USC pulls off fake punt with backup QB wearing punter's jersey number in win over Northwestern

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USC made a roster change to pull off a fake punt in its win over Northwestern.

Quarterback Sam Huard took the field in a No. 80 jersey in the second quarter when USC was set to punt the football. No. 80 is the number that punter Sam Johnson wears.

Huard took the snap like Johnson would have to punt and completed a pass to Tanook Hines for 10 yards and a first down. Starting QB Jayden Maiava then capped the drive with a six-yard TD run.

College football teams have so many players that it’s incredibly common for multiple players to wear the same number. And it’s not an issue as long as they aren’t on the field together. No. 20 USC is also one of the few schools in the country who does not have player names on its jerseys.

That, and a subtle roster tweak, helped USC pull off the fake.

The Trojans officially changed Huard’s number to No. 80 on the game day roster that was submitted to Northwestern. While Huard is still listed as No. 7 online, that’s not official. Northwestern coach David Braun admitted after the game that Huard was No. 80 on the roster that his team was given.

“One of their backup quarterbacks, No. 7, was wearing No. 80, the same number as their punter. Did not show up on their roster online, hadn’t shown up anywhere else but they did legally submit that,” Braun said. “Was on the game day roster that was here present at the Coliseum and the lesson I’ve learned in that for the rest of my career is when we arrive at a facility we will go over that with a fine-tooth comb and look for any of those potential issues. If we knew that their backup quarterback was in the game int hat situation we either would have been in safe [punt coverage] or called a timeout.”

The Trojans racked up 482 yards of offense on 64 plays in the victory that moved them to 7-2 overall and 5-1 in the Big Ten. Northwestern dropped to 5-4 and needs one win over its final three games against No. 21 Michigan, Minnesota and Illinois to get to a bowl game.

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