USC opens Steve Sarkisian era with rout of Fresno State

LOS ANGELES -- A week that began with turmoil off the field ended with a record night on it for No. 15 Southern California. Cody Kessler threw for 394 yards and four touchdowns and ran for another TD and the Trojans won Steve Sarkisian's USC debut in commanding fashion, beating Fresno State 52-13 on Saturday night. The Trojans ran a school- and Pac-12-record 105 plays while racking up 37 first downs and 701 yards of total offense to Fresno State's 17 first downs and 317 yards. "We were shooting for 80 plays," Kessler said, although Sarkisian knew that playing a no-huddle team in the Bulldogs would probably up that number. For USC, the victory came at the end of a distracting week for Sarkisian, punctuated by a tale of heroism by suspended defensive captain Josh Shaw that turned out to be a lie.