Minus Williams, USC’s Moss sets bowl TD record
SAN DIEGO — USC bid farewell to the Pac-12 Conference with a six-pack to go and an eggnog bath to toast an otherwise unremarkable season.
With Caleb Williams watching from the sideline, Miller Moss threw a Holiday Bowl-record six touchdown passes in his first college start, and USC ended a frustrating campaign by beating No. 16 Louisville 42-28 on Wednesday night. Afterward, Trojans coach Lincoln Riley had a tub of eggnog poured over his head.
Williams, the 2022 Heisman Trophy winner who opted out of the game, watched from the sideline with his No. 13 jersey hanging around his neck. He ran onto the field and jumped on Moss in celebration after the redshirt sophomore twice took a knee in victory formation at Petco Park.
While Williams was among several Trojans who sat out, others showed up to play, such as redshirt senior wide receiver Tahj Washington, who caught two touchdown passes.
“From a leadership standpoint, we had a really strong senior group that wanted to come back and play this game, and I think that was really led by them,” Moss said. “They set the example, and it was easy for me to then fall in line behind them.”
Asked if Moss secured the starting quarterback job for next year, wideout Kyron Hudson, who blocked a punt then caught a scoring pass shortly thereafter, said: “What Miller did out there, it’s something that’s going to help us in the future, so, personally, yes, he did. I’m super excited for Miller. He waited his time, and he’s ready for it. He’s the guy we need.”
Moss took full advantage of the opportunity he was given when Williams, the presumptive first overall pick in the NFL draft, opted out.
Moss was 23-of-33 for 372 yards with one interception. He broke the Holiday Bowl record of four touchdown passes held by four players, including Jim McMahon in BYU‘s miracle 46-45 comeback win against SMU in 1980. The milestone came late in the third quarter when Moss lobbed a 12-yard pass to a leaping Ja’Kobi Lane in the back of the end zone. Lane’s second TD reception of the night gave USC a 35-21 lead.
Moss added on with a beautiful 44-yard scoring strike to Duce Robinson for a 42-28 lead with 10 minutes to go.
The six TD passes were also the most by a quarterback in his first start for USC (8-5), which had lost three straight games and five of six coming in after opening the campaign with national championship aspirations. The scoring tosses also were a Trojans bowl record and tied the Pac-12 bowl mark.
The Trojans played their final Pac-12 football game. They are joining the Big Ten next season, along with fellow Pac-12 defectors UCLA, Oregon and Washington.
“We could have come into this game not caring about it,” Riley said. “Honestly, all the years and wins and stuff, this was as fun a win as I can remember as a head coach. Just with all the changes, all the back and forth, six weeks, 20-plus guys that didn’t play in this game for different reasons.
“That’s a good football team that we just beat up on.”
Isaac Guerendo ran 23 times for 161 yards and three touchdowns for Louisville (10-4). Jack Plummer threw for 141 yards with no touchdowns. The right-handed quarterback dislocated the pinky on his throwing hand early in the second quarter and had it popped back in. He said it didn’t affect his throwing.
Moss also threw scoring passes of 17 and 29 yards to Washington, who completed his first 1,000-yard receiving season. Hudson caught a 9-yard touchdown pass two plays after blocking Brady Hodges‘ punt, which went out of bounds at the Cardinals’ 18-yard line.
“They had a couple matchups of fast players on our safeties, and it just wasn’t one of our better days,” Louisville coach Jeff Brohm said. “A lot of those guys have played well all year long; today wasn’t their best day.”
Leading 28-14, the Trojans were driving early in the third quarter when Moss was intercepted at the goal line by Quincy Riley, who returned it 61 yards to USC’s 39-yard line. Five plays later, Guerendo scored on a 1-yard run to pull the Cardinals within a touchdown.
Guerendo had scored on a 2-yard run on Louisville’s first possession of the game.
After USC kicker Denis Lynch was wide right on a 38-yard field goal try, the Trojans got the ball right back when Max Williams strip-sacked Plummer, with Solomon Byrd recovering at Louisville’s 19-yard line. Moss threw a short pass to Washington, who deked two defenders before diving into the end zone to tie the score 7-7.
USC jumped to a 21-7 lead on Moss’ second scoring pass to Washington and Hudson’s subsequent TD. Evan Conley scored on a 9-yard run for Louisville before USC went 75 yards in five plays just before halftime, with Moss dodging a defender, rolling right and chucking up a 31-yarder to Lane for a 28-14 advantage.
Jaden Rashada, a former ESPN 300 quarterback recruit, sued the University of Florida and coach Billy Napier on Tuesday. Rashada is claiming he was defrauded of millions of dollars in name, image and likeness money.
The lawsuit, among other things, alleges that Napier promised the player’s father a $1 million “partial payment” upon signing. Rashada never got the money, and the boosters never fulfilled the deal, the lawsuit states.
It is the latest in a long saga involving the player and the school. Now, Rashada is the first college athlete known to sue his coach or a booster due to a dispute over an NIL deal.
What’s next for Rashada and Florida? Our reporters break it down.
How did we get here?
Rashada was ranked No. 31 overall in the 2023 class and had a prep career that featured several transfers. His freshman season in high school was played at Liberty High School (Brentwood, California). He then transferred to IMG Academy in Florida before going back to California to play three seasons at Pittsburg (California) High School. His college decision came down to two Florida schools and two big NIL numbers.
Rashada committed to the Miami Hurricanes in June 2022. The lawsuit states that Rashada had a $9.5 million NIL promise with the Canes. But Rashada decommitted that November and promptly flipped to the Florida Gators and Coach Napier. He signed his national letter of intent during the December signing period. However, he didn’t enroll at Florida, and his arrival in Gainesville was contingent on a four-year, $13.85 million NIL deal. Rashada asked for a release from his letter of intent when the deal fell through.
The Gator Collective, an independent fundraising organization that distributed money to UF athletes at the time, was responsible for the deal. However, the financial backing did not materialize, and the Gator Collective terminated the contract. Rashada was released from his letter of intent. He then took a visit to Arizona State and committed to play for the Sun Devils, arriving on campus in July 2023.
Rashada started the first two games of the season for Arizona State, but an injury kept him out for most of the season. In three games, he was 44-of-82 for 485 yards, with four touchdowns and three interceptions.
Rashada entered the transfer portal on April 18 and is now transferring to Georgia, where he will have four years of eligibility remaining. — Tom VanHaaren
What’s next for Rashada?
Georgia emerged as Rashada’s likely transfer destination soon after he entered the portal. He selected the Bulldogs on April 25, captioning his Instagram announcement, “Compete with the BEST.” Rather than vying for the starting job at ASU with emerging Michigan State transfer Sam Leavitt, Rashada enters a situation where he will play behind Georgia’s Carson Beck, a top Heisman Trophy contender and NFL hopeful.
Barring an injury to Beck, Rashada will use the 2024 season for developmental purposes, while absorbing a different offense under coordinator Mike Bobo in Athens.
A realistic goal would be to start in 2025 for a Bulldogs team always in the national title hunt. He would need to beat out primary challenger Gunner Stockton, who enters his third season in the Georgia program and gained valuable experience this spring. Both Stockton and incoming freshman Ryan Puglisi ranked among ESPN’s top 110 recruits in their respective classes. Coach Kirby Smart likes to have four scholarship quarterbacks on his roster at all times, and the team has a 2025 commitment from ESPN 300 recruit Ryan Montgomery.
Rashada is the most decorated quarterback prospect of the bunch, but he will need to adjust quickly, especially with Stockton ahead on the learning curve. — Adam Rittenberg
How did this affect Florida on the field?
The Gators signed Rashada in December 2022, anticipating he would compete for the starting job with veteran Graham Mertz, who transferred in from Wisconsin. Without him, the job went to Mertz, who threw for 2,903 yards, completed 73% of his passes and threw 20 touchdown passes to three interceptions last season. Losing Rashada did not help Napier from a public relations standpoint, as he drew ire from the Florida fan base — especially after a 5-7 finish to 2023.
Florida did have a plan for its future, though, as Napier had a longstanding commitment from D.J. Lagway, the top-rated quarterback in the class of 2024. Lagway committed to Florida just weeks before Rashada signed his letter of intent, and the Gators were in a massive fight to keep Lagway as other schools went after him as signing day approached last December. Lagway has said Clemson, USC and Texas A&M all made late pushes, but he ultimately signed with the Gators and enrolled early, going through spring football.
His decision to come to Florida was absolutely huge for Napier, who has yet to find solid footing headed into Year 3 and desperately needed Lagway to sign. Mertz is back for one more season and is the presumptive starter. But there is a lot riding on this season for Florida and for Napier in particular. With the season opener against rival Miami, Florida fans want to see progress and results immediately. If Mertz struggles, do not be surprised if fans start calling for Lagway. — Andrea Adelson
Could the Gators face any NCAA repercussions from Rashada’s claims?
The NCAA alerted Florida almost a year ago that it was investigating claims that the football program had violated recruiting rules, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press. ESPN’s Mark Schlabach confirmed the investigation was related to Rashada’s recruitment.
Rashada claims in his lawsuit that Napier directly promised Rashada a $1 million payment from a booster if he signed with Florida, which would be a violation of the NCAA’s policies. The NCAA penalized Florida State and suspended one of its coaches in January for getting involved in NIL offers made to a prospect.
However, the NCAA sent a letter to its schools in late February explaining that it was pausing all open enforcement cases “involving third-party participation in NIL-related activities” after a federal judge in Tennessee granted an injunction that prohibited the NCAA from enforcing some of its rules. That case was filed by Tennessee’s attorney general after the NCAA opened an investigation into the Vols’ recruiting tactics.
Any other high-profile enforcement actions taken by the NCAA — such as a penalty for Napier or the Gators — could invite additional lawsuits at a time when the association remains vulnerable to antitrust scrutiny, which makes it unlikely that any NCAA punishments could be coming soon. — Dan Murphy
NEW YORK — New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole says he thinks he could return to a major league mound in June after facing hitters for the first time since spring training.
The reigning AL Cy Young Award winner, wearing a full pinstriped uniform, threw 20 pitches to Oswaldo Cabrera and Jamai Jones before Tuesday night’s game against Seattle.
Cole had thrown five bullpen sessions before the batting practice. The 33-year-old right-hander, sidelined by elbow nerve inflammation and edema, said he will have one or two more BP sessions before starting a minor league rehabilitation assignment.
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