Buck Allen Vaults USC Right Back into Pac-12 Title Hunt

Little came easily for USC in its season-preserving, 28-26 defeat of No. 10 Arizona, but running back Javorius "Buck" Allen made rushing for a career-high 205 yards look awfully simple.

Allen carried the USC offense on his back much of the night—and he did so by carrying plenty of defenders.

Rick Scuteri/Associated Press

His record night, punctuated by three touchdowns, gave the Trojans enough of a cushion to hold off Arizona's 13-0 fourth-quarter rally.

Allen made a convincing case to jump into the Heisman Trophy conversation. Whether he does remains to be seen.

There's no such wait-and-see necessary to determine who leads the chaotic Pac-12 South, however. By knocking Arizona, the conference's last unbeaten, from its perch, USC leads in the win column.

That doesn't mean the Trojans control their own destiny just yet. Arizona State joins Arizona, Utah and USC as one-loss Pac-12 South teams, and the Sun Devils have the tiebreaker over the Trojans by virtue of their comeback win last week in the Coliseum.

Still, USC was in real danger of dropping out of the title race for all intents and purposes Saturday night. Had Wildcats kicker Casey Skowron made any one of three missed field-goal attempts, USC would have fallen to .500 and trailed the Wildcats by two full games.

And, despite Allen's best efforts, that very nearly became reality.

The final minutes served as a reminder that while USC is still in the thick of the wide-open Pac-12 chase, it's hardly a finished product.

Arizona attacked a USC down cornerbacks Kevon Seymour and Adoree' Jackson. Largely untested freshmen Jonathan Lockett and John Plattenburg acquitted themselves nicely, but their being forced into the lineup in a critical situation speaks to the tenuous nature of the Trojans roster.

USC's lack of numbers looms as a very real threat to its championship aspirations.

The Trojans' thin roster also seemed to have an impact on the defense in the fourth quarter. Much like a week ago against Arizona State, USC contained an explosive, high-tempo opponent for more than three quarters.

But just like the Sun Devils in Week 6, the Wildcats were able to open the flood gates in the fourth quarter.

Head coach Steve Sarkisian was perilously close to coming under intense scrutiny for his late-game decisions, as well.

For as much as Allen carried the Trojans, he was conspicuously absent for much of their final possession. Sarkisian instead turned to sophomore Justin Davis, who coughed up a costly fumble earlier in the second half.

Sarkisian also called a timeout on Arizona's final drive, which gave the Wildcats time to run an additional play before bringing on the field-goal unit.

But Sarkisian also called another timeout before Skowron's game-winning attempt. Sarkisian brought 6'9" offensive lineman Zach Banner onto the field, which may have contributed to Skowron's attempt going wide-right.

It was the second time a precisely timed stoppage spared USC from giving up points.

All the other contributing factors take a back seat to Allen, however. His long touchdown rushes in the first half gave USC a lead it never ceded and effectively put the season back on track.

The Trojans reflect the Pac-12 as a whole: Unpredictable. The team in this conference that can find the most stability in the coming weeks will take the inside track to the championship.

And USC has stability in Allen.

Statistics via ArizonaWildcats.com.