Remembering the time USC star Reggie Bush destroyed Fresno State's defense
USC and Fresno State have played four times since the turn of the century. Saturday’s game at the Los Angeles Coliseum will be Game No. 5 between the two.
The Trojans have won four straight, dating back to 2005. That game featured one of the greatest individual performances we saw from one of the greatest individual performers we’ve ever seen touch a college football field. In the lead-up to this weekend’s contest, USC shared some old highlights from that 2005 performance — a 50-42 win for the Trojans in which Reggie Bush went off.
It’s a game that’s always worth revisiting.
.@ReggieBush 𝐥𝐢𝐭 𝐮𝐩 the Coli when we played Fresno State in '05 😤🔥✌️
🔺 294 yards
🔺 23 carries
🔺 2 TDs pic.twitter.com/qSKKHztUIx— USC Football ✌️ (@uscfb) September 14, 2022
The USC running back would simply not be tackled that day. Bush set a Pac-10 record with 513 all-purpose yards. On November 19, 2005, Bush ran for 294 yards, caught three passes for another 68 yards, and returned both kicks and punts for another 161 yards. Fresno State was run ragged by the Heisman Trophy winner.
“I was really feeling it,” Bush said after the game. “I was in sync tonight.”
The win was USC’s 33rd straight. The Bulldogs put up a pretty tough fight, but Bush wouldn’t be denied.
“How about Reggie,” then-head coach Pete Carroll said after. “He’s just got the magic. You’ve got to be in love with him. He was firing and roaring.”
That game effectively decided the Heisman Trophy race — an award that has since been vacated. We’re probably not going to see something similar on Saturday when the Trojans and Bulldogs get together again, but USC does have a Heisman Trophy front-runner in Caleb Williams, a quarterback who has been downright deadly through his first two games.
The first-year Trojan has the second-best QBR in the country through two weeks (96.5). He’s second among all qualified quarterbacks in completion percentage (79.6%) and third in yards per pass attempt (12.0). Williams has no shortage of options, one of which has already flashed a Heisman pose this season.
Perhaps we see more fireworks on Saturday. The two sides kick off against each other at 7:30 p.m. PT on FOX.