Miller Moss threw two of his three touchdown passes to Ja’Kobi Lane, and No. 13 Southern California rallied from an 11-point deficit in the second half for a 38-21 victory over Wisconsin on Saturday in the Trojans’ first Big Ten home game.

One week after narrowly losing its Big Ten debut at Michigan, USC trailed 21-10 at halftime and received a few boos from its home crowd after committing three turnovers in the first half. The Trojans (3-1, 1-1) responded superbly, outscoring Wisconsin 28-0 in the second half of their school’s first Big Ten victory.

“I’m super proud of the resiliency of this team in the second half,” said Trojans’ head coach Lincoln Riley. “Obviously we want to start faster…it was not a very good first half in every way shape and form. Proud of the way we stepped up. It was awesome to get our first Big 10 win.”

Lane caught 10 passes for 105 yards, while Duce Robinson scored the Trojans’ go-ahead touchdown with 1:28 left in the third quarter on another sharp throw from Moss, who passed for 308 yards.

Moss was evaluated for a concussion after he hit the ground awkwardly while rushing for a 7-yard touchdown on a fourth-down keeper with 8:22 to play, but he stayed in.

MILLER!!!!

📺 @CBSSports pic.twitter.com/C0GSX8kaZ5

— USC Football ✌️ (@uscfb) September 28, 2024

“When you go flying you see some things sometimes,” joked Moss of why he went into the medical tent. “I’m totally fine, and I just went into the medical tent to make sure.”

USC linebacker Mason Cobb then returned an interception 55 yards for a TD with 5:04 to play to seal it.

ALL. THE. WAY. 🔥 @Cobb8Mason

📺: @CBSSportsCFB pic.twitter.com/pw0c9lxE50

— USC Football ✌️ (@uscfb) September 28, 2024

Vinny Anthony caught an early 63-yard TD pass from Braedyn Locke for the Badgers (2-2, 0-1), who have lost two straight.

Tawee Walker rushed for two touchdowns, but Wisconsin faded badly in the second half of its first game at the Coliseum since 1966. The Badgers have lost 13 of their last 15 games against ranked teams, going 0-4 under coach Luke Fickell.

Locke went 13 of 26 for 180 yards in his first start of the season after Tyler Van Dyke tore a knee ligament early in the Badgers’ blowout loss to Alabama two weeks ago.

Lane capped USC’s opening drive by barely staying inbounds on an exceptional 32-yard TD pass by Moss into a minuscule window. Wisconsin responded with Locke’s perfect long throw to Anthony, who beat Jacobe Covington down the USC sideline on a rare explosive play by the Badgers’ offense.

USC speedster Zachariah Branch muffed a punt on the first snap of the second quarter, and Walker rushed 18 yards for a TD on the next snap. After Wisconsin added a 75-yard TD drive capped by Walker’s second touchdown, Moss fumbled while getting hit deep in Badgers territory.

The Coliseum booed when the Trojans left the field at halftime down 21-10 — but USC recovered a muffed punt early in the third quarter, and Lane eventually caught a 6-yard TD pass.

“Just a really, really, good speech,” Riley said with a smile when asked what the difference was between the two halves..”We knew we beat ourselves essentially. We gave up explosive plays, we didn’t stop the run, we had two turnovers, we just didn’t do anything very well.”

Robinson then caught two huge passes during the Trojans’ go-ahead scoring drive, including an 8-yard TD throw delivered by Moss over an all-out blitz.

.@millermoss7 ➡️ @Ducerobinson2 for 6! pic.twitter.com/4wORBDe79p

— USC Football ✌️ (@uscfb) September 28, 2024

Moss then capped a 77-yard drive by keeping the ball on fourth down and scoring while spinning and flying from a Badgers hit. Moss got up slowly after the hit and went to the medical tent, but was cleared to return.

The takeaway

Wisconsin: The first half was encouraging, but Fickell and his players couldn’t match the Trojans’ halftime adjustments. Big Ten title contention seems unlikely for the Badgers this year unless they can generate more explosiveness on both sides of the ball. The Badgers finished with only 286 yards of offense.

USC: The Trojans were both bad and unlucky in the first half, but this team is miles ahead of last season’s group, and their second-half surge was perhaps their most impressive effort of the past two years under coach Lincoln Riley. Moss is growing into his role, and the USC defense again showed tenacity.

Poll implications

The Trojans only slipped two spots after losing to Michigan, and they should stay in the same range after rallying past the Badgers.

Up next

Wisconsin: Host Purdue on Saturday, Oct. 5.

USC: At Minnesota on Saturday, Oct. 5.

The mother and family of the man murdered during the hijacking of an LA Metro bus told NBC4’s I-Team they’re devastated by his death and want to make sure no one else using public transit becomes the victim of violence.

“I just want justice for my boy,” said Teresa Flores, the mother of 48-year-old Anthony Rivera, who died early Wednesday after he was shot during the bus takeover, pursuit, and standoff.

Flores said her son, who was riding the Metro bus to commute home, was a generous person who often put others’ needs ahead of his own.“Very friendly, very giving,” she said. 

“If he had his last dollar he would give it to you.”

She said police told the family Rivera had offered his property to the gunman who’d hijacked the bus.

“’Whatever you want, I have it here,’” Flores said, “and the man just turned around and shot him.”

The family said Rivera had served in the California National Guard and was working as a parking attendant at Dodger Stadium.

“He doesn’t make enough money to support a vehicle to get back and forth, he hasn’t for a while,” Rivera’s cousin Sarah Beck said.

“He was just doing everything he can to not have to rely on people giving him rides here and there.”

She said it’s unacceptable that people like Rivera, who depend on public transit, are so vulnerable to violence.

“We need change, and we understand that bus drivers need safety, we understand that, and thank goodness that they have that safety in place, but what about the passengers?,” she asked.

The LAPD said Rivera was fatally wounded during the ordeal and died at a hospital after SWAT officers stormed the bus and arrested the hijacker.

Police said 51-year-old Lamont A. Campbell was booked on suspicion of murder and was being held in jail without bail.

Campbell was expected to make an initial court appearance Monday.

Shohei Ohtani hit his 54th homer of the season, a towering three-run shot, after stealing his 57th base earlier in the game and the NL West-champion Los Angeles Dodgers powered past the Colorado Rockies 11-4 on Friday night.

The Dodgers designated hitter finished 4 of 5, which also included a pair of singles and a double, and drove in four runs. He now has 24 hits over his last 34 at-bats.

Ohtani is making a serious charge at a Triple Crown, leading the NL in homers (54) and RBIs (130). He raised his average to .309 to trail only Luis Arráez (.312 entering Friday) in the batting title race.

With his swipe of second base in the second inning, Ohtani passed Ichiro Suzuki for the most stolen bases in a single season by a Japanese-born player. Ohtani was wearing spikes featuring a picture of his dog, Decoy.

FIFTY-SEVEN STOLEN BASES!

Shohei Ohtani sets the single-season record by a Japanese-born player, surpassing Ichiro’s 56. pic.twitter.com/W6vLy56Oh8

— MLB (@MLB) September 28, 2024

Ohtani’s three-run blast in the sixth inning landed in the second deck at Coors Field. It was a no-doubter at the crack of the bat, with the sellout crowd instantly erupting, an early show before the fireworks display that awaited after the game.

GUESS WHO…

SHOHEI HAS NO. 54. pic.twitter.com/IqEieFa1jV

— MLB (@MLB) September 28, 2024

His 408 total bases this season are second-most in franchise history. Babe Herman set the record of 416 in 1930.

Teoscar Hernández got things started for Los Angeles with a two-run homer in the first.

A moonshot from Teoscar! pic.twitter.com/3j6p2qYOwc

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) September 28, 2024

Andy Pages also homered for the Dodgers, who arrived in town fresh off clinching their third straight division title Thursday. The Dodgers moved two games up on the Philadelphia Phillies for the top seed in the NL.

¿Par de juegos consecutivos con cuadrangular? Andy sigue con el bate encendido. pic.twitter.com/4xZ9LWZmm5

— Los Dodgers (@LosDodgers) September 28, 2024

Ben Casparius (2-0) picked up the win for Los Angeles, going 4 1/3 innings, in a game where the Dodgers started reliever Ryan Brasier.

Cal Quantrill (8-11) struggled against the Dodgers’ potent lineup, allowing six runs and two homers over 3 1/3 innings.

The Rockies have now dropped 99 games this season. At 61-99, they need to win their final two games to avoid back-to-back 100-loss seasons.

It was a fortunate coincidence the second-base bag needed to be replaced as Charlie Blackmon stepped up to the plate in the first inning. The switch allowed his walk-up song “Your Love” by The Outfield to play a little bit longer. The designated hitter/outfielder known for his bushy beard announced Monday he’s retiring after 14 seasons — all with the Rockies.

The organization will honor him before Sunday’s season finale. Blackmon had a single and two walks Friday.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Dodgers: 1B Freddie Freeman didn’t make the trip to Colorado so he could rest a sore ankle. Freeman was on crutches and in a walking boot after leaving Thursday’s game. The Dodgers also left SS Miguel Rojas at home due to a torn adductor.

UP NEXT

The Dodgers will send righty Yoshinobu Yamamoto (6-2, 2.96 ERA) to the mound Saturday night. The Rockies counter with righty Antonio Senzatela (0-0, 3.38).