Washington State Cougars vs USC Trojans Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 10/08/2022

by Rod Pearson

Friday, Oct 07, 2022
Game Time: 7:30 pm ET, Saturday, October 8, 2022
Venue:  LA Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, CA
Where to Watch:  Fox

 

Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  WSU +13, USC -13; Over/Under:  66 points
Bet365:  Point Spread:  WSU +12.5, USC -12.5; Over/Under:  65.5 points
BetMGM:  Point Spread:  WSU +13, USC -13; Over/Under:  65.5 points
 

Season Record

Washington State Cougars:  4-1 (1-1) (6th place, PAC-12)
USC Trojans:  5-0 (3-0) (1st place, PAC-12)
 
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Recent Form
Washington State Cougars:  won their last game at home against the California Golden Bears 28-9.
USC Trojans:  won their last game at home against the Arizona State Sun Devils 42-25.

 

Washington State Cougars vs USC Trojans Preview and Analysis

 
WSU is entering this game with a 4-1 record overall to start their college football season and they will be playing their 2nd road game of the season here as they are 1-0 in their road games this year. This will also be their 3rd conference game of the college football season this year as they are 1-1. They won against the California Golden Bears in their last game at home 28-9. Cameron Ward started that game at QB and he completed 27/40 passes for 343 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. Nakia Watson led the team in rushing with 52 yards on 14 rushing attempts. Renard Bell led the team in receiving with 115 yards and 1 TD on 8 receptions. Armani Marsh led the defense in that game with 4 solo tackles and 3 assisted tackles. Francisco Mauigoa, Nusi Malani, and Christian Mejia each led the defense in sacks with 1 while no one on the defense came away with an interception for them in that one.
 
 
 
USC is entering this game with a 5-0 record overall to start their college football season and they will be playing their 4th home game of the season as they are 3-0 in their home games this year. This will also be the 4th conference matchup on their conference schedule this season as they are 3-0. They won against the Arizona State Sun Devils in their last game at home 42-25. Caleb Williams started that game at QB and he completed 27/37 passes for 348 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 1 interception. Travis Dye led the team in rushing with 62 yards and 2 TDs on 13 carries. Jordan Addison led the team in receiving with 105 yards on 8 receptions. Stanley Ta'ufo'ou and Ralen Goforth each led the defense in that game with 4 solo tackles and 0 assisted tackles. Tyrone Taleni led the defense in sacks with 1.5 while Calen Bullock came away with the only interception for them in that one.

 

Washington State vs USC Prediction

The current betting odds have USC listed as a 13 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. USC is off to a flawless start this year but they have a lot of big goals to achieve under their new head coach Lincoln Riley. He may only be in his 1st season as head coach but he already has his eyes set on a PAC-12 Title this season and even a bid to the final four for the college football playoffs. He still has a lot of work to do though and that includes dominating other conference teams like WSU here, especially in their home games. WSU has had a good start to the year themselves but they have slipped up late in games like in their loss to Oregon which was a game where they had a double digit lead with less than a quarter to go but they found a way to let Oregon back in it and lose the game by 3 points. That was at home too but WSU will be on the road for this game and USC is also a much better team than Oregon is. This is going to be a tall task for WSU to come in here and keep this game close when USC has been putting up over 40 points in almost every game this year. WSU has a good defense but they will only keep USC down for so long before they start to pull away here at home. The best way to place a bet here is on USC to cover the spread in this game.
 
Washington State USC Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Saturday, October 8, 2022 (7:30 pm ET start time) is USC 45 WSU 20.
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NCAAF Betting Trends

 
Washington State Cougars: 34-22 ATS as an underdog of 10.5 to 21 points. 26-18 ATS when the total is between 63.5 and 70. 27-16 UNDER when the total is between 63.5 and 70.
USC Trojans: 6-12 ATS against conference opponents. 5-13 ATS off 2 no-covers where the team won as a favorite. 23-13 UNDER when the total is between 63.5 and 70.
 

Key Injuries

 
Washington State Cougars:  Z. Beason (WR) Out indefinitely - Eligibility. R. Tialavea (OL) out for season - Lower Body. C. Moore (WR) out for season - Undisclosed.
USC Trojans:  R. Height (LB) out for season - Shoulder. M. Hasan (QB) Out indefinitely - Achilles. J. Wolfe (TE) Out indefinitely - Foot.
 

Notable Quotes

 
"I'm proud of this team and how it responded. This was the prettiest, ugly, gutty win we knew we needed to have.” - Jake Dickert after his team’s win against Cal in their last game.
 
 
"It just wasn't quite us. Wasn't quite the edge that we're used to playing with, and that we expect to play with." - Lincoln Riley after his team’s win against ASU in their last game.
 
 

Starting Lineups

 
Washington State Cougars
WR Stribling, De'Zhaun 
WR Ollie, Donovan
WR Victor, Lincoln
WR Bell, Renard 
TE Riviere III, Billy
QB Ward, Cameron
RB Watson, Nakia 
 
USC Trojans
WR Rice, Brenden
WR Addison, Jordan
WR Williams, Mario 
TE McRee, Lake
QB Williams, Caleb
RB Dye, Travis 
 

Statistical Leaders

 
Washington State Cougars
Passing: C. Ward (1425)
Rushing: N. Watson (312)
Receiving: D. Ollie (298)
Touchdowns: D. Stribling (4)
 
USC Trojans
Passing: C. Williams (1402)
Rushing: T. Dye (422)
Receiving: J. Addison (442)
Touchdowns: J. Addison (6)
 
Coaches:
Washington State Cougars: Jake Dickert (2nd season)
USC Trojans: Lincoln Riley (1st season)


Rod Pearson

About the Author:

Rod Pearson has been a rabid sports fan his entire life.  He grew up in Ontario, and was skilled in both hockey and baseball, and pitched in an elite baseball league for many years.  In 2022, Rod decided to hang up his glove, so that he could write about the sports he loves -- but from a gambling perspective.  Join Rod every day as he breaks down the games to find the best betting value.

All photographic images used for editorial content have been licensed from the Associated Press.

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