USC rolls over Wazzu and Cal

Two weeks ago, freshman QB Matt Barkley returned from a sprained shoulder to throw 13-22 for 247 yards and 2 TDs to as USC jumped out to a 20-0 first quarter lead and sputtered to a 27-6 win. Joe McKnight opened the scoring on a 3 yard run to cap a very efficient Trojan drive. Barkley finally targeted Damian Williams as his #1 receiver, connecting on a 57 yard TD pass one play after the Trojan special teams recovered an onside kick. Nine seconds earler, Barkley connected on a beautiful 31 pass to Brice Butler, showing no ill effects from his sore shoulder. The game started to look like the 69-0 rout in Pullman from last year, but the Trojan offense couldn't get anything going after their fast start, failing to score until Stafon Johnson scooted in from 6 yards out.

The third stringers gave up a touchdown to Washington State in the closing seconds, but all day the defense had trouble containing freshman QB Jeff Tuel, as starting QB Marshall Lobbestael was getting sacked left and right. The defense allowed only a few completitions by Tuel until the Coug's final drive, but it seemed like the Wazzu running backs were gaining 6-8 yards on every first down carry. But when Tuel did drop back and pass, he was either sacked or hurried into a poor pass. The defense had problems getting the Cougar offense off the field as well, as they had possession of the ball for over 36 minutes, or 60% of the game.

And a lot of the problems that reared their ugly head against Washington reappeared against Washington State, as Joe McKnight lost a fumble and Aaron Corp fumbled on the only play where he didn't just turn and hand the ball to Curtis McNeal. The Trojans also committed 13 penalties for 115 yards, with 75 of those yards coming in the first quarter. This was not the bounce back performance that the Trojans needed after a sloppy loss to the Huskies. It looked like a long game ahead of us in Berkeley against Jahvid Best.

One positive, even though it was against the Washington State special teams, was Damian Williams' punt returns, as he had 6 for 80 yards, production we haven't had since Reggie Bush graduated. But despite the effort by Washington State to not get embarrased again this season, USC needed to make a point in this game that they were healthy and righted the ship. Instead, they floundered, scoring 0 points on two drives that got inside the Cougs' 2 yard line and Jordan Congdon proved reliable in missing a 43 yard field goal.

Despite the Trojans' struggles against Washington State, USC moved up from #12 to #7 in the AP poll thanks to upsets suffered by then-#4 Mississippi, #5 Penn State, #6 Cal, and #9 Miami, as well as #10 Oklahoma having a bye week. Not only did the Golden Bears lose, they were embarassed, 42-3, by Oregon, resulting in a huge loss of confidence by Cal. The game between USC and Cal two weeks ago looked to be one between two top five teams; now, it was a game to keep Rose Bowl dreams alive.

And the Trojans did just that. Joe McKnight ran for 119 yards and 2 TDs, and Damian Williams had 100 yards receiving and scored USC's first punt return touchdown since 2005 as the Trojans romped to a 30-3 win. The fragile mind set Cal was in after their shellacking against the Ducks shattered after they moved the ball down the field on the opening drive against USC, only for Cal QB Kevin Riley to throw an interception to S Taylor Mays from the USC 5 yard line. The offense did the rest, moving the ball quickly down the field and scoring on Joe McKnight's 38 yard run, aided by a poor tackle attempt by CB Syd'Quan Thompson. After Cal's next drive stalled, USC tacked on a short field goal by Jordan Congdon. The second quarter opened with Cal punting to Damian Williams, who broke free on a 66 yard punt return for a touchdown. It was the Trojans' first punt return for a touchdown since Reggie Bush did it against Washington in 2005. The stifiling defense, led by Mays' interception and 10 tackle performance, and Chris Gallippo's three pass breakups, held Cal scoreless until Vince D'Amato kicked a meaningless field goal to cut the USC lead to 23-3. Carroll's troops marched back down field and scored an "F-U" touchdown in response to Cal's field goal to close the scoring at 30-3. Cal tumbled from #6 in the nation to out of the polls on the heels of being outscored 72-6 in their last two games, which included a 65 point unanswered streak.

Well, this was the first game was pleased with the team's performance since the Rose Bowl against Penn State. The San Jose State game was a blowout, but it was still San Jose State. Ohio State showed the real problems we have on offense. Washington, well, you know. Washington State should have been San Jose State part deux, but le fail on that one. But Cal, even after being blown out by Oregon the week before, is still a good team. Jahvid Best could have broken off a touchdown on any touch, but the Trojan defense held him in check, to 47 yards on 14 carries, with about a third of those coming from the Wildcat formation. Riley missed a lot of receivers, including Shane Vereen on a trick play that he sailed over Vereen's head. The Cal defense gave up a lot of yards in between the 20s, but a better offense would have turned Congdan's three field goals into touchdowns. Blame it on the playcalling or on the young QB, but against Oregon, trips inside the opponent's 10 yard line need to be touchdowns. I guess with this defense, which has made leaps since the first quarter against San Jose State, field goals may be good enough. And good offensive balance, we haven't had a 100 yard receiver and rusher since the Washington game last year.

But one huge, HUGE positive from the last time I posted has been the stark improvement in special teams. I ragged on coach Brian Schneider after the loss to Washington, but he had proved me wrong since. Starting with the Wazzu game, getting 80 punt return yards from Williams, and the onside kick after they noticed that the Cougar blockers turned their backs to the ball a few moments too soon. Some people were critical of the onside kick, but I loved it, and it will make teams down the road prepare for it and not turn too early to set up the blocking for the return. And other teams like Cal, Notre Dame, or Oregon did not have the same vunerability as Wazzu, so this was maybe the only time to unleash it. And Williams' 66 yard punt return. Putting D-Will back there has paid off, both in his catching (no more fumbles from McKnight) and elusiveness (McKnight is fast, but he cannot break tackles). It helps having two blockers on the opposing team's lead gunner, and there was at least once when we sent a man for a block attempt, a welcome sight. Now if we can only find a long distance kicker. Didn't we used to do that? In 2006? David Buehler 49 yard field goal against Cal to tie the game? Anyone? Buehler ~= Jacob Harfman? No? Ok...

Pac-10 rankings. Might as well put the 10 teams, er 9 teams (Wazzu at the bottom) in a bag and pull them out at random. Oh well.

1. Oregon (4-1) - That Boise State game feels like such a long time ago. Hopefully QB Jeremiah Masoli can be healthy for the game at UCLA this weekend, as them Bruins are always scrappy under Rick Neuheisel.
2. USC (4-1) - A much needed bye week before heading to Notre Dame with WR Ronald Johnson and DE Armond Armstead returning from injuries. The Irish have eeked out their last few games, but will this be another blowout? Jimmy Claussen needs to overcome his turf toe while Josh Pinkard vs. Golden Tate will be a matchup to watch.
3. Stanford (4-1) - Wait, Stanford? 3-0 in conference play? Stanford? Well, they still have to play Oregon and at USC, but a win at Oregon State will push them into the top 25. RB Toby Gerhart has been in beast mode all year, and if QB Andrew Luck can find his touch, watch out.
4. Arizona (3-1) - Lost to a good Iowa team but upset Oregon State two weeks ago. Game at Washington will tell a lot for the two teams. Too bad they won't have TE Rob Gronkowski at all this year.
   
5. Oregon State (3-2) - Acutally off to a decent start compared to years past, and got a huge road win at Arizona State. Best matchup of running backs in the Pac-10 this weekend: 2008 Offensive Player of the Year Jacquizz Rodgers against 2009 (probably) Offensive Player of the Year, Toby Gerhart. Should be an exciting game.
6. UCLA (3-1) - Kai Forbath is tied for first in the nation in field goals made with 12. Not a good stat to be leading. Offensive woes will continue against Oregon, who unveiled a sneaky good defense in the past few weeks. Can the UCLA defense and special teams keep the Bruins in the game? Hard to tell against the explosive Ducks defense.
7. Washington (2-3) - Will they have a USC hangover all season long? Blown out by Stanford two weeks ago, and lost a heartbreaker to Notre Dame this past weekend. They have to regroup quickly for a trip to Arizona to keep their shots at a bowl game alive, or their win over USC will mean nothing.
8. Arizona State (2-2) - Haven't shown much, but that's good in terms of being ranked ahead of Cal and Washington State. After a win over the Cougars (come on), they have a tough stretch to finish the season: Washington, @ Stanford, Cal, USC, @ Oregon, @ UCLA, Arizona. No sure things there, with the toss ups being against the Huskies, UCLA, and Arizona to get to six wins.
9. California (3-2) - Dang, how could we have been so wrong about this Cal team? Not the best time to have a bye week, mulling on two blowout losses, even though they were against the class of the Pac-10, but they have to get ready for a trip to UCLA in two weeks in a game that will define both team's bowl hopes.
10. Washington State (1-4) - Don't see a win for the rest of the season on their schedule. Rebuilding this team will take a while for Paul Wulff. But I miss (and still heart) Bill Doba.

And the top 10 for this week:

1. Florida (4-0) - Tim Tebow or no Tim Tebow, the Gators should beat LSU. But don't count the Tigers out of the game is close in the fourth quarter, as this season has shown.
2. Texas (4-0) - Wake me up when they play Oklahoma... oh wait. The Sooners can make their season by runing the Longhorns one, but I wouldn't count on it. We can only hope for K-State to upset Texas this year like in 2006 and 2007. Oh wait they don't play each other this year. Crap.
3. Alabama (5-0) - Ole Miss should prove to be a minor road block in the Tide's path to the SEC championship.
4. Louisiana State (5-0) - crept up after the upsets, but it will be for naught if they can't knock off Florida.
5. Virginia Tech (4-1) - Hey! Look who's back. Struggled with Duke, but if they can stay focused, they should be on the doorstep for the BCS if any team ahead of them loses.
6. USC (4-1) - Trojans haven't lost to a ranked opponent who was ranked lower than them since the 2005 Rose Bowl. ag24ta3abahuaq3y24arnahG21@!#%U)*
7. Boise State (5-0) - That Oregon win keeps on looking better and better for them. Too bad eggs like they laid against UC Davis will hurt their cred.
8. Ohio State (4-1) - Defense has been solid, but they still have to play Iowa and Penn State down the road. Can't read too much into blowing out weak teams.
9. Cincinnati (5-0) - Big East street cred? Maybe...
10. TCU (4-0) - Will they pull a Houston and lose in their MWC opener? I think the Frogs are used to the attention and should be in good shape until BYU game.