The Trojans were thoroughly outplayed by Iowa in the Holiday Bowl and finished the season 8-5 after an embarrassing 49-24 loss to the Hawkeyes.
The game was a shootout early, with touchdowns being scored on the first four offensive possessions, resulting in a 14-14 game. But thanks to three touchdowns from Iowa’s Ihmir Smith-Marsette — one rushing, one kick return and one receiving — the Hawkeyes would go into halftime with a 28-17 lead.
USC would cut the deficit to 28-24 early in the third quarter, but things went south after quarterback Kedon Slovis was knocked out of the game with a shoulder injury.