← The College Football Belt
Reign #254 · Game 1,342 of 1,634
October 16, 2004 Week 8 · Regular Season Belt defended

USC defends the belt, 45–7, at home over Arizona State.

Home · Defending Holder
USC 45
AT
Away · Challenger
Arizona State 7
AI-Written

Recap

USC dominated Arizona State from start to finish, with Matt Leinart orchestrating an explosive offensive performance to retain the belt. The Trojans struck quickly with two touchdown passes in the first quarter to Reggie Bush and LenDale White, then put the game completely out of reach in the second quarter with a relentless scoring barrage. An interception by Matt Grootegoed set up a 19-yard touchdown pass to Dwayne Jarrett, and USC would eventually score five touchdowns in the quarter alone, including a remarkable 52-yard touchdown pass from Bush to Jarrett and a 34-yard touchdown pass to the same receiver in the final moments before halftime. Arizona State's only score came on a short 2-yard touchdown run by Hakim Hill in the second quarter, and the Sun Devils never threatened again as USC's defense limited them to just 243 total yards.

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
 USCArizona State
Total yards446243
Rushing yards14524
Passing yards311264
First downs2313
3rd down conv.3/95/17
Turnovers12
Penalties–yards0–00–0
Time of possession18:0718:31

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 10:30USC+0 ydExtra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good.
Q1 10:30USC+10 ydMatt Leinart (USC) pass across the middle complete to Reggie Bush (USC) for a 10 yard touchdown.
Q1 9:00Arizona State+21 ydAndrew Walter (ASU) pass right side complete to Derek Hagan (ASU) for 21 yards.
Q1 7:00Arizona State+47 yd47 yard field goal by Jesse Ainsworth (ASU) is no good.
Q1 1:15USC+9 ydMatt Leinart (USC) pass across the middle complete to LenDale White (USC) for a 9 yard touchdown.
Q1 1:15USC+0 ydExtra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good.
Q2 13:45Arizona State+40 ydAndrew Walter (ASU) pass right side intercepted by Matt Grootegoed (USC). Returned for 40 yards.
Q2 13:45USC+19 ydMatt Leinart (USC) pass right side complete to Dwayne Jarrett (USC) for a 19 yard touchdown.
Q2 13:45USC+0 ydExtra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good.
Q2 11:15USC+0 ydTrojans fumble by Reggie Bush (USC), recovered by Ishmael Thrower (ASU), returned for no gain.
Q2 8:00Arizona State+0 ydExtra point by Jesse Ainsworth (ASU) is good.
Q2 8:00Arizona State+2 ydHakim Hill (ASU) rushed up the middle for a 2 yard touchdown.
Q2 7:49Arizona State+22 ydKickoff returned by Desmond Reed (USC) for 22 yards.
Q2 7:00USC+35 ydMatt Leinart (USC) pass right side complete to Reggie Bush (USC) for 35 yards.
Q2 6:15USC+22 ydMatt Leinart (USC) pass left side complete to Dominique Byrd (USC) for 22 yards.
Q2 5:15USC+0 ydExtra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good.
Q2 5:15USC+1 ydMatt Leinart (USC) rushed up the middle for a 1 yard touchdown.
Q2 2:30USC+52 ydReggie Bush (USC) pass right side complete to Dwayne Jarrett (USC) for a 52 yard touchdown.
Q2 2:30USC+0 ydExtra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good.
Q2 1:05Arizona State+41 ydPunt by Chris MacDonald (ASU) returned 41 yards by Reggie Bush (USC) to the Sun Devils 34.
Q2 0:49USC+34 ydMatt Leinart (USC) pass left side complete to Dwayne Jarrett (USC) for a 34 yard touchdown.
Q2 0:49USC+0 ydExtra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good.
Q3 10:45Arizona State+0 ydAndrew Walter (ASU) pass left side intercepted by Darnell Bing (USC). Returned for no gain.
Q4 9:15USC+34 yd34 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
Matt LeinartUSC13/242249.34090.5
Reggie BushUSC1/15252.010100.0
Matt CasselUSC3/3258.30080.4
Andrew WalterArizona State19/341815.30221.8
Rudy BurgessArizona State1/1-8-8.0001.1

Rushing

PlayerCARYDSAVGTDLONG
David KirtmanUSC4246.0014
Reggie BushUSC5214.208
Hershel DennisUSC5193.806
LenDale WhiteUSC16684.309
Lee WebbUSC4164.007
Matt CasselUSC166.006
Desmond ReedUSC100.000
Matt LeinartUSC2-9-4.511
Hakim HillArizona State12312.618
Preston JonesArizona State4184.508
Rudy BurgessArizona State3134.309
Andrew WalterArizona State8-35-4.408

Receiving

PlayerRECYDSAVGTDLONG
Dwayne JarrettUSC513927.8352
Dominique ByrdUSC34916.3022
Reggie BushUSC24522.5135
LenDale WhiteUSC22211.0113
Chris McFoyUSC11919.0019
Alex HolmesUSC11414.0014
David KirtmanUSC177.007
Fred DavisUSC263.004
Zach MillerArizona State810212.8026
Derek HaganArizona State55210.4020
Moey MutzArizona State22512.5015
Terry RichardsonArizona State22412.0015
Rudy BurgessArizona State2115.5011
Hakim HillArizona State166.006
Jamaal LewisArizona State155.005
Lee BurghgraefArizona State122.002
Andrew WalterArizona State1-8-8.000
Show more stats (4 more categories)

Interceptions

PlayerINTYDSTD
Matt GrootegoedUSC1410
Darnell BingUSC100

Kicking

PlayerFGPCTLONGXPPTS
Ryan KilleenUSC1/1100.0346/69
Jesse AinsworthArizona State0/10.001/11

Punt Returns

PlayerNOYDSAVGLONGTD
Reggie BushUSC44912.3410
Greig CarlsonUSC100.000
Rudy BurgessArizona State188.080

Punting

PlayerNOYDSAVGTBIn 20LONG
Tom MaloneUSC314648.70062

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.