USC 48, Colorado 41
USC quarterback Caleb Williams is the favorite to be the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, and he gave proof of why with a dominant performance in Boulder. While he didn’t have a mistake-free game, Williams showed that he is a special arm talent and playmaker for the next level.
Williams contributed to a touchdown drive to start the game. Shortly later though, he overthrew a wide-open receiver running vertically down the field on what could have been a long touchdown with an accurate pass. To kill that possession, Sanders fumbled a shotgun snap, but he was able to recover his loose ball.
Late in the first quarter, Williams had all day to throw and nothing was open. He showed his creative ability by rolling to his left and then finding a receiver downfield. Williams lofted the ball downfield, and it dropped into a receiver on the run, letting him explode down the field for a 71-yard touchdown. Shortly later, Williams had another clear pocket and threw a laser to a receiver going down the seam for a 24-yard touchdown. Williams also had a short touchdown toss in the first half, and he then threw a 26-yard touchdown just before halftime, hitting a short out route to a receiver who did the rest to break a tackle to explode downfield for the score.
In the third quarter, Williams tossed two short touchdown passes, and he was overwhelming the Colorado defense. However at the end of the third quarter, Williams threw his first interception of the year. He had a receiver wide open on a wheel route deep down the field. Williams did not move his eyes fast enough and see the wideout until late. Williams did not get enough arm on the pass while throwing on a roll out, and the ball fell short into the arms of a Colorado defensive back. Williams finished the day completing 30-of-40 passes for 403 yards, six touchdowns and an interception.
As a passer, Williams is a dynamic playmaker and a future franchise quarterback. He stands tall in the pocket, showing excellent composure and patience to let routes develop. When Williams decides to pass, he has a quick throwing motion with a fast arm whip. The most important attribute for any quarterback is accuracy, and Williams has it, showing the ability to fire passes by defenders into tight windows. Williams shows an impressive ability to alter his arm angle to fire balls through windows. When defenders leap to bat down passes, Williams will drop his arm to throw from the side or get very creative with quick flips from a standstill, a side-arm delivery, or even a jump pass if necessary. This outing is going to help Williams be the favorite to be the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders was dominating the competition to open the 2023 season before having a rough game against Oregon a week ago. Sanders bounced back taking on USC, putting together an impressive performance. It was not without some mistakes, but Sanders competed hard and kept putting up points on the USC defense.
In the first quarter, Sanders moved the ball on a drive by using his legs and arm to move the ball. He had a good drive end when he did not take a check down and forced a pass downfield, which went incomplete and then resulted in a missed long field goal. At the end of the first quarter, Sanders rolled to his right, looking to connect to Weaver, but his receiver broke to the inside when Sanders expected him to go to the outside. The pass went right into the cornerback for an interception, which set up the Trojans deep in Colorado territory.
Sanders came back to loft in a touchdown pass to Jimmy Horn Jr. It was a great read and throw by Sanders, who saw the safety come downhill, and he lofted in the pass to Horn behind the safety with a perfectly placed pass that led him into the end zone from 30 yards out. Just before the half, Sanders used his legs to take advantage of an open field and blasting off down the field for a 25-yard touchdown run.
In the third quarter, Sanders connected for a touchdown with a screen to the tight end, and Sanders made a superb throw to a receiver for a two-point conversion, but the receiver’s foot landed on the chalk. Early in the fourth quarter, Sanders had a critical fourth down, and he made a huge play rolling to his right and throwing a perfectly placed pass to a well-covered receiver to get a touchdown for the Buffaloes.
On a fourth down in the fourth quarter, Sanders held the ball too long and took a costly sack that gave the ball back to USC just past midfield. He came back to throw a touchdown down the seam to make it a one-score game with 1:43 remaining. The Trojans recovered the onside kick to kill the comeback attempt. Sanders finished completing 30-of-45 passes for 371 yards, four touchdowns and an interception. He also rushed for another score.
This game illustrated that as good as Sanders has been, he, like every other player, has things he could do better. When under pressure, Sanders needs to get the ball out. His tendency to backpedal is not going to work in the NFL thanks to the speed and athleticism of pro edge rushers. Sanders also will need to take his check downs more. Sanders will have to work on that, but by the sounds of it he will have another season of college football to work on his craft before going pro. On the positive side, Sanders is a very accurate passer with excellent feel, instincts, composure, mobility and toughness. He looks like a future NFL starter and could be a high first-round pick in whichever draft he decides to enter.