Saturday's much-anticipated Crosstown Showdown between the No. 16 Bruins (8-2, 5-2 Pac-12) and seventh-ranked Trojans (9-1, 7-1) sold out even after UCLA raised the capacity at the Rose Bowl to nearly 71,000.
Many fans and other observers thought Dorian Thompson-Robinson's performance against Southern California last year was an emphatic final chapter to his UCLA career.Thompson-Robinson decided to return for a fifth season in Westwood because he still had plenty to prove. His encore year and Caleb Williams' arrival after Lincoln Riley was hired at USC set the stage for one of the best college football seasons in Los Angeles since 2005.
"It's very rare in 2022 when you can sit and be witness to history like that. And certainly, I think we're all going to be lucky for that," said Fox Sports analyst Joel Klatt."I think the two are going to put on an absolute show. I would be shocked if this game wasn't one of the higher-scoring games we've seen this year."
UCLA and Thompson-Robinson have bragging rights after last year's 62-33 victory, where he accounted for six touchdowns . He hurdled a USC cornerback en route to one touchdown and then signed a hat for a 12-year-old USC fan after scoring another."Obviously, we hate those guys across town. It's a bitter feeling with those guys," Thompson-Robinson said."We want to be even better . We want to break 60 and all that stuff.
"I remember it clear as day, cussing at us, flipping us off, as disrespectful as you can get," he said."We know what's at stake and what it means to our fans and this community. We've got to go out there and win this game." Thompson-Robinson and Williams have both been effective leaders while putting up great seasons. Thompson-Robinson — who has not missed a game for the first time in his career — is third nationally in completion percentage and 14th in passing efficiency . He is at the helm of a UCLA offense that is the only one nationally to exceed 2,400 rushing yards and 2,600 passing yards.
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