Five predictions for USC's Alamo Bowl matchup with TCU

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Prior to each USC football game this season, I will be giving five predictions for the contest. With the Trojans playing their final game of the year against TCU in the Alamo Bowl Tuesday night, this marks the season finale of this series.

So what can we expect when the Trojans and Horned Frogs face off in San Antonio? Here are five predictions for the Alamo Bowl between USC and TCU:

The King’s finale

USC running back King Miller needs 127 yards rushing against TCU to hit 1,000 yards on the season. He does not quite hit that mark, but he does go over 100 yards and score at least one touchdown.

No tight end catches

USC will be without its top two tight ends in the Alamo Bowl with Lake McRee opting out and Walker Lyons entering the transfer portal. Given that USC’s remaining tight ends combined for exactly one reception on the season, I am predicting that the unit does not record a single catch against TCU.

Going out with a bang

Tuesday night will mark D’Anton Lynn’s final game as USC’s defensive coordinator, as he is headed to Penn State afterwards to take the DC job there. Lynn goes out with a bang, as his USC defense holds TCU to 24 or fewer points.

An unlikely hero

In today’s era of college football with bowl rosters often looking very different from regular season rosters, it is not uncommon to see unlikely heroes emerge. Last year for USC, it was Kyle Ford catching the game-winning touchdown in the final seconds of the Las Vegas Bowl. This year, I am going with Jaden Richardson to finally score his first FBS touchdown in his final college football game.

Player of the game

Bowl games typically feature a player of the game award. My final prediction of the season is that quarterback Jayden Maiava earns this honor as he leads the Trojans to their tenth victory of the year.

This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Five predictions as USC football faces TCU in Alamo Bowl

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