Stats

Sept. 12, 1998

LOS ANGELES (AP) - R. Jay Soward, suspended by his coach for the season opener, caught two touchdown passes and scored on a 74-yard punt return Saturday night to spark the No. 22 USC Trojans to a 35-6 victory over San Diego State.

Living up to his billing as a long-range threat, Soward had the ball nine times for USC (2-0) and accounted for 256 yards - a 28.4 average.

The wiry junior has scored 21 touchdowns for USC, averaging one touchdown about every five times he has touched the ball.

Soward, whose problems with his studies last spring led coach Paul Hackett to hold him out of the Trojans' victory over Purdue two weeks ago, had four receptions for 94 yards against San Diego State.

He scored on pass plays of 53 and 8 yards from Mike Van Raaphorst and had another apparent TD, a 24-yard reception, called back. The 5-foot-11, 175-pounder also rushed three times for 69 yards and returned a kickoff 19 yards, in addition to the long punt return.

Chad Morton rushed for 110 yards on 23 carries and scored on a 12-yard run for the Trojans, who built an early lead, then put the game away with two touchdowns in the final quarter.

The Trojans sputtered on offense much of the evening and Adam Abrams missed three field goals.

However, their defense, led by David Gibson's three sacks and one fumble recovery, had the game in hand, limiting the Aztecs (0-2) to a second-quarter touchdown as new coach Hackett got his second victory.

The loss spoiled the return of San Diego State coach Ted Tollner, who was fired as the USC coach after a 7-4 season in 1986.

USC led 21-6 at halftime, but the lead could have been larger if the Trojans hadn't misfired on other scoring chances.

Soward appeared to have scored on the 24-yard pass on the Trojans' first possession, but the play was called back because of a holding penalty. San Diego State also drew a dead-ball penalty on Aztecs cornerback Tairou Smith, who also was ejected from the game.

Unable to put the ball back into the end zone, the Trojans settled for a 39-yard field goal try by Abrams, but he missed to snap a personal string of 12 consecutive successful attempts.

The Trojans went up 7-0 on Morton's run on their next possession, but the third time they had the ball, Abrams missed another field goal, this time from 29 yards. Abrams later missed a 44-yarder.

Soward's long TD pass from Van Raaphorst early in the second quarter put USC up 14-0. The Trojans cashed in a fumble by the Aztecs' Brian Russell, recovered by Aaron Williams at the San Diego State 33, for Van Raaphorst's second touchdown pass to Soward to open a 21-0 lead.

Van Raaphorst finished 13-of-26 for 189 yards and two touchdowns. Freshman Carson Palmer, who came in late in the third quarter, was 5-of-8 for 50 yards, with one interception and a 10-yard touchdown to Billy Miller.

The Aztecs' only touchdown came on a 31-yard pass from Russell to Damon Gourdine just before halftime.

Starting quarterback Spencer Brinton completed just 1-of-4 for 5 yards before Russell replaced him. Russell went 8-of-21 for 89 yards.

Tollner had a 26-19 record at USC from 1983-86, including a 9-3 record and a 20-17 Rose Bowl upset of fifth-ranked Ohio State.

The Aztecs-Trojans game was the second ever between the schools. They tied 31-31 in the 1992 Holiday Bowl in San Diego.