Latest news with #CrosstownShowdown
USA Today
3 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
USC football countdown to kickoff continues—Claude Pelon in focus
USC football countdown to kickoff continues—Claude Pelon in focus The countdown to USC's 2025 football season is officially on! The Trojans kick off their new campaign 90 days from today. You need something to help you while away the days and hours in the spring and summer. This is one way to do so. In this new series, countdown to kickoff, we will be counting down the days by highlighting a notable Trojan who wore each number. Today, we take a look back at former USC defensive lineman Claude Pelon. Position: Defensive line Years played at USC: 2014-2015 Career highlights: Originally from Orlando, Florida, Pelon spent the first three years of his collegiate career at junior college, before transferring to USC in 2014. In two seasons with the Trojans, he recorded 46 tackles and four sacks. Pelon made two particularly memorable plays during his time in Cardinal and Gold. In a 2014 game at Arizona, he blocked a field goal that proved to be massive in the Trojans' upset of the No, 10 Wildcats. Then in the 2015 Crosstown Showdown vs. UCLA, Pelon had a strip sack of Bruins' quarterback Josh Rosen that teammate Rasheem Green picked up and ran back for a Trojans touchdown. After USC: Pelon signed with the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent following the 2016 NFL Draft. He appeared in one game for the team in 2017, recording two tackles. Pelon also briefly spent time with the Tennessee Titans.
USA Today
05-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
USC baseball beats UCLA to take weekend series, improve NCAA Tournament odds
USC baseball beats UCLA to take weekend series, improve NCAA Tournament odds USC continues to strengthen its case as an NCAA Tournament team. The Trojans are not letting up. They are playing their best baseball at the right time. Over the weekend, USC baseball welcomed rival UCLA to Great Park in Irvine for the annual Crosstown Showdown series. After dropping Friday night's series opener, the Trojans took game two on Saturday, setting up a rubber game on Sunday. In the series finale, USC rode a strong offensive attack to an 11-5 victory. The Trojans actually fell behind early, allowing three runs in the first inning. However, the USC stormed back, scoring three runs in the fourth inning, four in the fifth, and two in the sixth to break the game open. After starter Mason Edwards recorded just one out, freshman Andrew Johnson came on in relief and allowed no earned runs over 6 1/3 innings of relief. Another freshman, Grant Govel, pitched 2 1/3 scoreless frames to close it out and send the Bruins home. With the victory, USC now sits at 32-15 on the season. With two weeks to go in conference play, the Trojans have a record of 16-8 in Big Ten play, having won eight consecutive series. There is still work left to be done, but the Trojans are currently in very good shape to make their first NCAA Tournament appearance in a decade. That work continues with a trip up the coast to take on UC Santa Barbara on Tuesday. The Trojans will then host Michigan State at Great Park next weekend in their final home series of the year.
USA Today
04-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
USC baseball holds off UCLA, takes important step toward NCAA Tournament
USC baseball holds off UCLA, takes important step toward NCAA Tournament USC scores highly crucial win over UCLA as late-season pressure mounts This weekend is a huge one for USC baseball. The Trojans take on rival UCLA in a Crosstown Showdown that could have a massive impact on both the Big Ten and NCAA Tournament races. On Friday night, USC dropped the series opener 7-6, with their late rally coming up just short. On Saturday, the Trojans evened up the series with their crosstown foes with a 7-5 victory. Caden Aoki pitched seven shutout innings for USC, and the bullpen survived a late meltdown to hold off UCLA and preserve the win. With the series now tied at a game a piece, Sunday's finale will serve as a rubber game. The winner will claim not only the series, but also college baseball bragging rights in Southern California for the next 12 months. Regardless of how Sunday's game unfolds, however, USC has avoided a sweep loss to UCLA. Grabbing at least one win over the nationally-ranked Bruins solidifies the Trojans' resume. Winning games against good opponents should help the Trojans reach the bracket and avoid an unfair snub, which is what happened to the Men of Troy in 2023. Most projections had them in, but they somehow got left out. USC needs to leave no doubt, and Saturday's win was an enormous step in the right direction. With the Big Ten and NCAA Tournament races heating up, Sunday's USC-UCLA rubber match could be a massive game for both teams' conference title and postseason hopes. First pitch from Great Park in Irvine is set for just after 1 p.m. Pacific time.
USA Today
02-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
USC baseball gains more NCAA Tournament projections heading into stretch run
USC baseball gains more NCAA Tournament projections heading into stretch run USC is getting multiple favorable projections from the experts. Now the Trojans need to close the deal and not stumble before the baseball tournament selection show USC baseball is currently on a roll. The Trojans have won seven consecutive series, and currently sit at 30-14 on the season heading into a massive three-game series with crosstown rival UCLA this weekend. On Wednesday, Baseball America released its latest projected field for the 2025 NCAA Tournament. The projection has the Trojans in the field as the No. 3 seed in the Fayetteville regional. The Trojans would travel to the state of Arkansas, where the top seed in their region would be the No. 7 overall seed Razorbacks. The No. 2 seed in the region would be UTSA, and the No. 4 seed would be Oral Roberts. Under third-year head coach Andy Stankiewicz, USC is having its best season in years. The Trojans have not been to the NCAA Tournament since 2015, and have gone just once in the past two decades. This year, USC looks to be in great position to end the streak. First, however, the Trojans still have three more Big Ten series in which they will need to take care of business, in addition to two more midweek nonconference games. After the Crosstown Showdown this weekend, USC will host Michigan State the following weekend, before wrapping up the regular season in Seattle against Washington. The Trojans will then travel to Omaha, Nebraska for the Big Ten Tournament at the end of May.
USA Today
30-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
USC baseball beats Northridge, sets up massive weekend showdown with UCLA
USC baseball beats Northridge, sets up massive weekend showdown with UCLA USC is 30-14 and is continuing to solidify its postseason position. The Trojans now prepare for a huge series against UCLA. Tuesday night easily could have been a trap game for USC baseball. With a massive weekend series with UCLA on the horizon, the Trojans made a quick trip to take on Cal State Northridge. However, USC did not fall into any trap with this one. The Trojans used a five-run seventh inning and a dominant pitching performance in a bullpen game to blow out Northridge 8-0. Left fielder Andrew Lamb led the way for USC's offense. He finished the day three-for-four with a walk and three RBIs, and was a single away from hitting for the cycle. Now, the focus shifts to this weekend's massive Crosstown Showdown. USC and UCLA will meet at Great Park this weekend as two of the top four teams in the Big Ten standings. The series should have much implications for both the conference and NCAA Tournament races. The Trojans are trying to make the NCAA Tournament for the first time in a decade. Their RPI is in the top 40, so they are getting very close to securing a bid. More work remains to be done, and the Bruins are standing in the way.
