On Friday, the USC football team defeated Northwestern at the Coliseum 38-17. Prior to the game, I gave five predictions for the contest.
How did my picks fare? Let’s take a look back at them and see.
Maiava bounces back
“Last week, USC quarterback Jayden Maiva had his worst game of the season to date. This week, he bounces back, throwing for at least 250 yards and two touchdowns.”
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Maiava threw for 299 yards and two touchdowns. A hit!
In the Stone
“Northwestern QB Preston Stone has had a rocky season. Against the Trojans, he throws a a touchdown pass, but also an interception.”
As I expected, Stone had a fairly pedestrian game, passing for 150 yards and one touchdown. Unfortunately, however, he did not throw an interception, so this prediction was incorrect.
Cover it up
“USC is currently favored by 13.5 points. I am not sure this game is a true blowout, but the Trojans cover the spread.”
The game did not feel like a massive blowout, but the Trojans won by 21. I pretty much nailed this prediciton.
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A medicore crowd
“Historically, USC has not drawn great for Friday night games. I think that it will be a better showing than last year’s Friday home game against Rutgers—which was the same evening as Game 1 of the World Series at Dodger Stadium—but still well under 70,000 fans.”
The announced attendance for Friday’s game was a little over 67,000 fans—whereas the Rutgers game last year drew around 63,000. It was definitely a late-arriving crowd, but not an awful atmosphere for a game that kicked off at 6:00 p.m. on a Friday.
Look at little sister
“As some of you may know, this is a family bragging rights game for me, as my younger sister attended Northwestern. Given that she is not nearly as into football as I am, my final (and perhaps boldest) prediction is that she does not watch more than one quarter of the game.”
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She did not watch the game. Apparently, she has a life outside of sports. I cannot relate.
Overall performance
This was a great week for me. I was a Preston Stone interception away from going five-for-five. Bishop Fitzgerald, where were you when I needed you the most?
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Adam Bradford revisits USC football vs Northwestern predictions
