Both the Trojans and Bruins opened their respective football seasons over the weekend. USC won, while UCLA lost.

UCLA: The Bruins almost captured a win over Houston in Texas, but suffered a disappointing 38-34 loss in their 2011 opener.

Running back Johnathan Franklin was back to being his usual self, amassing 128 rushing yards on 16 carries with one touchdown. Quarterback Richard Brehaut threw for 264 yards on 17-of-26 attempts and two touchdowns.

UCLA was down as much as 17 points, but a late push nearly ignited a complete comeback. Houston held on to the win.

The Bruins host their home opener on Saturday, Sept. 10, at the Rose Bowl against San Jose State. Kick-off is at 7 p.m.

USC: The Trojans hosted the Minnesota Golden Gophers at the Coliseum, and USC escaped with a 19-17 victory.

USC got off to a hot start offensively, as junior quarterback Matt Barkley connected with sophomore wide receiver Robert Woods on two scoring touchdowns. With 6:30 on the clock, Woods caught a perfectly thrown ball at the corner flag of the end zone’s left side. Woods made his defender looked foolish after a few moves to avoid contact.

In the middle of the second quarter, Barkley tossed a 43-yard pass to Woods to make the score 12-0. Minutes later, the Golden Gophers cut the lead to 12-3, but the Trojan duo connected yet again just before halftime, increasing the lead to 19-3.

Minnesota, however, made a push in the second half and eventually got within two points of the Trojans, who were completely shutdown. Barkley made it known that he became worried.

“I obviously had flashbacks to last year, but this is a new year and a new defense,” he says after the affair.

USC next faces Utah on Sept. 10 at 4:30 p.m. at the Coliseum.