Elaine Thompson/Associated Press

There were whispers this week, whispers that this was the type of game that Southern California has found a way to lose in the past. Remember Stanford? Remember Oregon State?

But it couldn’t happen this year, could it? Not after the Trojans beat Ohio State in Columbus last week behind a game-winning drive led by the freshman quarterback Matt Barkley. They were coming in with momentum, and Washington did not seem to be in their class. But the Huskies, behind quarterback Jake Locker and Coach Steve Sarkisian (a former assistant under Pete Carroll at U.S.C.), pulled it off, shocking U.S.C., 16-13, with a 22-yard field goal in the final seconds by Erik Folk.

Barkley did not play, because of an injured shoulder, and Aaron Corp got the start for the Trojans. It didn’t matter to the Huskies, who snapped a 15-game losing streak last week by beating Idaho and now have a two-game winning streak after beating the No. 3 team in the country. And U.S.C. finds itself in a position that has become all too familiar the past few seasons: on the outside of the national championship conversation and needing some help from someone else to get back in.