They trekked to the desert in search of renewal, ready to finally move forward and put the pain of their first heartbreak in the rearview.
USC had spent the past two weeks working through its devastating defeat to Utah in early October, refocusing and retooling and rebuilding confidence where it could, readying for a fresh start to a final stretch run. But when the Trojans arrived in Tucson, there was nothing fresh about them. USC was as rundown by injuries as it had been all season, down its top two receivers, one of its top offensive linemen, its leading tackler and two of its regular rotational defenders.
It wasn’t always pretty. USC still managed to slip out of the desert with a 45-37 victory over Arizona. But little about Saturday’s back-and-forth affair left anyone feeling renewed and rejuvenated about the Trojans. Other than the fact that USC no longer has to leave Los Angeles the rest of its regular season.
