by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good. |
| Q2 1:47 | California | +20 yd | Aaron Rodgers (CAL) pass left side complete to Geoff McArthur (CAL) for a 20 yard touchdown. |
| Q2 1:37 | California | +0 yd | Extra point by Tom Schneider (CAL) is good. |
| Q2 0:06 | USC | +42 yd | 42 yard field goal by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good. |
| Q3 13:46 | USC | +31 yd | Matt Leinart (USC) pass right side complete to Steve Smith (USC) for 31 yards. |
| Q3 12:15 | USC | +16 yd | Matt Leinart (USC) pass across the middle complete to Dwayne Jarrett (USC) for a 16 yard touchdown. |
| Q3 12:11 | USC | +0 yd | Extra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good. |
| Q3 5:30 | California | +0 yd | Extra point by Tom Schneider (CAL) is good. |
| Q3 7:55 | California | +20 yd | Aaron Rodgers (CAL) pass across the middle complete to Geoff McArthur (CAL) for 20 yards. |
| Q3 5:34 | California | +2 yd | Marshawn Lynch (CAL) rushed up the middle for a 2 yard touchdown. |
| Q3 5:30 | California | +84 yd | Kickoff returned by Reggie Bush (USC) for 84 yards. |
| Q3 3:28 | USC | +13 yd | Matt Leinart (USC) pass left side intercepted by Harrison Smith (CAL). Returned for 13 yards. |
| Q4 15:00 | California | +0 yd | Golden Bears fumble by Aaron Rodgers (CAL), recovered by Mike Patterson (USC), returned for no gain. |
| Q4 7:40 | California | +36 yd | 36 yard field goal by Tom Schneider (CAL) is no 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).
Player stats
CFBD player statsPassing
USC
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | QBR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matt Leinart | 15/24 | 164 | 6.8 | 2 | 1 | 24.7 |
California
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | QBR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aaron Rodgers | 29/34 | 267 | 7.9 | 1 | 0 | 70.0 |
| Chase Lyman | 0/1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 2.6 |
Rushing
USC
| Player | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LenDale White | 11 | 52 | 4.7 | 0 | 11 |
| Reggie Bush | 8 | 23 | 2.9 | 0 | 11 |
| Matt Leinart | 4 | -30 | -7.5 | 0 | 0 |
California
| Player | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J.J. Arrington | 21 | 112 | 5.3 | 0 | 15 |
| Marshawn Lynch | 8 | 36 | 4.5 | 1 | 17 |
| Chris Manderino | 3 | 15 | 5.0 | 0 | 12 |
| Aaron Rodgers | 10 | 7 | 0.7 | 0 | 14 |
Receiving
USC
| Player | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steve Smith | 2 | 76 | 38.0 | 0 | 45 |
| Dwayne Jarrett | 4 | 37 | 9.3 | 1 | 16 |
| Chris McFoy | 2 | 20 | 10.0 | 0 | 13 |
| LenDale White | 2 | 10 | 5.0 | 1 | 5 |
| Alex Holmes | 2 | 8 | 4.0 | 0 | 4 |
| Reggie Bush | 1 | 6 | 6.0 | 0 | 6 |
| Jason Mitchell | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 0 | 5 |
| David Kirtman | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 0 | 2 |
California
| Player | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geoff McArthur | 7 | 101 | 14.4 | 1 | 20 |
| Garrett Cross | 5 | 40 | 8.0 | 0 | 14 |
| Chase Lyman | 2 | 28 | 14.0 | 0 | 17 |
| J.J. Arrington | 4 | 26 | 6.5 | 0 | 8 |
| Jonathan Makonnen | 2 | 22 | 11.0 | 0 | 15 |
| Chris Manderino | 2 | 21 | 10.5 | 0 | 14 |
| Burl Toler | 3 | 16 | 5.3 | 0 | 8 |
| Marshawn Lynch | 3 | 9 | 3.0 | 0 | 9 |
| Noah Smith | 1 | 4 | 4.0 | 0 | 4 |
Show more stats (4 more categories)
Interceptions
USC
No recorded stats in this category.
California
| Player | INT | YDS | TD |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harrison Smith | 1 | 13 | 0 |
Kicking
USC
| Player | FG | PCT | LONG | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryan Killeen | 3/3 | 100.0 | 42 | 2/2 | 11 |
California
| Player | FG | PCT | LONG | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Schneider | 1/2 | 50.0 | 39 | 2/2 | 5 |
Punt Returns
USC
No recorded stats in this category.
California
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | LONG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tim Mixon | 2 | 6 | 3.0 | 7 | 0 |
Punting
USC
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | TB | In 20 | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Malone | 2 | 114 | 57.0 | 0 | 0 | 62 |
California
No recorded stats in this category.
Full player stats from CFBD’s /games/players data, split out by team. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have player-level stats that far back. Linked player names go to that player’s stat line in every other belt game they’ve appeared in.
Sources Box score at ESPN · Game record: College Football Data (id 242830030) · This game in the downloadable dataset