USC Football: Early Odds Unveiled For Next Week's Matchup With Huskies

Halloween isn't until Tuesday, but Trojan fans were spooked on Saturday as the Trojans struggled to contain the California offense, which scored 49 points on Alex Grinch's defense, the most points allowed by USC all season.

Caleb Williams and the offense rallied from a 43-29 deficit in the fourth quarter to take a 50-43 lead with 3:33 remaining in the fourth quarter. Cal answered with a touchdown drive of their own and made a gutsy call to go for a two-point conversion instead of kicking a PAT to tie the game.

In a game that garnered much criticism for the USC defense, it was ironically the defense that made the winning play. Cal quarterback Fernando Mendoza dropped back but pressure from Mason Cobb and Tyrone Taleni forced an errant pass. Safety Jaylin Smith batted the ball down in the end zone as the Trojans escaped the Bay with a win.

Now, USC will face an offense that is much more potent than Cal's when they host the No. 5-ranked Washington Huskies led by Heisman Trophy favorite Michael Penix Jr.

The Huskies are favored by 4.5 points in the early odds from FanDuel with the over/under set at 71.5 points. DraftKings has the Huskies as just a 3-point favorite.

Washington, whose best win this season came in an electric 36-33 win over Oregon, has averaged 40.4 points per game and have allowed 20.6 points per game. In comparison, USC has scored 45.9 points per game, the most in college football, while allowing 32.6 points per game, one of the worst rates in college football.

USC has yet to cover against a ranked opponent and is 2-7 against the spread in their nine games played this season. Washington is 3-4-1 against the spread. 

The Huskies have shown that they are beatable, letting Stanford hang around for much of their game Saturday before the Cardinal turned the ball over on downs in their own territory and Washington secured a 9-point win.

The Trojans and Huskies will face off in the Coliseum at 4:30 p.m. PDT.

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