PALO ALTO, Calif. -- It was always going to be one or the other, restored optimism or reinforced angst. A win by any means over No. 9/10 Stanford would provide at least a foundation for excitement. A loss would surely multiply any residual frustration from the rough edges of USC's season-opening win.

Everyone knows by now which direction things went for the No. 12/17 Trojans on Saturday -- a one-sided 17-3 loss that will amplify the program's loudest critics.

For that matter, it was hard not to feel it (and hear it) coming before the first half even ended at Stanford Stadium.

USC coach Clay Helton's decision to go for it on fourth-and-2 from the Stanford 40 with 1 minute, 25 seconds left in the second quarter quickly became a fulcrum for that frustration. The Trojans weren't exactly piling up inspiring drives and were still looking for their first points (and any momentum whatsoever). If it worked, maybe the tenor of the game would have changed.

But it didn't work. Needing those two yards, USC put the ball in the hands of quarterback JT Daniels -- temporarily, that is. Stanford linebacker Joey Alfieri barreled through the middle of the Trojans' offensive line for a strip sack on Daniels. The Cardinal pounced on it, taking over 11 yards closer to the end zone just across midfield and seized their own momentum from there.

Stanford quarterback K.J. Costello immediately threw a 26-yard strike down the seam to tight end Kaden Smith (a doubly painful site for USC fans on a day when the Trojans got the opposite impact from their own tight end play.) A few plays later, Colby Parkinson used his physicality to separate himself from cornerback Greg Johnson in the end zone and barely got his foot in (according to the replay-upheld call on the field) for a nine-yard touchdown and a 14-0 lead.

"I don't think that was a big turning point. We didn't play well the whole game," Daniels said later.

He had a point.

It was a brutal first half for the Trojans. The defense had clamped down on Heisman Trophy hopeful Bryce Love after he (and a key third-and-long coverage breakdown) carried the Cardinal to a quick go-ahead touchdown on the opening drive. Love had 37 yards on that drive and just three more the rest of the half.

It wasn't going to matter if the offense couldn't do its part, though, and any hope for another second-half surge from the Trojans slowly withered away.

Daniels tried. He hit Michael Pittman for a 45-yard hook-up down the left side early in the third quarter, taking the Trojans to the Stanford 14. And he threw a really nice ball to Amon-Ra St. Brown in the back of the end zone, but St. Brown came down with the ball just out of bounds.

A few inches and maybe things progress a little differently from there, but then again, little about this game felt close.

USC settled for a 35-yard Chase McGrath field goal and a 14-3 deficit, which would mark the Trojans' lone scoring play. It's the first time since the 2016 opener against Alabama that the offense failed to reach the end zone.

After a Cardinal field goal made it 17-3, Daniels made another nice play on the following USC series, spinning out of a sack and rushing for a first-down conversion on third-and-4. The Trojans would get to the Stanford 34 on that drive, but again it unraveled. Daniels threw high and off the hands of tight end Tyler Petite on second-and-8, continuing a rough game for that connection. And Stanford linebacker Sean Barton bowled over running back Vavae Malepeai to sack Daniels and force a punt.

The only other charge for the Trojans came late in the fourth quarter and ended with an interception at the goal line.

Daniels finished 16 for 34 for 215 yards, 0 touchdowns and interceptions on his final two passes. He missed a series in the first quarter due to a bruise on his throwing hand, and while x-rays were negative he acknowledged he had to adjust the way he gripped the ball the rest of the way. He wasn't great, but it's hard to pin this one on him.

The problem is how dependent USC looks to be on its freshman quarterback to lift the entire offense.

"I would say if this is a learning experience, obviously, 1, the quarterback is going to learn from the good times and the bad, and every rep that he gets he's going to get better from it," Helton said. "And every rep that we get as a staff, we're going to learn how to be able to work around him and the offense. We've got three really good backs right now that I think can run the ball effectively, we've got some damn good wideout that I thought made some plays and we'll keep it to where the quarterback can function. I know we will. He's a very smart person, he's a very talented person and we'll grow from tonight."

Aca'Cedric Ware got a team-high 18 carries and finished with a quiet 59 yards, while Stephen Carr rushed for 52 yards on 10 carries. Tyler Vaughns led USC receivers with seven catches for 84 yards while Pittman had three catches for 65 yards.

Love finished with 136 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries for Stanford.

This game was always going to swing the pendulum of opinion one way or the other. But it was hard to imagine it going quite like this, with the offense failing to score a touchdown while the defense did enough to deliver a better outcome.

There will be plenty more to discuss this week. Plenty more questions about the play-calling and more facets of the offensive breakdown. And plenty of wondering where USC goes from here.

"Obviously, there's some mistakes that we will clean up over the next week," Helton said. "This is an early game in the season against a top-10 team, and all our hopes and aspirations and dreams are still out there. And our team understands that."

It's a long season, sure, but it's also going to be a long week ahead.