Rees reaches milestones
With his first-quarter touchdown pass to junior tight end Troy Niklas, senior quarterback Tommy Rees surpassed 6,000 career passing yards, making him the fifth Irish quarterback to reach that milestone. Earlier in the game, Rees passed former Irish quarterback Rick Mirer for fifth all-time on Notre Dame's career passing yards list. Rees recorded his 49th career touchdown pass on a strike to senior receiver TJ Jones in the second quarter.
"I think [the milestone] does say a lot about [Rees] and his perseverance," Irish coach Brian Kelly said. He's just a tough kid, and he just keeps battling. I'm sure he'll look back on that a little bit later and be able to point out, 'Hey, I did play at Notre Dame, and I wasn't that bad.'"
Jones establishes consistency
With his 11-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter, Jones recorded his 15th career touchdown reception, which put him in a tie for ninth all-time in Notre Dame history with former Irish tight end Ken McAfee. Jones has now caught a touchdown in four consecutive games and has recorded at least one reception in 34 straight games.
Home losing streak snapped
With the victory, Notre Dame beat USC at Notre Dame Stadium for the first time since 2001. Notre Dame's 14-10 halftime lead marked the first time the Irish had led the Trojans at halftime in a home game since 2005, when then-No. 9 Notre Dame lost to then-No. 1 USC, 34-31. The Irish also recorded back-to-back victories over the Trojans for the first time since 2000-2001.
Contact Brian Hartnett at bhartnet@nd.edu
