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As Utah lined up for first-and-10 at the USC 18 in the final minute, Fox Sports 1 commentator Brady Quinn laid out the possibilities.

"They can try to take a shot here," he said, "or they can be conservative, run the football and center the ball for field goal kicker Andy Phillips."

Which option sounds more like the Utah of the past few years?

You know the ending to this sequence, of course: Troy Williams fired to Tim Patrick for the touchdown, the lead and eventually the 31-27 win over USC for the No. 24 Utes (4-0). The final play call, made with two timeouts in hand as well, might be a surprise in isolation, given Utah's conservative tendencies in recent years.

But the final pass was the culmination of an entire second half of risks and taking shots. Somewhere between Utah's first drive — a 59-yard, 12-run touchdown campaign — and its last of 11 passes and only four runs, the Utes elected to put the game in the hands of the passing offense.

It worked.

Utah has talked a lot about evolving its passing game and making it a legitimate threat, but Friday's game showed how much has changed, as the Utes threw for 202 yards in the second half after throwing only nine times for 68 yards in the first. Whittingham, who has directed mostly run-first offenses since Utah joined the Pac-12, handed the keys to the passing game, and most notably Williams.

"He's taken a step forward in each of the last three games, probably the biggest step tonight," Whittingham said afterward. "You can just see him coming into his own. It's only four games in, but if the trend he's taking continues, we have a chance to have a pretty good season."

Williams was strong in the second half once he got the green light to throw. On the three touchdown drives late in the game, he was 15 for 22. That included downfield passes, like a 28-yard strike on a double-reverse flea-flicker, or shorter, tighter throws like a 9-yard slant to Demari Simpkins in very tight coverage. He didn't take the same kind of risks that led to four interceptions in his last two starts, which helped Utah gain a positive turnover margin.

Utah also showed the sync between Williams and his receivers: On Raelon Singleton's 10-yard touchdown catch, Williams threw before Singleton broke to the sideline, trusting the junior receiver would get there. It was timing that also helped Utah complete a variety of comebacks and tight sideline routes on the final drive of the game — a level of polish that Utah hasn't consistently had passing the football.

The second half not only reflected well on Williams, but also Utah's receivers, one of the most maligned units on the team. Singleton, Tim Patrick and Cory Butler-Byrd caught for a combined 191 yards on 13 catches, gaining separation when Williams needed them to.

"Those wide receivers are here, man," senior guard Isaac Asiata said. "Everybody has been waiting for the wide receivers to show up to the party, and they came today."

It was also notable that Utah went for first down on four fourth-down plays, all on runs. Only two weeks removed from kicking a field goal against BYU on fourth-and-short, Whittingham gave the nod for the Utes to push against USC often, citing the confidence level of his offensive line and running backs.

Whittingham trusting the offense to win games? This is still Utah, right?

Utah's passing game continues to trend into more productive territory. Williams has thrown 200 yard or more in three of his first four starts, after Utah had only one game over 200 yards passing in its final six of the 2015 season. Six receivers with multiple catches this season are averaging at least 10 yards per reception. After a clean-sheet performance with no sacks surrendered on Friday, Utah's offensive line has given up only five sacks in four games.

A reporter asked Williams what he learned about Utah's offense against USC.

"Nothing that I didn't already know," he said. "We've had great confidence in our offense all season."

After the late comeback, it's clear that Utah's coaches feel the same way, too.

Twitter: @kylegoon —

No. 24 Utah 31, Southern Cal 27

Southern Cal 7 10 7 3 — 27

Utah 7 3 7 14 — 31

First Quarter

UTH • Tr.Williams 10 run (Phillips kick), 7:26

USC • A.Jackson 100 kickoff return (Boermeester kick), 7:19

Second Quarter

UTH • FG Phillips 36, 6:48

USC • J.Davis 14 run (Boermeester kick), 4:48

USC • FG Boermeester 32, :40

Third Quarter

USC • Darnold 8 run (Boermeester kick), 9:54

UTH • Asiata fumble recovery in endzone (Phillips kick), 5:02

Fourth Quarter

USC • FG Boermeester 43, 15:00

UTH • Singleton 10 pass from Tr.Williams (Phillips kick), 9:54

UTH • Patrick 18 pass from Tr.Williams (Phillips kick), :23

Attendance • 46,133.

USC UTH

First downs 22 30

Rushes-yards 33-213 47-186

Passing 253 270

Comp-Att-Int 18-26-0 21-34-0

Return Yards 171 27

Punts-Avg. 1-30.0 3-49.66

Fumbles-Lost 3-3 2-1

Penalties-yards 7-49 5-43

Time of Possession 22:21 37:39

Individual Statistics

Rushing • Southern Cal, J.Davis 10-126, Darnold 9-41, Ware 5-20, R.Jones 8-15, A.Jackson 1-11. Utah, Moss 23-90, Shyne 14-62, Tr.Williams 7-17, Butler-Byrd 1-15, McCormick 2-2, Asiata 0-0.

Passing • Southern Cal, Darnold 18-26-0-253. Utah, Tr.Williams 21-34-0-270.

Receiving • Southern Cal, Smith-Schuster 8-98, Rogers 5-58, Mitchell 2-45, Petite 1-22, McNamara 1-21, Ware 1-6. Utah, Patrick 6-100, Butler-Byrd 4-49, Singleton 3-42, Moeai 2-20, Handley 1-28, Wilson 1-9, Simpkins 1-9, McCormick 1-7, Moss 1-4, Shyne 1-2.

Missed Field Goals • None.