USC defends the belt, 42–12, on the road at Washington State.
AP poll, week 10: USC No. 1 at Washington State unranked · No. 1 that week: Wisconsin. The belt vs. the polls →
Where this game sits in the lineage
USC came in 303 days into reign #258, which began with a win over Michigan, with 7 defenses already behind it; this was its 8th defense. USC went on to defend it 17 more times before Texas took it on January 4, 2006, 734 days after the reign began.
For Washington State this was its 12th shot at the belt; it had held the belt twice before.
It was the 6th of 7 belt games between the two; going in, USC led the belt series 4–0–1; all-time USC leads 6–0–1. Every meeting →
Recap
USC dominated Washington State from the opening kickoff, scoring three touchdowns in the first quarter alone to put the game out of reach early. Reggie Bush opened the scoring with a 19-yard rushing touchdown, followed by LenDale White's 1-yard plunge, and then Bush added another score on a spectacular 57-yard punt return for a touchdown. The Trojans' offense continued their onslaught in the second quarter with Matt Leinart connecting with Dwayne Jarrett for a 42-yard touchdown and White punching in a 7-yard score to push the lead to 35-0. Washington State's only offensive highlight came late in the third quarter when Alex Brink found Michael Bumpus for a 24-yard touchdown, and Pat Bennett added a defensive score with a 28-yard interception return, but by then USC's defense had completely shut down the Cougars' offense, which managed just 156 total yards and five turnovers.
- Reggie Bush's 19-yard TD run and 57-yard punt return TD in Q1 that set the tone for USC's dominant performance
- LenDale White's two rushing touchdowns (1-yard and 7-yard) in Q1 and Q2 that extended the Trojans' early lead
- Washington State's five turnovers, including multiple fumbles recovered by USC defenders, that prevented any offensive rhythm
- Matt Leinart's 42-yard TD pass to Dwayne Jarrett in Q2 that put the game completely out of reach
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 13:20 | USC | +0 yd | Extra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good. |
| Q1 13:20 | USC | +19 yd | Reggie Bush (USC) rushed right side for a 19 yard touchdown. |
| Q1 12:30 | USC | +0 yd | Extra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good. |
| Q1 12:30 | USC | +1 yd | LenDale White (USC) rushed left side for a 1 yard touchdown. |
| Q1 12:22 | USC | +27 yd | Kickoff returned by Tyrone Brackenridge (WSU) for 27 yards. |
| Q1 11:03 | USC | +24 yd | Matt Leinart (USC) pass left side complete to Chris McFoy (USC) for 24 yards. |
| Q1 9:45 | Washington State | +0 yd | Cougars fumble by Michael Bumpus (WSU), recovered by Michael Bumpus (WSU), advanced for no gain. |
| Q1 7:50 | USC | +0 yd | Extra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good. |
| Q1 7:50 | Washington State | +57 yd | Punt by Kyle Basler (WSU) returned 57 yards by Reggie Bush (USC) for a touchdown. |
| Q1 5:25 | Washington State | +0 yd | Cougars fumble by Michael Bumpus (WSU), recovered by Mike Patterson (USC), returned for no gain. |
| Q1 4:10 | USC | +5 yd | Trojans fumble by Reggie Bush (USC), recovered by Odell Howard (WSU), 5 yard return. |
| Q1 2:30 | Washington State | +0 yd | Cougars fumble by Alex Brink (WSU), recovered by Alex Brink (WSU), advanced for no gain. |
| Q2 10:55 | USC | +42 yd | Matt Leinart (USC) pass across the middle complete to Dwayne Jarrett (USC) for a 42 yard touchdown. |
| Q2 10:55 | USC | +0 yd | Extra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good. |
| Q2 8:10 | Washington State | +0 yd | Cougars fumble by Alex Brink (WSU), recovered by Mike Patterson (USC), returned for no gain. |
| Q2 5:35 | USC | +0 yd | Extra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good. |
| Q2 5:35 | USC | +7 yd | LenDale White (USC) rushed right side for a 7 yard touchdown. |
| Q2 0:15 | USC | +33 yd | Matt Leinart (USC) pass left side complete to Jason Mitchell (USC) for 33 yards. |
| Q3 14:55 | Washington State | +0 yd | Cougars fumble by Paul Stevens (WSU), recovered by Jesse Taylor (WSU), advanced for no gain. |
| Q3 11:00 | USC | +0 yd | Trojans fumble by Matt Leinart (USC), recovered by Matt Leinart (USC), advanced for no gain. |
| Q3 8:45 | USC | +5 yd | Matt Leinart (USC) pass left side complete to Dwayne Jarrett (USC) for a 5 yard touchdown. |
| Q3 8:45 | USC | +0 yd | Extra point by Ryan Killeen (USC) is good. |
| Q3 6:00 | USC | +0 yd | Trojans fumble by Matt Cassel (USC), recovered by Steve Cook (WSU), returned for no gain. |
| Q3 5:10 | Washington State | +24 yd | Alex Brink (WSU) pass across the middle complete to Michael Bumpus (WSU) for a 24 yard touchdown. |
| Q3 5:04 | USC | -28 yd | Matt Cassel (USC) pass right side intercepted by Pat Bennett (WSU). Returned for a 28 yard touchdown. |
| Q3 4:15 | USC | +0 yd | Trojans fumble by Matt Cassel (USC), recovered by Matt Cassel (USC), advanced for no gain. |
| Q4 15:00 | Washington State | +0 yd | Cougars fumble by Alex Brink (WSU), recovered by Eric Wright (USC), returned for no gain. |
| Q3 1:40 | Washington State | +0 yd | Cougars fumble by Michael Bumpus (WSU), recovered by Michael Bumpus (WSU), advanced for no gain. |
| Q3 1:21 | Washington State | +25 yd | Alex Brink (WSU) pass left side complete to Jason Hill (WSU) for 25 yards. |
| Q4 11:10 | USC | +34 yd | 34 yard field goal by Ryan Killeen (USC) is no good. |
| Q4 7:13 | Washington State | +0 yd | Alex Brink (WSU) pass right side intercepted by Terrell Thomas (USC). Returned for no gain. |
| Q4 0:29 | Washington State | +0 yd | Cougars fumble by Alex Brink (WSU), recovered by Alex Brink (WSU), advanced for no gain. |
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
Washington State
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | QBR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alex Brink | 17/40 | 165 | 4.1 | 1 | 1 | 26.5 |
USC
| Player | C/ATT | YDS | AVG | TD | INT | QBR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matt Leinart | 23/28 | 235 | 8.4 | 2 | 0 | 89.9 |
| Matt Cassel | 0/2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 |
Rushing
Washington State
| Player | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kyle Basler | 1 | 17 | 17.0 | 0 | 17 |
| Jerome Harrison | 11 | 15 | 1.4 | 0 | 7 |
| Allen Thompson | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 4 |
| Chris Jordan | 1 | -4 | -4.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Alex Brink | 8 | -19 | -2.4 | 0 | 12 |
USC
| Player | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LenDale White | 16 | 77 | 4.8 | 2 | 17 |
| Hershel Dennis | 11 | 55 | 5.0 | 0 | 13 |
| Reggie Bush | 14 | 42 | 3.0 | 1 | 19 |
| Desmond Reed | 9 | 27 | 3.0 | 0 | 14 |
| Matt Cassel | 3 | -7 | -2.3 | 0 | 0 |
| Matt Leinart | 1 | -8 | -8.0 | 0 | 0 |
Receiving
Washington State
| Player | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Bumpus | 6 | 68 | 11.3 | 1 | 24 |
| Jason Hill | 5 | 62 | 12.4 | 0 | 25 |
| Chris Jordan | 2 | 23 | 11.5 | 0 | 12 |
| Marty Martin | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 0 | 5 |
| Trandon Harvey | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 | 3 |
| Jesse Taylor | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 | 3 |
| Jerome Harrison | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 1 |
USC
| Player | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dwayne Jarrett | 4 | 64 | 16.0 | 2 | 42 |
| Chris McFoy | 3 | 54 | 18.0 | 0 | 24 |
| Jason Mitchell | 1 | 33 | 33.0 | 0 | 33 |
| Dominique Byrd | 5 | 32 | 6.4 | 0 | 8 |
| Reggie Bush | 5 | 23 | 4.6 | 0 | 12 |
| Alex Holmes | 2 | 20 | 10.0 | 0 | 12 |
| David Kirtman | 2 | 12 | 6.0 | 0 | 7 |
| Desmond Reed | 1 | -3 | -3.0 | 0 | 0 |
Show more stats (4 more categories)
Interceptions
Washington State
| Player | INT | YDS | TD |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pat Bennett | 1 | 28 | 1 |
USC
| Player | INT | YDS | TD |
|---|---|---|---|
| Terrell Thomas | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Kicking
Washington State
| Player | FG | PCT | LONG | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loren Langley | 0/0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0/1 | 0 |
USC
| Player | FG | PCT | LONG | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryan Killeen | 0/1 | 0.0 | 0 | 6/6 | 6 |
Punt Returns
Washington State
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | LONG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Bumpus | 3 | 19 | 6.3 | 16 | 0 |
USC
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | LONG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reggie Bush | 4 | 78 | 19.5 | 57 | 1 |
| Desmond Reed | 1 | 16 | 16.0 | 16 | 0 |
Punting
Washington State
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | TB | In 20 | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kyle Basler | 9 | 371 | 41.2 | 0 | 0 | 54 |
USC
| Player | NO | YDS | AVG | TB | In 20 | LONG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Malone | 6 | 224 | 37.3 | 0 | 0 | 46 |
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 243040265) · This game in the downloadable dataset