USC coach Clay Helton fires 4 assistant coaches, including defensive

Defending national champion Ohio State is in the mix, along with Big Ten Championship Game loser Iowa.

But if you’ve been following McCaffrey all season, his performance wasn’t exactly a departure from normal. “He got to the inside and took it down to the red zone”. To compound Shaw’s difficulties, the Trojans defense stuck the Cardinal on its next possession with a third and six, on the end of the field where most of the USC fans had congregated.

“That’s a guy I had posters on my wall of growing up”, McCaffrey said. The 6-foot, 197-pound sophomore broke Barry Sanders’ NCAA record for all-purpose yardage in a season with the huge effort, as he needed just 216 total yards on Saturday to surpass Sanders’ 3,250 yards.

McCaffrey finished with 207 rushing yards, 105 receiving, and 149 return yards with three touchdowns (pass, rush, receiving).

“To my left here is the best player in the nation”, coach David Shaw said.

AP photo Stanford running back Christian McCaffrey (5) stiff-arms Southern California linebacker Anthony Sarao (56) during a 10-yard touchdown run during the Pac-12 Conference championship Saturday in Santa Clara, Calif. McCaffrey also threw an 11-yard TD pass to QB Kevin Hogan as the Cardinal pulled away for a 41-22 victory over USC and a Rose Bowl berth.

“They are outstanding men and outstanding coaches, ” Helton said on a conference all, “and I thank them for their work throughout this season”.

We don’t know who’s going to win the College Football Playoff, but we already know for sure who won’t.

But McCaffrey set up a touchdown with a long catch-and run and the Cardinal pushed the lead to 11 points when linebacker Blake Martinez hit Kessler from behind and knocked the ball loose.

It was part of McCaffery’s record night of 461 total yards, in which he threw for a touchdown, ran for one, and caught a touchdown pass. The fact that he will probably lose the Heisman Trophy to Alabama running back Derrick Henry is regional bias of college football at its ugliest.

“If anybody’s better than that guy, I’d like to see it”, safety Chris Hawkins said after Christian McCaffrey went on a four-quarter shuttle run at the Pac-12 Championship Game Saturday, with the Trojans flailing and grabbing and, finally, marveling.

Hogan scored on the next play to put Stanford ahead 20-16.

“I was just praying I’d get it to him”, McCaffrey said.

The Trojan offense had one possession in the first quarter and failed to score any points on their lone drive. Stanford then was facing a third-and-6, after Claude Pelon held McCaffrey to no gain.

SAN DIEGO STATE 27, AIR FORCE 00: In San Diego, Donny Hageman kicked a 46-yard field goal with 5:10 to go and San Diego State won the Mountain West Conference championship, the Aztecs’ first outright title since 1986.

Stanford took a 3-0 lead on Conrad Ukropina’s 30-yard field goal, which ended a 65-play drive. With all the action flowing left, Hogan tiptoed out of the pocket and then found McCaffrey sneaking into the weak side of the formation, which, consdiering no Trojans were there, was extremely weak.

He also threw one of Stanford’s two passing touchdowns of the night, which was his second of the season.

“My job was easy”, McCaffrey said.