Good morning! USC is 2-0 and has now allowed three points in two games. Blake Snell was dominant again at Chavez Ravine. Derek Hegna is filing from Berlin, where the Aces contingent is unbeaten at the FIBA World Cup. And tonight, for the first time this season, two of the three markets we cover play each other: UNLV at Hawai’i, 7 p.m. on CW. Let’s get into it.
🚨 HEADLINES
🏈 Shutout. USC 39, Fresno State 0, with two safeties — Holdenn Graff at the Coliseum.
🏈 The defense did it. Brady Charette on a unit that swarmed all night — Brady Charette at the Coliseum.
⚾ Snell again. Another dominant start as the Dodgers beat Washington 5-3 — Fredo Cervantes at Dodger Stadium.
🏀 From Berlin. Stephanie Talbot dominates as the Aces’ World Cup contingent stays unbeaten — Derek Hegna in Berlin.
🏈 Blowout at Stanford. A clash of California quarterbacks went one way — Jack Haslett at Stanford Stadium.
See what else is trending at The Sporting Tribune.
📋 SCOREBOARD — FRIDAY
🏈 College: USC 39, Fresno State 0 · Miami 45, Stanford 6
⚾ MLB: Dodgers 5, Nationals 3 · Pirates 1, Angels 0
🏈 TWO SAFETIES AND A ZERO
“I’m really excited about the shutout, that’s hard to do,” Lincoln Riley said, and he is right about that: Friday was only the second time since 2012 that USC has held an opponent scoreless, and the first since September 2024.
Jayden Maiava was surgical again. Twenty-three completions on 25 attempts — 92 percent — for 349 yards and three touchdowns, a week after his 86.2 percent against San Jose State set a program record. Holdenn Graff notes the stat that captures it best: through two weeks, Maiava’s six total touchdowns match his total number of incompletions.
“I think it comes from the guys sitting next to me,” Maiava said. “The o-line, running backs, receivers — just all on the same page.”
The freshman receivers keep arriving. Trent Mosley had 104 yards and two touchdowns by halftime, including a 68-yarder in the second quarter and a nine-yard catch where he tiptoed the sideline and reached the ball over the pylon. Kayden Dixon-Wyatt led the team with six catches for 102, among them a 31-yard conversion on fourth-and-five on the opening drive. Waymond Jordan and Deshonne Redeaux scored on the ground.
But the story was Gary Patterson’s defense, which produced something you rarely see: two safeties.
Kennedy Urlacher got the first, coming off the edge on third-and-22 with Fresno State pinned at its own one and driving quarterback Jayden Mandal through the back of the end zone. “Coach sent me on a blitz,” Urlacher said. “I just went out there and executed the call.” Alex Graham got the second in the third quarter, slipping around the left side for another sack in the end zone. Jadyn Ramos sealed it with a fourth-down sack late.
Two games, three points allowed. Louisiana comes to the Coliseum next Saturday.
GO DEEPER
› Holdenn Graff: USC cruises to shutout victory over Fresno State (The Sporting Tribune)
› Brady Charette: USC’s relentless defense swarms Fresno State in shutout win (The Sporting Tribune)
⚾ SNELL, STILL
Blake Snell built on a run that now stretches back weeks, and the Dodgers beat Washington 5-3 to open the homestand’s second series. Fredo Cervantes has the details from Chavez Ravine.
It is worth remembering where this started. Two weeks ago Snell threw six shutout innings against Pittsburgh and told reporters he needed to be better. Since then Roki Sasaki has gone to the injured list with a blister, Tyler Glasnow has returned, Shohei Ohtani has been day-to-day, and Snell has kept getting sharper.
Los Angeles struck out 11 and leads the National League West by nine and a half.
GO DEEPER
› Fredo Cervantes: Blake Snell builds momentum with another dominant start (The Sporting Tribune)
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🍔 THE DEALS BOARD
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🐼 Panda Express — $7 Panda Plate. Dodgers home win. Code DODGERSWIN, Panda Rewards account required, through 11:59 p.m.
🍔 The Habit Burger Grill — free Double Char with an $8 minimum. They turned a double play. MyHabit, “My Offers,” code DODGERS26.
🍔 Jack in the Box — free Jumbo Jack with a large drink. Eleven strikeouts. Code GODODGERS26.
🧋 Sunright Tea Studio — BOGO Blue Heaven Frostie. Home win. Code ILOVELA.
🌮 El Portal, Pasadena — $12 combination plates and $7 house margaritas. Order online for pickup.
☕ Con Azúcar Café, Sylmar — free size upgrade and Dodgers latte art. Say “Dodgers win!” at the register.
🥤 Mountain Dew — free 20-oz Baja Blast. Seven homers cleared 420 feet Friday, led by Josh Bell at 460 — and Ben Rice’s 444-footer came at Petco. Wallet pass at OTC Network stores.
Dark today: ampm needed a stolen base and the Dodgers had none. The McNuggets deal needed six runs; they scored five. The McDonald’s Angels deal needed a win, and Anaheim was shut out.
⚾ SHUT OUT IN PITTSBURGH
The Angels lost 1-0 at PNC Park, which is a hard way to open a road trip and a familiar way to lose. Anaheim has now dropped nine of eleven, and the only night in that stretch worth keeping was Walbert Ureña’s ten-run Monday against the Yankees.
They go again this afternoon.
GO DEEPER
› Jack Janes: Angels get blanked by Pirates, waste Johnson’s strong outing (The Sporting Tribune)
🏈 A LONG NIGHT IN PALO ALTO
Jack Haslett was at Stanford Stadium, where Miami won 45-6 in what was billed as a clash of California quarterbacks and turned into one team’s evening. Ric Tapia shot it.
GO DEEPER
› Jack Haslett: Clash of California quarterbacks ends in blowout of Stanford (The Sporting Tribune)
📺 WATCHLIST — SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 5
⚽ NWSL: Angel City FC at Racing Louisville — 3:30 p.m. — Ion
⚾ MLB: Angels at Pirates — 3:40 p.m. — ABTV
⚾ MLB: Yankees at Padres — Petco Park — 4:10 p.m. — FOX
⚽ MLS: San Diego FC at Orlando City — 4:30 p.m. — Apple TV
⚾ MLB: Nationals at Dodgers — Dodger Stadium — 6:10 p.m. — SNLA
⚽ MLS: LAFC at Real Salt Lake — 6:30 p.m. — Apple TV
⚽ MLS: Revolution at Galaxy — Dignity Health Sports Park — 6:30 p.m. — Apple TV
🏈 College: Portland State at San Diego State — 6:30 p.m. — USA
🏈 College: UNLV at Hawai’i — 7:00 p.m. — CW
🏈 College: UCLA at Cal — 7:30 p.m. — ESPN
🎟️ GOING TO A GAME?
Get-in prices across Southern California, Las Vegas and Hawaii — brought to you by TickPick, the no-hidden-fee ticket marketplace.
⚾ Yankees at Padres — Petco Park — $69
⚾ Nationals at Dodgers — Dodger Stadium — $57
⚽ Revolution at Galaxy — Dignity Health Sports Park — $19
🏈 UNLV at Hawai’i — Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex — $48
🌴 TST TRIVIA
USC scored 39 points against Fresno State, and two of them came without the offense on the field. How?
Answer at the bottom.
🎧 THE SPORTING TRIBUNE TODAY
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Monday’s show: USC at 2-0 and a defense that has allowed three points, a Saturday that put two of our markets on the same field in Honolulu, and the Rams’ flight to Melbourne.
› Listen to the latest episode
Trivia answer: Two safeties — Kennedy Urlacher and Alex Graham each sacked the Fresno State quarterback in his own end zone.
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