Stanford vs. USC: Score, Highlights and Reaction from 2015 Pac-12 Championship

The No. 7 Stanford Cardinal built a big lead against the No. 20 USC Trojans on Saturday, fell behind, and then came back for a 41-22 victory in the Pac-12 Conference Championship Game at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

It was a huge win for the Cardinal that keeps their slim College Football Playoff hopes alive. Either way, it's the third conference championship game victory in four years for Stanford.

Running back Christian McCaffrey broke Barry Sanders' NCAA record of most all-purpose yards in a single-season finishing with 3,496, per David Lombardi of ESPN.com. 

He finished the game with 461 all-purpose yards and three total touchdowns, in addition to this epic stiff arm, per SportsCenter:

The sophomore showed his versatility with a touchdown pass to quarterback Kevin Hogan in the second quarter to help give the Cardinal a 10-0 lead, as shown by ESPN Stats & Info:

Tom Fornelli of CBSSports.com shared the sentiments of most who were watching McCaffrey play: 

"

Should put somebody on Christian McCaffery cuz he’s quite good.

— Tom Fornelli (@TomFornelli) December 6, 2015"

It looked like the Cardinal may run away from the game early, but while trailing 13-0 late in the second quarter, the USC defense held strong for a second time with Stanford inside the 10-yard line. This turnover on downs helped keep the Trojans in the game, per Pac-12 Networks:

Running back Justin Davis also tried to keep the Trojans in it with 99 rushing yards, but it was this electrifying touchdown by Ronald Jones II that helped give USC a 16-13 lead in the third quarter, as illustrated by Pac-12 Networks:

Bay Area News Group sports columnist Marcus Thompson was impressed with Jones' run:

USC's control didn't last long as McCaffrey was back at it on the next drive. His 67-yard reception down to the USC 7-yard line set up a Hogan touchdown run that helped Stanford reclaim the lead.

Then the Cardinal defense got into the act with this fumble return for a touchdown, as shown by Pac-12 Networks:

However, this game was all about the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year, McCaffrey, who sealed the game with this 28-yard touchdown reception with six minutes, 33 seconds left, shown here on Stanford's official Twitter account:

He added a 10-yard touchdown run with 1:38 left, leaving his stat line looking like it came from a video game. He finished with 207 rushing yards, 149 return yards, 105 receiving yards, 11 passing yards and the three touchdowns.

McCaffrey had Twitter on fire during the game, with some proclaiming he should win the Heisman Trophy. Count former Stanford and current Indianapolis Colts tight end Coby Fleener in that group:

U.S. Women's National Soccer Team forward Kelley O'Hara agreed with Fleener:

Seattle Seahawks All-Pro cornerback Richard Sherman even got in on the act of praising McCaffrey:

McCaffrey wasn't the only Cardinal to put up impressive numbers. Hogan finished 9-of-12 with 144 yards and ran for a touchdown, caught a score and threw a touchdown pass as well.

USC quarterback Cody Kessler started slow, but he finished 22-of-37 with 187 yards and two total touchdowns.

As impressive as McCaffrey and the Cardinal were, it most likely won't be enough to vault them into the CFP. Their only real chance would be if the committee decides this performance was worthy enough to jump the No. 3 Oklahoma Sooners, who were idle in Week 14.

The committee dropped the TCU Horned Frogs out of the CFP last year despite a huge win in their final game, so anything is possible, but a Rose Bowl trip is the most likely scenario for the Cardinal.

No matter what happens, this game will go down as one that McCaffrey and Stanford fans will never forget. 

Postgame Reaction

The talk of the game unsurprisingly focused on McCaffrey's big day. Stanford fans all over the internet are saying the Heisman belongs to McCaffrey, and according to ESPN sideline reporter Holly Rowe—who actually has a vote—he's worthy of consideration:

His head coach David Shaw is certainly in his corner, per Andy Drukarev of Rivals.com: 

While Heisman talk is nice, the Cardinal are more focused on where they will end up in the bowl picture. Shaw is looking at his team's 11-2 season with optimism, per ESPN Pac-12 reporter David Lombardi:

Shaw is right. If the Cardinal can finish with 12 wins, a Rose Bowl victory and its third conference championship in four years, that's a pretty good season.

Until the playoff is expanded to eight or more teams, there are always going to be some worthy of playing for a national title left out. That is probably going to be Stanford this year, but, if so, a nice consolation prize awaits.