A career-best five-touchdown performance from quarterback John David Booty gave Trojan fans something to be thankful for on Thursday night, as 11th-ranked USC (9-2, 6-2) easily handled No. 7 Arizona State (9-2, 6-2) in a crucial Pac-10 match at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe. The Trojans are now just one win and one Oregon loss away from repeating (make that six-peating) as Pac-10 champs and heading to the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day.

As always, we recap the storylines of the game, update you on the latest injuries, and roundup the game coverage in all of the major publications:

Storylines

• Booty was on target all night, and had by far his best game of the season. He completed 26 of 39 passes for 375 yards without an interception, threw for four touchdowns, and ran for a fifth.
• The Trojan defense continued to excel. USC outgained Arizona State 508-259, and the Sun Devils could muster only 16 yards on the ground. After ASU tied the score at 17 early in the second quarter, the Trojans kept them off the scoreboard until very late in the game. In fact, the defense surrendered just ten points while the game was in question.
• That same defense also took full advantage of Arizona State’s porous offensive line, sacking Sun Devil quarterback Rudy Carpenter six times on the evening (and knocking him out of the game briefly at one point). Four of those sacks came at the hands of Lawrence Jackson, marking a single-game career high for the lineman and making him the first Trojan to record four sacks in a game since Tim Ryan in 1989.
• USC’s running game was solid but unimpressive, although it should be noted that the coaching staff relied almost completely on the pass for much of the night once the Sun Devil defense proved incapable of stopping it. (It was almost the exact opposite of the USC-Cal game.) Chauncey Washington gained 80 yards on 22 carries to lead all rushers. Joe McKnight actually got quite a few looks early in the game, but mostly as a receiver (where he gained 71 yards and a touchdown on five catches). And once again, Stafon Johnson had a hard time getting into the game, carrying the ball just four times.
• Eight different players caught passes for the Trojans, including tight end Fred Davis, who continued his stellar season with another 119 yards and a touchdown. And Booty was finally able to hit freshman Ronald Johnson for a long gain.
• USC’s special teams unit did not perform as well as the rest of the team. The Trojans surrendered a 98-yard kickoff return early in the first quarter, and also saw one of Greg Woidneck’s punts blocked. On the plus side, David Buehler hit all three of his field goal attempts, and Ronald Johnson had a nice 49-yard kickoff return (although it came on a kick that he probably should have fielded in the end zone for a touchback).
• Penalties continue to be an issue for the Trojans. They were flagged ten times on Thursday, for 74 yards. ASU, by comparison, was called for three penalties.
• Another miscue on the evening came on a rare–and ill-advised–trick play, when tailback Desmond Reed took a handoff and attempted to throw a deep pass into what appeared to be triple coverage. Fortunately, the pass was knocked to the ground and was not intercepted.
• In a rarity, USC did not turn the ball over. The Sun Devils had one turnover, on a fumble.

Injury updates

• Although OT Sam Baker started the game, he appeared to aggravate (or at least favor) his hamstring injury and sat out much of the second half as a precaution, although he could have played if needed. Similarly, linebacker Keith Rivers (ankle) was held out of the entire game, but could have been used if needed.
• DT Fili Moala suffered what is being reported as a minor concussion.
• A few other players were banged up. RB Hershel Dennis has a minor quad strain, and LB Michael Morgan sprained his ankle.

Coverage roundup

More articles and game stats: TrojanUpdate’s Game Recap: USC-ASU

USC back in Rose Bowl picture after destroying Arizona State (AP via ESPN)
Instant Analysis: USC - Arizona State (Fox Sports)
Booty and a feast for Trojans (LA Times)
Ronald Johnson gets it going early with kickoff return (LA Times)
Plaschke: Better late than never… (LA Times)
Trojans’ Jackson really gets to Arizona State quarterback (LA Times)
USC returns to form (OC Register)
Whicker: USC’s Jackson has good night at the sack factory (OC Register)
Trojans’ Booty playing with authority (OC Register)
It’s a win with all the fixins for USC (Press-Enterprise)
Patton: USC’s offense comes out of hiding (Press-Enterprise)
USC overpowers ASU (Arizona Republic)
USC thrives in ASU’s backfield (Arizona Republic)
Football Answers - Arizona State Edition (All Things Trojan)