Quick look back at last season, where the Trojans finished 12-1 (8-1 Pac-10) to win their seventh straight Pac-10 championship and third straight Rose Bowl game. The season started with high expectations behind a defense returning 10 of 11 starters and the start of the Mark Sanchez era. Things started off well for USC, going all the way to Charlottesville, VA to take on the Virginia Cavaliers, where the Trojans scored early and often en route to a 52-7 romp. Mark Sanchez went 26-35 for 338 yards, 3 TD, and an INT while seven different players scored a touchdown.
After a bye, the class of the Big Ten, the Ohio State Buckeyes made a rare trip west to play the Trojans. The Buckeyes struck first with a short field goal after marching down the field under the direction of both senior QB Todd Boeckman and true freshman QB Terrell Pryor. But after that it was all USC, as Sanchez went 17-28 for 172 yards, 4 TD, and an INT, Damian Williams hauled in two third quarter touchdowns, and Rey Maualuga had a game-changing 48 yard interception return for TD. USC would go on to win 35-3 as things looked promising for USC, having passed their biggest test of the year.
But the Trojans' fast start was quickly derailed in Corvalis, OR by the Oregon State Beavers, who came into the game with a 1-2 record. USC struggled to move the ball in the first half and sustain any drives, while Pac-10 Offensive Player of the Year Jacquizz Rodgers ripped the defense for 186 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns. The Trojans found themselves down 21-0 at the half, but was able to cut it to a seven point game before a Sanchez interception was returned to the two yard line, which was quickly cashed in by Rodgers to put the game out of reach, which the Beavs won 27-21. While this loss did not look as bad the rest of the season as Oregon State finished the season with 9 wins, USC could not recover from this loss and were never really considered for the BCS National Championship the rest of the season. In fact, their string of conference championships were in doubt as Oregon State continued to defeat other teams in Pac-10 play.
USC did not have much time to lick their wounds as the always dangerous Oregon Ducks made their way down to Los Angeles. A quick start by the Ducks, down to their third string QB, Jeremiah Masoli, jumped out to a 10-3 lead, silencing the home crowd. But the Trojans were able to regroup, scoring 24 unanswered points heading into halftime to send the stunned Oregon team down 27-10 at the half. USC scored 17 more points in the second half to win 44-10 and start an unprecedented streak of unanswered points scored over the course of three games. Sanchez recovered from his poor game in Corvalis, going 19-28 with 332 yards and 3 TD while David Buehler scored 14 points and kept the Ducks with poor field position with his booming kickoffs.
The downtrodden Arizona State Sun Devils next came to the Coliseum, not having recovered from their upset at the hands of the UNLV Rebels and the spanking they received from the Georgia Bulldogs. USC rushed out to a comfortable 21-0 lead after Kevin Thomas returned a Rudy Carpenter pass 46 yards for a touchdown, but sloppy play dominated the rest of the game, as the Trojan special teams blocked two Thomas Weber field goals, USC committed five turnovers, including four on four consecutive possessions, Sanchez threw three interceptions, and both teams struggled to sustain any drives. At the end of the day, a shutout (28-0) is nice, but lack of consistency with the offense would rear its ugly head in future games.
But nothing the Washington State Cougars could do would prevent their demise, a 69-0 shellacking in Pullman, WA. Sanchez carved through the porous Coug defense, throwing 15-20 for 253 yards and 5 TD in the first half before coach Pete Carroll decided to pull back a bit. C.J. Gable had 16 rushed for 104 yards and 3 TD and Broderick Green rumbled for 126 yards on 18 carries and 2 touchdowns before he decided to transfer to Arkansas. That impressive streak of unanswered points mentioned in the Oregon paragraph? Add the 41 points to close the Oregon game, the 28 points in the ASU game, and 69 more against Wazzu, and that streak was up to 138-0. Not to shabby.
But also remember the lack of consistency in the offense from the ASU paragraph? It happened in Tuscon against the Arizona Wildcats, as they again came oh-so-close to knocking USC off its Pac-10 throne. Sanchez went 21-36 for 216 yards, a TD, an INT, and a fumble which led to Arizona tying the game at 10 midway through the third quarter. USC did just enough to win, though, as Sanchez found fullback Stanley Havili for a 30 yard bomb for the final margin of 17-10, and the defense held the prolific Wildcat offense to 188 yards and made a key fourth-and-1 stop late in the final quarter to hold on for the win. By the way, that unanswered scores streak ended at 141 after Jason Bondzio kicked a field goal in the second quarter.
The Washington Huskies would be the cureall for the Trojans' offensive woes, as they were in the midst of sleepwalking through a 0-12 season, which showed in a 56-0 USC win. USC jumped out to a 42-0 halftime lead behind Patrick Turner's 6 catches for 100 yards and 2 TDs and Gable's 10 carries for 108 yards and 2 TDs. The final true test of the season would be against the Cal Bears, knocking on the door for the lead in the Pac-10 after defeating Oregon the week before.
The defense would hold its own again in Los Angeles as the Trojans held off the California Golden Bears 17-3, the eighth time USC held their opponents to 10 points or less. USC milked their 10-3 halftime lead until a late score by Ronald Johnson in a game mired by Trojan penalties (10 for 105 yards), but allowed only 165 yards of offense, including a paltry 27 rushing yards to a team that featured Jahvid Best, the "best" running back in the conference. While the Trojans passed their final test of the season, they still had to wait for Oregon State, the team who started the season 2-3, to lose to another Pac-10 foe, as they held the slim lead in the conference by virtue of their win over USC.
But USC almost overlooked the team that made them human in 2007, the Stanford Cardinal. Sanchez had trouble passing against the second worst pass defense in the Pac-10 (Wazzu was last), and the Trojans needed a 93 yard kickoff return by Gable to tie the game heading into halftime. USC went to the ground game to wear out the Cardinal behind Stafon Johnson's 14 carries for 115 yards and 2 TDs, and Sanchez hit Havili for a 50 yard bomb to blow the game open. Stanford scored as time expired for the final margin of 45-24.
The weekend of November 29th was a perfect one for USC, as their archrivals UCLA lost to Arizona State 34-9 after the Sun Devils scored four defensive touchdowns, USC won their seventh straight against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, and Oregon knocked off Oregon State in the Civil War, meaning USC was a victory over UCLA away from returning to the Rose Bowl game. But to the game itself, USC flexed its muscle against the Irish, downtrodden after their upset to lowly Syracuse in South Bend the week before. Joe McKnight ripped off a 55 yard run to blow the game open as the defense held the Irish to without a first down until the end of the third quarter and allowed 91 yards of total offense on the way to a 38-3 win.
The feisty UCLA Bruins, under new coach Rick Neuheisel, was the only thing standing between USC and the Rose Bowl, a similar scenario to 2006, when the Bruins upset then #2 USC 13-9, keeping the Trojans out of the BCS National Championship and starting Florida's reign of terror. And it looked like history would repeat itself, as UCLA turned a Gable fumble into a reverse pass from Dominique Johnson to Kahlil Bell for a quick 7-0 lead. But this time, the Trojans responded quick and often. Wearing their home cardinal in the Rose Bowl as a visitor for the first time in decades, USC scored three times to take a 21-7 lead into the half. By then, UCLA's offensive woes combined with USC's suffocating defense meant little the Bruins could do would change the outcome of the game. The Trojans held on to the ball for over 36 minutes as they won 28-7, clinching their fourth straight Rose Bowl berth and seventh Pac-10 conference championship, fourth outright.
Waiting for USC would be the Big Ten champion Penn State Nittany Lions, coming off a strong 11-1 campaign where they fell 24-23 at Iowa for their only set back. Featuring their HD offense, Penn State hoped to end the Big Ten's failure to appear in big games. But after trading first quarter touchdowns, USC scored 24 second quarter points to take a commanding 31-7 lead. Sanchez went 28-35 (setting a Rose Bowl completion record) for 413 yards and 4 TD and rushed for another score as the slow Penn State defense could not keep up with the speedy Trojan receivers, especially Williams, who had 10 catches for 162 yards and a TD. Penn State showed some fight late as USC was sloppy at the end of the game, making the final score a respectable 38-24. USC finished the season ranked #2 behind BCS champion Florida.
Ok, so maybe not so quick look back at the season. In the offseason, Sanchez declared early for the draft, offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian took the head coaching job at Washington and took defensive coordinator Nick Holt with him, causing a lot of shuffling in the coaching ranks. Taylor Mays opted to stay in college, hoping to have some continuity in the defense. Matt Barkley headlined another top 10 recruiting class that made more news for the players who signed elsewhere than the actual haul made by Carroll. So a look at the team that will take the field on Saturdays this year:
Offense
Quarterback
#7 Matt Barkley - Barkley will be the first true freshman to start the season opener in USC history. At least he will have a game to get his feet wet before the test against Ohio State. Checked him out at the mock game on Saturday, and I would give him an average grade. He obviously has the tools to be a four year starter here, but his decision making must improve quickly. There were several time he tried to force a pass when the obvious choice was to throw the ball away. Carroll had a quote saying that Barkley has the same problem that Sanchez had last year, trying always to make the big play, which led in part to John David Booty being a two year starter at USC, since Booty played smarter, even if he didn't have the big play ability of Sanchez. Aaron Corp was the save choice here, as he made better decisions with the ball and has the ability to scramble for yards when no receivers are open. Hopefully Corp will be able to get some reps in against San Jose State in case he is needed for Ohio State. Mitch Mustain and Garrett Green round out the depth chart.
Running Back
#4 Joe McKnight OR #2 C.J. Gable OR #13 Stafon Johnson OR #21 Allen Bradford - McKnight starts because he has that big play ability, as in he can break away for a touchdown on any run. But there are sometimes that a hole is open for a 5-7 yard gain that McKnight declines in hopes for a big play that just isn't there and runs in the wrong direction. Oh and there's that fumble issue that needs to be resolved pronto if he wants to be the next Reggie Bush. Gable should be the every down back along with Johnson (since we must insist on a stable of running backs), as Gable can block and catch out of the backfield. Johnson is the workhorse, especially near the goal line as he has a nose for the endzone. Bradford will most likely be in on kickoff coverage and as a fullback on those bootleg plays where he leaks out for a catch, but he showed his ability in the scrimmage, when he was in beast mode. If I had my wish, Johnson would bet 20+ carries a game and the rest would just take it, but it's awfully hard to keep such talented backs on the bench. Marc Tyler and Curtis McNeal should see mop-up time in blowouts.
Fullback
#31 Stanley Havili - Was academically ineligible for the Rose Bowl game against Penn State, but we need him back there, as a threat to catch the ball, and for those fullback dive plays which almost always seem to work. The only problems with him are to stay eligible for the season and stay healthy. D.J. Shoemate should share some time with Havili.
Flanker
#18 Damian Williams - Note to Barkley, look for D-Will early and often. Williams has the chance to be one of the best receivers in the conference, if not the nation, as long as Barkley uses him as a security blanket out there. Williams looked really smooth at the scrimmage, both as a receiver and punt returner. Barkley definitely has a lot of options at receiver out there, as will be noted soon enough, and if the offensive line can gel in front of him, all he would need to do is improve his decision making. Back to Williams, as he led the team in receptions (58) and yards (871) and scored 9 times last year. Travon Patterson and true freshman De'Von Flournoy should see time at flanker as well.
Split End
Tight End
#86 Anthony McCoy - Quite the reverse from 2007, when Mackey Award winner Fred Davis led the Trojans in receptions, yards, and TDs, on a team that lacked depths at receiver, as in 2008, McCoy finished fifth in receptions and yards with only one TD. Could have been due to the QB too, or the drop off in talent from Davis to McCoy. Regardless, McCoy, now a senior, should provide a short range target for Barkley and another set of reliable hands for the true freshman. Looking at the set of receivers the Trojans do have, Williams, Havili, McCoy, and even Ausberry all can catch the ball and should help Barkley's transition to D-1 football.
Offensive Line
#71 Charles Brown (LT), #68 Butch Lewis (LG), #53 Jeff Byers (C), #56 Alex Parsons (RG), #70 Tyron Smith (RT) - A lot of experience, except at RT on this line. The O-line took a slight hit when USC lost C Kris O'Dowd with a knee injury for about a month, but Byers, on his Hershel Dennis memorial sixth year of eligibility, should hold down the center position until O'Dowd's return. This group should give Barkley ample time in the pocket, hopefully not long enough to make a bad decision out there...(yeah, still not feeling the Barkley decision...). Zack Heberer and Nick Howell are fifth year seniors who should be able to plug any holes on the line when needed.
Defense
Left Defensive End
#96 Wes Horton OR #97 Malik Jackson OR #8 Nick Perry - These three should do a decent job filling in for the injured Armond Armstead, who is out a couple of months with a broken foot. Shouldn't take a huge dropoff here, but big things were planned for Armstead.
Nose Tackle
#44 Christian Tupou - I guess Carroll saw a lot in Tupou to burn his redshirt to play him on a handful of downs in his freshman year. His wild hair flowing out of his helmet reminds me of Rey Maualuga, in that he will be a tenacious force on the D-line, but I also envision a couple of personal foul penalties on the opposing QB which may hurt us down the road. Another beast mode player, Hebron Fangupo, should cause trouble in the backfield as well.
Defensive Tackle
#91 Jurrell Casey OR #99 Averell Spicer - Man it seems like Spicer has been at SC forever. Casey made several plays in the scrimmage, and paired with Tupou in the middle, should keep pressure on opposing QBs all season.
Right Defensive End
#93 Everson Griffen - Is this the year Griffen makes the transition to LoJack like DE? Not sure, as his backup, freshman Devon Kennard, looks to be the most touted DE since, well, Griffen. Griffen made a splash in 2007 when he had 3.5 sacks against Oregon State, but hasn't made much noise since. Maybe Carroll should make Griffen read the Inner Game of Tennis like he made Jackson read. Or maybe he can just start another true freshman...
Strong Linebacker
#17 Mike Morgan - Wow, when I saw we signed Morgan a few years back out of Texas, I never saw him becoming a starter. I think this group of 'backers have a combined 0 starts between them (I could be wrong). But apparently what they lack in experience, they make up in speed. And hopefully intelligence. Because speed minus football smarts will lead to a lot of running past the guy with the ball, especially against those shifty running backs (seems like there's a shifty running back at Arizona, Oregon State, California, and a power back at Stanford and Oregon... ugh). Not much depth behind Morgan, as there are two more true freshman ready to step up, including Jarvis Jones.
Middle Linebacker
#54 Chris Galippo - Another highly regarded recruit who has come in and done nothing but get hurt... two back surgeries later, ladies and gentlemen, your starting middle linebacker for the USC Trojans, Mr. Chris Galippo! Well, I guess it's better than his backups, who don't look to be ready either. But these guys are fast! Maybe this team can tackle Jacquizz Rodgers this year!
Weakside Linebacker
#6 Malcolm Smith - Gets extra points for being former WR Steve Smith's
Cornerbacks
#15 Kevin Thomas and
Strong Safety
#26 Will Harris - The only good thing about Wright being lost for the year is that Harris will be able to play a lot more. I was thinking that we could even go with three safties (Harris and Pinkard deep, Mays playing much closer to the line, almost like the third linebacker the safety would replace).
Free Safety
#2 Taylor Mays - Saved the best for last. By the end of the season, may be my favorite Trojan defender of the Pete Carroll era. Could be hampered a bit by the new rule that prohibits big hits on "defenseless" receivers, but if Carroll allows him to be more of a playmaker (like Troy Polamalu) instead of being the safety net on defense, Mays could have a monster year. Or get hurt (shudders at the thought)...
Special Teams
Coach
Brian Schneider - The biggest move of the offseason was the hiring of a dedicated special teams coach, probably due to all of the loses the Trojans suffered when Sarkisian took half the staff up north to UW. Still some problems in the return game, as one play in the scrimmage, two blockers failed to block the gunners, Brandon Carswell decided to take a kickoff from deep in the end zone and took it out to the five yard line, and our newly minted kicker, Jordan Congdon, missed a PAT, and "Big Balls" Pete decided to not try any field goals in the scrimmage, so we were not able to see Congdon's range (limited to 40 yards) nor JC transfer Jake Harfman's big leg. Sigh.
Place Kicker
#38 Jordan Congdon - Beat out Joe Houston and Harfman to be the kicker. Seems like a safe, solid pick (a la Booty of Sanchez), as Harfman has the bigger leg (like David Buehler), but Congdon seems very reliable inside 40 yards and on PATs (hopefully). Harfman will handle the kickoff duties, and was thought to be the punter too, as he had some booming kicks at the scrimmage, until Carroll named
Punter
#39 Billy O'Malley - the punter. Ugh. I'm having flashbacks of Greg Woidneck here. Does Tom Malone still have any eligibility left?
Punt Returner
#18 Damian Williams - I'm over joyed by this one. Just stay healthy out there D-Will.
Kick Returners
#2 C.J. Gable and #6 Curtis McNeal - Gable was solid on returns last season, and McNeal should be a Darren Sprolles type out there. Ronald Johnson would have been here sans his broken collarbone...
As for the season outlook? 10 wins may be below the standard for USC these days, but it could happen this year. A tough second week game in Columbus with an outstanding duel threat quarterback at the helm for Ohio State could end the Trojan's reign over the Big Ten, which looks like this:
September 7, 1996 - W @ Illinois (55-3)
August 30, 1998 - W vs. Purdue (27-17)
August 27, 2000 - W vs. Penn State (29-5)
January 2, 2003 (Orange Bowl) - W vs. #3 Iowa (38-17)
January 1, 2004 (Rose Bowl) - W vs. #4 Michigan (28-14)
January 1, 2007 (Rose Bowl) - W vs. #3 Michigan (32-18)
January 1, 2008 (Rose Bowl) - W vs. #13 Illinois (49-17)
September 13, 2008 - W vs. #5 Ohio State (35-3)
January 1, 2009 (Rose Bowl) - W vs. #8 Penn State (38-24)
USC will probably split the Oregon/Cal road games, both of which could decide the Pac-10 crown this year. Cal is a dangerous team with prolific runner Jahvid Best, and the Oregon schools always give USC trouble in the state of Oregon:
October 24, 1998 - L @ Oregon State (17-13)
September 25, 1999 - L @ Oregon (33-30, 3 O/T)
September 30, 2000 - L @ Oregon State (31-21, snapped USC's 26 game win streak over OSU)
September 22, 2001 - L @ Oregon (24-22, Oregon made field goal with 12 seconds left)
October 26, 2002 - W @ Oregon (44-33, trailed 19-14 at the half)
November 6, 2004 - W @ Oregon State (28-20, fell behind 13-0 to start game)
September 24, 2005 - W @ Oregon (45-13, fell behind 13-0 to start game)
October 28, 2006 - L @ Oregon State (33-31, trailed 33-10 midway through third)
October 27, 2007 - L @ Oregon (24-17)
September 25, 2008 - L @ Oregon State (27-21, trailed 21-0 at halftime)
3-7 in the last 10 games in the state of Oregon, and trailed in every game? Not good...
What do I expect? Always expect great (ew, WNBA motto for the year...). This is truly a rebuilding year for the Trojans, replacing 10 of 11 starters on defense and Sanchez on offense, as well as the entire kicking and punting units. The forgotten loss would also be the loss of the coaching staff that went up to Washington, as the Trojans have unproven offensive and defensive coordinators, though Carroll should stay in charge of the defense, and former Denver Broncos OC Jeremy Bates will be calling the plays. And the biggest question will be how Barkley will react in a game scenario? Will he be smart enough to either hit the dump off pass or throw it out of bounds rather than go for the big play? A Trojan QB has not had more than 10 interceptions in a year since Carson Palmer's sophomore season... will Barkley change that? Will he still be at the helm if it comes to that point? Will Aaron Corp become healthy enough to take the starting spot back? So many questions, and less than a week away from them being answered.
The different scenarios for the season: What should happen: A close set back in Columbus to Ohio State as Terrell Pryor scampers on 4th and goal from six yards out for the winning score with 19 seconds remaining as the Buckeyes win 31-28 and a loss to Oregon as Barkley throws a pick-6 as the Ducks win 24-17, with USC finishing 10-2, 8-1 Pac-10. The dream season would be 12-0, 9-0 Pac-10 with an upset over Florida in the BCS Championship game at the Rose Bowl. The worst that could happen? USC loses to Ohio State in a blowout, falls short at California and at Oregon, Notre Dame pulls a major upset en route to a 12-0 season and a spot in the BCS Championship, and UCLA pulls some trickery to shock USC as the Trojans finish 7-5, 6-3 Pac-10, then fall to Utah in the Las Vegas Bowl. Ugh. I've been thinking about the latter scenario waaay too much... Anyway, regardless of what happens to the team, it should be a great college football season, and I'll back the Trojans all the way. Fight on!
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