The 2017 season's largest margin: USC 48, Arizona State 17. A 31-point win — the year's high-water mark.
2017 — The Top-10 Year
USC finished 2017 inside the final AP top-10. The top-10 is the tier the program calibrates annual expectation against.
The Shape — week-by-week · cumulative W–L below
Who carried it
- Sam DarnoldQB4,143 passing yards
- Ronald Jones II?1,550 rushing yards
- Stephen CarrRB363 rushing yards
- Vavae MalepeaiRB261 rushing yards
- Deontay BurnettWR1,114 receiving yards
- Tyler VaughnsWR809 receiving yards
- Steven Mitchell Jr.WR644 receiving yards
- Cameron SmithILB107 tackles
- Chris HawkinsCB87 tackles
- Marvell Tell IIIS85 tackles
- Rasheem GreenDT10 sacks
- Uchenna NwosuOLB9.5 sacks
- Christian RectorDL7.5 sacks
Season leaders, 2017.
The season's deepest loss: USC 14, Notre Dame 49. A 35-point margin the season is remembered by.
The season's last act: USC fell to Ohio State 7-24 in the postseason.
"Fight On."
2017 is a middle chapter for USC — neither a crown year nor a crisis. It is the kind of season that fills the ledger between the named ones and gives the arc its shape.