TUCSON, Ariz. -- Sam Darnold is settling into the quarterback role at USC quite nicely, and hes got the Trojans in the thick of the race in the Pac-12 South.The redshirt freshman, who didnt start until the fourth game of the season, threw five touchdown passes -- three to JuJu Smith Schuster -- in USCs 48-14 rout of Arizona on Saturday.Theres a lot of stuff that Ive learned these last few weeks thats really helped in this game, Darnold said, and obviously games that were looking ahead.He completed 20 of 32 attempts for 235 yards and ran for 54 yards on six carries before sitting out the fourth quarter. He threw for 186 yards and four scores as USC built a 34-7 halftime lead.Not to blow his head up too much but hes playing really good football right now, way beyond his years, his maturity level, Trojans coach Clay Helton said.Darnold was more upset about the plays he didnt make.He said he is taking his job week by week.If I progress, I progress Darnold said. Thats part of growing, mentally and physically.Smith-Schuster finished with nine catches for 132 yards.The Trojans (4-3, 3-2 Pac-12) rolled for 575 yards and remained a half-game out of first place in the Pac-12 South. Arizona (2-5, 0-4) lost its fourth in a row.USC won away from home for the first time since the interim label was removed from Heltons title. The Trojans had lost five straight away from home, dating to last season.This was a much-needed road victory, Helton said.Wildcats true freshman Khalil Tate, just shy of his 18th birthday, completed 7 of 18 passes for 58 yards in his first collegiate start. Playing in place of injured Brandon Dawkins, Tate threw an interception and fumbled the ball away, leading to two USC touchdowns. He ran for 72 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries.Hes a true freshman so we wanted to rattle him a little bit and get some hits on him, USC defensive back Chris Hawkins said.Coach Rich Rodriguez said Tate is not the nervous type ...but there are times when a 17-year-old freshman looks like a 17-year-old freshman.Rodriguez was asked what hed say to fans that are unhappy with the Wildcats.Were 2-5. Weve had some adversity, he said. We can fix problems in recruiting and the other problems we can fix in the short term. Peoples opinions are peoples opinions. Were not happy when were not winning.Arizona committed four turnovers, USC none.It was a huge emphasis this week in practice, Darnold said, so it was on my mind the whole game. I just didnt want to turn the ball over.The Trojans scored on their first and last possession and, early in the game, converted one third down after another. They were 4-for-4 on third down.Adoree Jackson picked up a Tate fumble and returned it 26 yards to the Arizona 10 to set up the Trojans third touchdown. Iman Marshall intercepted Tates pass late in the first half and took it back 12 yards to the Wildcats 13-yard line, leading to another score that put USC up 27-7.Im not sure what our quarterback situation is going forward, Rodriguez said, but we have at least two weeks now to figure something out.THE TAKEAWAYUSC: The Trojans are rolling. After opening conference play with losses to Stanford and Utah, USC has beaten Arizona State, Colorado and Arizona. California and Oregon are next before a Nov. 12 matchup at No. 5 Washington.ARIZONA: The Wildcats have been hit by injuries, particularly at quarterback, and are in a tailspin that began with an overtime loss to then-No. 9 Washington.UP NEXTUSC: After their first road win since coach Clay Helton had the interim tag removed, the Trojans dont play again until Oct. 27 against California.ARIZONA: The Wildcats get their first bye since the 2014 season and they could use it to get Dawkins and others healthy. Arizona is home against Stanford on Oct. 29. Frank Robinson Jersey Large . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Cal Ripken Jersey Large . I cant pinpoint a date, but I do remember a player from my youth. 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Tommy Oar has declared Brisbane Roar will be up for the fight when they host early A-League pacesetters Perth Glory on Sunday.After a scratchy start to the season, the Roar notched their first win with a 1-0 result over Central Coast in Gosford at the weekend.The Glory are second on the ladder and undefeated following a stunning 3-2 win away to Melbourne City - the game in which coach Kenny Lowe earned a two-match touchline ban for abusing a referee.Lowe bristled in his post-match press conference at the suggestion Perth were overly physical, but theres no doubt his battle-hardened side has combined tactical smarts with a determined on-ball presence to good effect this season.Oar is expecting a typically unapologetic performance from the Glory, but said Brisbane will look to play the game on their terms.Theyve got a lot of experience, a lot of big boys, he told reporters on Tuesday.For us, the focus will be purely on our style of play.Suncorps quite a big pitch, weve got a lot of agile, nimble players and I think if we play to the way we know we can, we can kind of avoid thhe physical battles.ddddddddddddBut theres no doubt, at the same time, well be up for the fight as well.The Roar and Glory met twice during the pre-season - first in an FFA Cup round of 32 clash at Ballymore, which fell 2-0 to Perth, and then again last month in a behind-closed-doors trial match won 4-0 by Brisbane.Perth could regain star trio Rhys Williams, Adam Taggart and Shane Lowry, who all missed the win over City at AAMI Park but are in contention to return this week.Oar, meanwhile, is slowly building up confidence and fitness as he looks to get his international career back on track.Having pulled the plug on his career in Europe to re-join the Roar earlier this year, the fringe Socceroo winger is yet to truly dazzle in his second A-League stint but believes he will hit his stride soon enough.The most important thing for me this season is just to get some match fitness under my belt and as the season goes on, my form will improve, he said. 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