ngers Patric Hornqvist and Chris Kunitz could both miss the game

PASADENA, Calif. -- Sam Darnold was using his laptop at the team hotel to watch the game that would determine whether Southern Californias Pac-12 title hopes were still alive when he heard cheers indicating that Oregon had scored a last-second touchdown to upset Utah.It turns out Darnolds feed was delayed by a few seconds compared with what his teammates were viewing. It also was one of the few times Darnold was a step slower than everyone else on Saturday, when the redshirt freshman quarterback left rival UCLA utterly baffled.Darnold threw for 267 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions to lead the No. 12 Trojans (8-3, 7-2 Pac-12) to their seventh consecutive win, a 36-14 victory over UCLA . Darnold also rushed for 27 yards, while his ability to extend plays with his mobility offered a striking role reversal from when Bruins quarterback Brett Hundley gave USC fits from 2012-14.I tell you, the creativity that Sam brings was evident, USC coach Clay Helton said.UCLA coach Jim Mora went one step further before comparing Darnold to Tony Romo.A guy as mobile as he is, as heady as he is, keeping his eyes down the field the way that he can, thats what makes him special, Mora said. Ive seen him on film and on TV, and I had a lot of respect for him coming into this game. In person, hes a truly special one.Despite the injury to quarterback Josh Rosen and poor play of the rushing offense, UCLAs defense had played well in a disappointing season. But Darnold was able to run away from and through a defense featuring Takkarist McKinley, Eddie Vanderdoes and Kenny Young, all likely future NFL players.Even Darnolds second interception was more about what he could do, rather than what UCLA could do to stop him. He evaded pressure repeatedly before heaving a ball into the end zone, where it was picked off by Jayon Brown.A similar throw put USC ahead midway through the second quarter, with Darnold putting the ball up for DeQuan Hampton to make a 31-yard touchdown reception. The seldom-used senior receiver boxed out Randall Goforth and extended his arms for the score.That fearlessness is what led USC coaches to elevate Darnold to the starting job after three games in hopes of energizing a sluggish offense.Hes going to push the envelope, offensive coordinator Tee Martin said. Hes going to push the defense and see how much he can get. Like a kid, hes going to play around that stove until he gets burned. Youre going to have to live with some of the mistakes.Id rather him make the mistakes trying to make a play than to play scared, so we just got to live with it.But those mistakes have ended up fueling USCs surge. Darnold forces opposing defenses to account for him as a runner, helping free up space for running backs Ronald Jones and Justin Davis. USC has had a 100-yard rusher in all but two games with Darnold as the starter, while Davis rushed for 92 yards against Colorado and Jones had 93 at Washington in those wins over top 10 teams.We got like a double-edged sword, Jones said. Its great.Darnold has also spread the ball around in the passing game, with 11 different receivers catching balls against UCLA. Helton attributes Darnolds ball distribution to playing point guard in high school basketball.Combine those attributes with a surging defense, and USC would have a strong case for a berth in a New Years Six bowl game with another rivalry win over Notre Dame next week. If the Utes defeat the Buffaloes, USC would win the Pac-12 South on the head-to-head tiebreaker and play for the conference title for the second straight year.Defensive tackle Stevie Tuikolovatu, a graduate transfer from Utah, said he would be cheering super-hard for his friends and former teammates. Tuikolovatu also said he might send Ducks quarterback Justin Herbert a gift to thank him for upsetting Utah.Hes the playmaker today, Tuikolovatu said of Herbert.Everyone that was at the Rose Bowl, however, would say that title belongs to Darnold.Said Martin: Hes still a freshman and I like that part about our future.---More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-Top25 Fake Mariners Jerseys . They hope to persuade the other team owners and commissioner Roger Goodell to put pressure on Redskins owner Daniel Snyder to drop the nickname they find offensive. "Given the way the meeting transpired," Ray Halbritter, an Oneida representative and leader of the "Change the Mascot Campaign," said Wednesday, "it became somewhat evident they were defending the continued use of the name. Seattle Mariners Store . Having already announced that the race will start May 9 with three stages in Northern Ireland and Ireland and finish in Trieste on June 1, the rest of the route was unveiled Monday. https://www.cheapmariners.com/ . Kozun faked to the forehand and beat Monsters starter, Calvin Pickard, pad side in the second round for the winner. Spencer Abbott also scored in the shootout for the Marlies (25-13-4). Seattle Mariners Gear .com) - The Chicago Blackhawks aim for their third three-game winning streak of the season when they host the struggling Edmonton Oilers in Sundays battle at the United Center. Cheap Mariners Jerseys . They reached the 100-point plateau for the fourth time in five games, bested the visiting Trail Blazers by 34 in the paint and scored 19 of the final 25 points in regulation. NEW YORK -- There may not be a team in the NHL that needs a win more than the New York Islanders. A desperate Islanders team is going to meet an angry but wounded opponent Friday night, when the Pittsburgh Penguins travel to Barclays Center for the second meeting this season between the Metropolitan Division rivals.The Islanders (5-8-3), who reached the second round of the playoffs last spring for the first time since 1993, will enter Friday with the fewest points in the Eastern Conference. New York has lost three straight (0-2-1) and six of seven (1-3-3) this month.In the Islanders most recent game, a 4-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, a rapidly emptying crowd of 12,498 chanted for the firing of head coach Jack Capuano, who appeared to be making a case to stay by using some variation of its on me three times during his postgame press conference.I have to find the right combinations for us to find some offense, said Capuano, whose team is 2-8-3 when scoring three goals or fewer. Weve been able to do it in the past. I have faith in myself and our coaching staff to figure it out. But we have to find a way to get some offense.Capuano tinkered with the top line during practice Thursday, when center and captain John Tavares was flanked by Ryan Strome and Josh Bailey. Tavares has a team-high five goals this season while Strome and Bailey have scored twice apiece.The new-look Islanders will get quite a challenge Friday against the defending Stanley Cup champion Penguins (10-4-2), who suffered their worst loss in almost six years in falling to the Washington Capitals, 7-1, on Wednesday.We were embarrassed out there tonight, all of us, Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan said Wednessday night.dddddddddddd. Its humbling when you go through it. My hope is that we learn from it and make sure it doesnt happen again.Pittsburgh last lost by at least six goals on Feb. 2, 2011, when the Islanders routed the Penguins 9-3 at Nassau Coliseum.Our team as a group tonight, we werent ready to play, Sullivan said. And we can search for solutions tactically, but sometimes this game is more about will than it is about skill.Not only did the Penguins lose the game, but they potentially lost two key forwards for Fridays game.Rugged wingers Patric Hornqvist and Chris Kunitz could both miss the game. Both are day-to-day, with Hornqvist dealing with a concussion and Kunitz dealing with a lower-body injury. Their availability wont be determined until Fridays morning skate.The Penguins also waived Tom Sestito on Wednesday in order to give themselves flexibility should they need to make a call-up or two on Friday afternoon.The Islanders have had an uncanny knack this month for running into teams coming off lopsided losses. Of New Yorks six losses in November, five have come against a team that lost its preceding game by more than two goals.Im sure theyll be well-prepared no matter what the circumstance, Tavares told Newsday following practice on Thursday.The Penguins won the first game of the season between the teams on Oct. 27, when they beat the Islander 4-2 at PPG Paints Arena. The game Friday marks the first of two trips to Barclays Center this month for Pittsburgh, which visits again Nov. 30. The season series concludes March 24 in Pittsburgh. ' ' '