SB Nation - David Ausberry

USC Football News and Notes 11/10 - The Offense

Paragon SC — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:00:45 -0000

USC is going to be challenged this weekend when they Stanford if for no other reason than the amount of players injured on the team.

This week Damian Williams is unlikely to play due to a high ankle sprain...

Damian Williams, USC's top receiver and punt returner, is doubtful for Saturday's game against Stanford because of a high ankle sprain suffered against Arizona State.

The junior did not practice Monday and wore a calf-high protective boot on his right foot.

"It's been tough the last two days just trying to walk," Williams said. "I kind of figured out, like, 'OK, there is a possibility that I might not play,' so that's really tough for me."

Williams said it was too early to rule out his playing against the Cardinal -- "I'm a quick healer," he said -- but high ankle sprains typically take weeks to heal.

USC tight end Anthony McCoy, for example, has sat out the last two games because of the same injury. The senior did a few drills Monday and said he would meet with doctors tonight with hopes of playing Saturday.

This is the last thing SC needs. This Stanford defense can be exploited but USC needs its skill players to make plays. RoJo is pretty much back at full strength so who will play the #2 receiver. Ausberry is pretty much out for the year. Carswell? Butler? Carswell has a toe injury so I doubt he's the guy. Butler has shown us some nice things, 10 catches for 166 yards and a touchdown, but he hasn't been on the field enough to really show some consistency. Now is his chance. This is really concerning because the passing game has been the one thing that has kept opposing defenses on their heels as the running has been inconsistent.

This is where the coaching staff is going to earn their money...it is easy to be good when you are at full strength with top notch players. When you have piece a team together with untested players it is a whole different story.

One weapon SC hopes to have back is TE Anthony McCoy...

Receiver Damian Williams‘ situation makes tight end Anthony McCoy’s possible return even more essential for USC.

McCoy, who has missed the past two games, ran in a straight line and jumped without any setbacks Monday. He said he still has some pain but expects it to dissipate by the end of the week. He will try to practice Tuesday or Wednesday.

Although replacements Blake Ayles and Rhett Ellison have struggled with drops, that isn’t McCoy’s motivation to come back.

"The season’s almost over; that’s my urgency trying to get back," said McCoy, a senior. "I’ve got three games left. … I want to get back so I can finish my senior season."

Don't get me started. Ayles hasn't struggled, he simply hasn't shown up. He has 5-star talent with a 5th grade mind. He has dropped some easy balls the past few games that were drive stoppers. When highly touted players with great potential aren't getting it done it takes another option away for an already struggling offense. The TE position is crucial component to the USC offense so whomever is playing need to have a lot of positive production. I say give Ellison a bigger role until Ayles gets his head straight.

Of course the other concern that we really shouldn't have is with the O line. They got pushed around by the ASU defense especially their stud DE's. There is definitely some talent on the line but for some reason they have not lived up t their potential. Again, some of that is due to injury but you can't use that excuse forever...guys need to step and beat back the rush...

One of the more interesting comments following USC's offensive meltdown at Arizona State occurred when quarterback Matt Barkley said the Sun Devils' defensive ends lined up wider than expected and he could not see them when they tipped his passes.

But USC coaches said Monday the Sun Devils did not line up wider than other teams. They simply slipped past USC's offensive tackles when they pressured Barkley.

"We just got beat. Flat out," USC offensive coordinator John Morton said. "That was unexpected. It was one-on-one situations."

The most successful rusher was Arizona State defensive end Dexter Davis, who tipped two Barkley passes.

I understand that they can't protect Barkley on every play but you could see SC's O line really struggled. I also think that the ASU defense was already in Barkley's head before the game even started...he had happy feet all night. He never looked comfortable in the pocket. And it showed with some of the throws he made...he made a couple of short throws but it was the over thrown balls that concerned me more. That showed me a guy who had a little too much adrenalin going.

Barkley has enjoyed a fair amount of success this season it hasn't been perfect but it has been serviceable. His last to games though have shown us that his still growing into the game. I realize that some do not to want to hear that he is a freshman QB...but the facts are the facts. He is a true freshman and while he has shown us some great things he is still prone to mistakes. Heck, last season MArk Sanchez looked like a freshman against ASU throwing 3 or 4 picks, we see how that turned out...

Barkley is not satisfied with his poor performance...

Barkley completed only seven of 22 passes for 112 yards, 75 of which came on a catch-and-run touchdown by receiver Damian Williams.

Barkley was four for 11 for 24 yards in the first half and three for 11 for 88 yards in the second. He had one pass intercepted, and might have had two more if not for a penalty that overturned one and a drop that prevented another.

Barkley, who also struggled in the second half against Oregon, said he was "a little frustrated" against the Sun Devils.

"I just felt like we couldn't get into a rhythm," he said.

Barkley has completed 125 of 221 passes for 1,839 yards, with 10 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

I cannot blame Oregon on Barkley...the coaches went off the reservation in trying to force things to play catch-up. But I can lay some blame on Barkley for his ASU performance...some receivers did drop some easy balls but Barkley made some errant throws as well...lets just say that there is plenty of blame to go around and leave it at that.

SC need to put all of its focus into beating Stanford this weekend.

- - -

File this in your "NOT. GOING. TO. HAPPEN." file...

Think UCLA at 4-5 is a cinch to make a bowl game with two more victories? Think again. In a testament to how weird this Pac-10 season has been, in order for the Bruins to earn a bowl invitation, not only must they beat Washington State and Arizona State but they likely need USC to win out … which means they would need to lose to USC in their regular season finale.

Consider the following:

There are only six guaranteed bowl spots for the Pac-10.

UCLA, with two victories in its final three games, would be 3-6 (6-6 overall) and finish seventh in the conference.

UCLA, if it wins out, would be 4-5 (7-5 overall) and still probably finish seventh in the conference. (Only Cal, currently 3-3 in the Pac-10, has a reasonable shot of falling below UCLA. If USC loses out it could also finish behind UCLA.)

Oregon’s loss to Stanford ended the Ducks’ outside shot of playing in the BCS title game, which would have given the conference an extra bowl bid.

USC is the only Pac-10 team in line to play in a BCS bowl other than the Rose Bowl, which would give the conference an extra bowl bid.

If Oregon wins out, it’s going to Pasadena. If the Ducks were to lose again, their ranking would be too low to play in another BCS Bowl. Neither Arizona, Oregon State or Stanford are positioned to finish high enough to make another BCS Bowl. (Note: Another Oregon loss would probably mean a three-way tie atop the conference, which could put USC in the Rose Bowl and deny the Pac-10 the extra bowl bid.)

In other words, UCLA needs any team other than USC in the Rose Bowl and USC in another BCS bowl. This leads to my favorite part: Heading into their season finale with USC, the Bruins, with victories in their next two games, could be in a situation where they would knock themselves out of a bowl by beating USC (subsequently knocking the Trojans out of a BCS bowl) but would ensure making a bowl by losing. That would be fascinating.

Heh.

Right...

Game Day Notes - Arizona St.

Paragon SC — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:03:43 -0000

USC can't possible lose two weeks in a row can they?

That pretty much seems to be the consensus from all the pundits and analysts. I agree with that assessment, but SC is far from being out of the woods after last weeks loss in Eugene.

I don't think I am breaking any earth shattering news that SC is officially in some sort of rebuilding/retooling mode. Plain and simple the road schedule, our youth and our thinning depth really exposed many of SC's flaws that many of us are not used to seeing in a Pete Carroll coached team. In reflecting on last weeks loss I simply do not think that the sky is falling. It is one loss, a bad one for sure, but that's the way the ball bounces...sometimes you need to get your teeth kicked in to get your mind straight.

I guess that makes me a sunshine pumper because I refuse to beleive that this is the begining of the end for USC. This is where Pete Carroll will earn his money...there is no guarantee that SC will win their last 4 games so he has his work cut out for him.But I am not too terrible concerned with the teams mind set. Pete Carroll knows how to rebound so I expect the team to be ready.

So, obviously with that rebounding mindset in place SC look's to get back on track and Arizons St.'s offense could be the perfect elixir for USC's struggling defense ...

USC's defense breathes a sigh of relief. Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli is in Palo Alto to play Stanford and can no longer torment the Trojans -- until next season, perhaps.

Arizona State quarterback Danny Sullivan is neither as efficient as Oregon State's Sean Canfield nor as mobile as Masoli. He has completed 54% of his passes with eight touchdowns and seven interceptions. Samson Szakacsy, who at one time committed to USC, is more mobile and could be utilized in goal-line situations as he was last week against California.

I watched a fair amount of the Cal/ASU game last Saturday and I didn't come away impressed. Sullivan made some plays but that was also against a Cal defense that both SC and Oregon shredded so as aeve as SC's defense is hurting in some areas I expect the defense to make some plays.

Injuries continue to plague SC right now, especially on the defense and that is PC's first challenge. He needs to plug those holes with players who are going to respond and pick up the slack...

USC's linebackers are still smarting, physically and emotionally, from the Oregon nightmare.

Middle linebacker Chris Galippo is fully recovered from a sprained neck, but Malcolm Smith is not on the trip because of a shoulder injury. Shane Horton starts on the weak side with Michael Morgan on the strong side.

All three linebackers need to play better than last week. It looked like these guys had never played before with missed assignments and missed tackles that needs to change this week.

Injuries also open the door for others to show us what they can do on a consistent basis. With Everson Griffen not making the trip his week Malik Jackson and Devon Kennard will get their chance to prove their worth.

First some news on Griffen...

Griffen, a junior defensive end from Avondale, Ariz., suffered a toe injury against Oregon. He did not practice this week, working instead with trainers on the sidelines with the hope of healing enough to play.

Griffen, however, did not make the trip.

"He woke up . . . a little bit worse maybe from the work they did [Thursday] so we just figured it would be best to treat him for three straight days," Coach Pete Carroll said Friday after the 12th-ranked Trojans' walk-through at Sun Devil Stadium. "We never thought he was going to make it to full speed, but he was trying."

Don't get me wrong, both Jackson and Kennard have shown us some nice things this season but this weekend they will get the majority of the work on the defensive line so now they can really show their stuff. They will also have some help...

USC received some rare good news on the injury front this week when defensive linemen Nick Perry (shoulder) and Armond Armstead (wrist) responded well to rest. Their availability should ensure a deep DL rotation.

The more help the better.

I think the D line will have a good showing today. ASU just doesn't have the same level of talent on the O line that SC has faced in the past and with Sullivan's average performance numbers I think SC can force him into making some mistakes...but there are no guarantees...SC needs to earn this one on defense today.

What could make this game close is ASU's solid defense.

Even though Matt Barkley didn't have a terrible game last week it certainly wasn't one of his better performances either...

Though Barkley did not turn the ball over until his final pass was intercepted, the freshman was far from stellar. He uncharacteristically underthrew one receiver. He also overthrew another for what could have been a touchdown. He completed only five of 16 second-half passes.

Barkley, who has passed for nine touchdowns with six interceptions, now faces the Pac-10's top-ranked defense, an aggressive unit that has a conference-best 13 interceptions.

Oregon St. Notes, Byers starts over O'Dowd, RoJo will start on Sat. as well

Paragon SC — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:13:49 -0000

There was some interesting news from the coaching staff yesterday...

Jeff Byers will start at center over Kristofer O'Dowd. This might be a shock to some but the running game doesn't seem to be where many of us think it should be.

The season has not gone as planned for the 6-foot-5, 300-pound O'Dowd, who had off-season shoulder surgery that caused him to miss spring practice and then suffered a dislocated kneecap for the second time in three seasons.

O'Dowd sat out the opener against San Jose State but returned to play against Ohio State.

"I tried to fight back and got back as quickly as I could, but it still wasn't necessarily 100%," he said. "I was hoping that by going out there and working on it, I would build it up to where it would get back to normal, but it just hasn't been the case."

Byers, who came to USC as a center in 2004, took the majority of snaps with the first-team offense during practice this week. He will start for the second time this season at center.

I am not surprised that he was not 100%. A dislocated patella is a tricky injury to recover from, especially if you re-injure it. O'Dowd is looking at some off-season knee surgery to fix the damaged structures.

The great thing in this article is that O'Dowd plans on returning for his senior season.

Opposing defenses have been able to get penetration on our running game this season. We have seen it in a number of different games. With Marc Tyler out of the season and C.J. Gable inexplicably still in the doghouse it all falls on Joe McKnight and Allen Bradford. It is possible that we could see Curtis McNeal in the game but with Stanley Havili pretty much questionable that opens up the door for D.J. Shoemate at the FB spot. Regardless of who is on the field the O line needs to blow some holes open to get these guys some room to operate.

From what I have seen it would appear that McKnight actually does pretty well when runs between the tackles. When he jukes and moves trying to get to the outside is when he seems to not be less effective...this is particularly true (obviously) when the defense can beat him to the outside.

The offense is really close to busting out...If the running game gets rolling we could see some some really interesting games in the second half of the season.

USC closed the first half of '09 with its strongest offensive performance since the season opener (which was against 1-5 San Jose State, so please feel free to affix an asterisk). The Trojans scored 34 points at Notre Dame – after scoring 30 at Cal, 27 against Washington State and 13 at Washington.

Barkley missed the Washington game – the lone loss on 5-1 USC's ledger – because of a shoulder injury. In his four games since the opener, he has mirrored the offense's ascent.

Barkley passed for 195 yards Sept. 12 at Ohio State. He nearly doubled that total – 380 – at Notre Dame.

Barkley completed 48.4 percent of his passes against the Buckeyes. He hit on 65.5 percent – again, the best since San Jose State – against the Fighting Irish.

Yet in a sign of how driven he is to succeed – and how he is raising the standard for every freshman quarterback to follow him – Barkley was far from satisfied with his performance.

"I've got more potential in me," Barkley said. "After watching tape on Saturday's game, it was a lot more scrappy than I thought it was, not as pristine. There's always stuff to improve on. ... There are some little things we need to work on in order to get better."

I don't think there is any question that Barkley has some growing to do.

He has come a long way for a true freshman...just going on the road and getting the win at Ohio St. and Notre Dame with minimal mistakes shows his maturity.

And Barkley learns fast as well...

USC twice ran play-action passes on third-and-1. The first time, tight end Anthony McCoy was open – but Barkley didn't set his feet and underthrew the pass. McCoy gained 23 yards, but it could have been a lot more.

The next time, McCoy again was open – and Barkley delivered a strike. McCoy rumbled downfield for 60 yards. It took all of a quarter for Barkley to learn his lesson and make the proper adjustment.

"The kid is doing great," senior guard Jeff Byers said. "He impresses me every day. He's a really special guy back there. He's playing his butt off."

That Barkley has won over his veteran teammates isn't insignificant. USC returned nine starters on offense, and the unit had great expectations despite one of the losses being All-Pac-10 quarterback Mark Sanchez, whom the New York Jets took with the fifth pick in the NFL draft.

When Carroll elevated Barkley over redshirt sophomore Aaron Corp – who won the job in spring but lost it in fall after breaking his leg – there were hints of skepticism inside the locker room and heaps of it outside. The Trojans entered 2009 with seven consecutive conference crowns, BCS bowl berths and 11-plus-victory seasons, and now they were entrusting a freshman to help make it eight?

I don't think anyone is questioning PC's move now are they? Barkley has done good enough to shut the mouths of clowns like the insufferable Matt Hayes who constantly tried to say that Barkley's inexperience would hurt SC. So far that hasn't been the case and while I am not ready to say that he is not susceptible to a rookie mistake Barkley has done a remarkable job at leading the offense.

SC needs to put some points up on the board early to force The Beavers to have to play catch up and the running game is key to putting points up on the board. More on why later...

USC also gets RoJo back in the starting line up on Saturday.

Receiver Ronald Johnson struggled to regain game speed against Notre Dame and acknowledged continued soreness early this week.

The junior, however, will start against Oregon State, Carroll said.

Johnson, who suffered a broken collarbone before the season, had one reception against Notre Dame.

Johnson replaces David Ausberry in the starting lineup. Ausberry, who has 10 receptions, has been slowed this week by a calf strain.

I think that is a big deal.

RoJo clearly was not himself against ND, nor did I expect him to be. I think he needed a little more time to get back into the groove in regards to his timing and route running. You just don't come back after being out six weeks and hope to perform at the same level that you were out prior to your injury, especially in a big game like Notre Dame at South Bend. We all know RoJo is our speedster and if he is on that will keep the OSU defense honest. If RoJo gets behind their DB's it could spell trouble for Oregon St. especially with Barkley getting better and better each week.

On the defensive side of the ball this weeks game is a big test for the USC defense.

Last year the D line was embarrassed by Jacquizz Rodgers. Averill SPicer and Christian Tupou both had bad games last year, they had no answer for him in the first half, though SC made some adjustments in the second half to contain 'Quizz better. They moved Casey to the NT spot and moved Ellison up into the box. I could go on...

This is a very stout D line that SC has coming into this game. With Casey at NT and Armond Armstead (probably right nest to Casey) back in the groove from his injury I think that 'Quizz will have a tougher time than he did last year. It will be more difficult than last year to get the type of yardage that he had last year. I also want to see how Everson Griffen plays in this game. Last season he was continually motion-blocked by James Rodgers and taken out of the play. Hopefully Jethro Franklin has brought Griffen along to be able to handle that wrinkle in the OSU offense.

I think 'Quizz will get some yards and he won't put the ball on the turf, but I think this is a better front seven for this game than what we had last year by just putting in Casey and Armstead over Tupou and Spicer (no offense gents). The speed of this years D line is just insane. We already have seen their speed but I think the LB's are less susceptible to over running the play like we say Rey do last season in Corvallis. The OSU O line lost three players to the NFL last season, not that it matters, so while they still have some talent it is not quite as experienced as last season if SC gets some points on the board early it could force OSU to use 'Quizz less if they have to play catch up by airing it out.

Lets talk a little bit about some players on Oregon St.

There is an interesting article up at the Oregonian discussing Oregon St. players who feel they were snubbed by not being recruited by USC.

I found these comments by Beavers OL Gregg Peat...(emphasis added)

"Not even a second glance," Peat said. "Pete Carroll was there and I'm sure (he watched me) and was like, 'Ah, um, no.' They recruit the best of the best and none of us are usually their caliber of player.

"Or so they think."

Peat's recruiting anecdote is common among Oregon State players who played high school ball in the Southern California area. A handful of them, like senior corner Tim Clark, who is from Compton, and safety Lance Mitchell, who is from Pasadena, grew up in USC's backyard -- but they didn't get a sniff from the Trojans.

"I think not being recruited by your hometown team is a little bit of a slap in the face," Mitchell said.

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Blah, Blah, Blah.

Please...

Peat has turned into a fine player, no question. Some players need a few years at the college level to really blossom and Peat looks to be one of those. Look, I get it that these guys will try to use what they feel is "snub" as some motivation for this game but SC can't recruit them all. Pete Carroll and his staff can't look into the crystal ball and see how every player out there will turn out.

More interesting is this...

Peat originally committed to Nevada before accepting an offer from the Beavers without ever taking a visit. Nevada? Really? That is a real power house of football...I guess SC really missed out when the kid committed up there, I am sure they scrambled to steal him from Nevada.

</sarcasm>

So, yeah PC may "have seen him" when he was recruiting Mark Sanchez but does anyone think that Peat would be on the field now with all the other talent SC has on the O line? There are only 85 schollies so I am not sure who SC should have NOT recruited on the OL in place of Peat. Point being is simple...everyone gets up to play USC. If these guys want use a supposed "snub" about not being recruited then so be it. I wish them luck...

I think this will be a great game and if all the mini drama's help to make it a better game than that is fine with me.

Trojans 30, Golden Bears 3: More Quarterback Blues

Avinash — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 12:06:32 -0000

More photos » by Ben Margot - AP

Kevin Riley had a lot of awkward-looking throws like this in the Bears 30-3 loss against the Trojans.

Browse more photos »

For the fifth straight matchup in the series, a Golden Bear quarterback could not beat the Trojan defense.

Kevin Riley spread his first quarter inaccuracy woes (three TDs and a low completion percentage thrown careerwise in the first quarter) through the entire game. The result was a stagnant Cal offense that couldn't pass the ball for more than a few spurts, and by extension couldn't run the ball. You can blame it partly on the 20 mph wind gusts which might've put extra air on the balls, on receivers missing their cuts or stopping on routes, on the offensive line occasionally blowing their matchups and forcing the pressure (albeit they only allowed 2 outright sacks).

But most of the execution failures, for better or for worse, fall on Riley; there were too many throws that just weren't even close to the target. He held onto the ball for too long, his throwing motion just didn't look right, and he hesitated after making his drops in the pocket, whether due to good downfield coverage or...hell if I know, what else can make you hesitate in the pocket?

Neverthless, the opportunities were there; his accuracy wasn't. His completion percentage, one of the best in the country through three weeks, is now hovering at a horrifingly Ayoobian 50% on the season. I sincerely apologize to everyone for claiming Kevin Riley is no Joe Ayoob. He sure looked like it tonight.

It got so bad that Andy Ludwig ran the Wildcat with Best and Sofele in motion, down 23-0 for an entire drive. That's a damning indictment of our passing game--down three scores in the second half, our quarterback was set out wide to block for 30-40% of the offensive snaps.

The Oregon game was a much more complex failure. The USC game is a simpler one to figure out. The Trojans stacked the box on Best early on and dared Riley to beat them in the air. After the first drive, he couldn't. We can guess what the formula will be from here on out to beat the Bears.

Do I think Riley should be benched? Not in the slightest, and it's not just because Tedford's saying so. It's just too early in the season to mark this as a trend, and he did just face one of the best defenses in the country. Let's see if he can settle himself down and work his way into the system against the rest of the Pac-10. If the struggles persist deep into play and jeopardize Big Game or bowl hopes, then I might be persuaded to go the other way. But for now, I'm far from that jumping point.

Playcalling bad? I dunno. I know a lot of people are going to be mad at the run/pass disparity when we have #4 back there, but USC was selling out to stop him all day, and they have the talent and athletes to do so. And that first drive was going well there until the end. After that, it's hard to tell how much of that is on the players not running the plays right, or Ludwig calling in plays the defense can anticipate.

What does annoy me is that I'm beginning to predict what Cal will run on every play based on formation and snap motion, and I'm still fairly novice on the subject. Two tight end set to the left? Best running to the left. Riley in the shotgun is almost always an automatic pass downfield. Put Holley back there and it's almost always an inside run. Lord knows what other defensive coordinators are brewing together in the upcoming weeks.

We have a new tight end for the future. Anthony Miller was our offense for much of the game. The Trojans pretty much blanketed Verran Tucker and Marvin Jones, so that left the middle open, and Riley hooked up with Miller on some big catch-and-gains. At 6'3 258, we might've found someone who combines the blocking of Stevens and the pass-catching abilities of Morrah. In a game full of negatives, this is a pretty enticing development.

Bob Gregory's defense did their part. While the Cal defensive scheme bended plenty in this one, putting the Trojans in the red zone a lot, the final result was 16 offensive points going into the third quarter, with three impressive goal-line stands by an outmanned and outgunned defensive front. There were no big offensive plays other than the first McKnight touchdown. Add in the three points the defense helped cause from the turnover, and that's only a differential of 13 points. If you'd told me Cal's defense had held USC to 16 points going into the 4th, I'd have been strutting like Usain Bolt.

Yes, I'm frustrated by the zone coverage holes too, but give credit to the other team's quarterbacks. Masoli and Barkley made some huge completions that most college quarterbacks probably wouldn't have handled. That zone defense should do its job in future weeks in keeping Pac-10 quarterbacks from hitting their spots. For right now it looks bad, even though it was far from the reason for our loss.

Our linebackers are in serious learning mode. These guys are struggling. First they had to deal with the spread, than the best talent in the country in back-to-back weeks. Bad pursuit angles, dominated by blockers, no pass rush, nothing. I can't even talk in complete sentences about these guys, because it's frustrating to watch them struggle like that. They did hustle in there and help make some nice goal-line stops, so that's encouraging for upcoming road tests in Pasadena and Tempe.

You know how Mike Mohamed looked like the best linebacker last season? I'm starting to think that's because he was the fourth linebacker opposing offenses worried about. They should get better as the season goes along, but the growing pains hurt on our defense for now. The secondary and defensive line have been carrying too much of the weight. It's got to start evening out.

Two mistakes made a big difference in this game's outcome. The first mistake was the Riley interception (the worst of many bad throws), which turned a promising Cal start into a deflating Trojan bite-back touchdown drive. The second was the straight-on punt by Anger to Damian Williams right for the touchdown. Although I knew we'd get an Alamar special one of these days, these are the sort of things you throw out over the long run as anomalies rather than trends. Those two mistakes comprise a 15-21 point swing right there, which could've turned a 23 point margin into a field goal/touchdown margin going into the 4th.

Cal fans are being too critical of Jahvid Best's weak performances in big games. People need to get over how Jahvid is no longer a viable Heisman candidate. A Heisman Trophy almost always rewards the best QB/RB on one of the top two regular season teams; seven of the last ten seasons that's been the case. The odds were stacked against the Jet from the start, and it was impossible to live up to the hype in the long run without additional help from his offense.

Jahvid has his weaknesses, there's no doubt--his pass protection and blitz pickup abilities need plenty of work. However, in terms of running ability, he needs his blockers to open gaps for him and a stable passing game that plays in tandem with his abilities. He got neither in Oregon and only average run blocking against the Trojans. And even if he had Alex Mack and Will Ta'ufo'ou, they too would have had their difficulties against eight to nine Trojans in the box in that first quarter when it was a relatively close one.

Besides, how can Best step up if his counterpart in the backfield steps down?

USC brought their A-game. While it's always fun to blame the Bears for our woes, let's not forget the other team on the sideline is the six-time defending Pac-10 champs. I always worried in the back of my mind the Husky upset would awaken the sleeping giant, and...yeeeeap. They're back alright.

Matt Barkley only completed 57% of his passes, but converted several huge passes for crucial 1st downs. Joe McKnight stepped up big in the absence of Stafon. And God, those offensive linemen--I know it'll sicken you to hear me gush over USC linemen, but they dominated this game. Barkley had plenty of time to make his throws, and they were much of the difference between 3 and 4 yard runs and 6 to 8 yard runs. The most important part of this game that no one will notice was how well the Trojans blocked, from the tackles and guards and center to the fullback and the receivers and tight end.

Of course all that and we still held them to 16 points on offense going into the 4th quarter. I dream longingly of the day we'll hit 16 points on offense again.

We might have played the two best teams in the Pac-10 in back-to-back weeks. So let's keep that in perspective. Both our opponents came out with a specific strategy on offense and defense, executed it to a pinch, and watched while we bungled our opportunities. Yeah, it sucks to deal with the bad execution stuff, but it can happen with 19-23 year olds.

Yes, our expectations are smashed, but we have two weeks to refocus and retool for the rest of the season. I never really saw quit in our players, even late in the games, so you have to feel that the Bears will be ready to bring it the rest of the year. As much as we'd like to think it's the end of the world, there are other things our football players are willing to play for other than a Pac-10 title.

If our coaches are able to make the right adjustments in the upcoming weeks against formidable but equally flawed Pac-10 opponents, we should be able to right the ship and win five or six games in the conference. There are plenty of good but fairly winnable games coming up for the Bears in the upcoming weeks, we just need to focus on executing above all else.

And let's hope that Kevin Riley's arm can start throwing footballs like a regular quarterback again. Because I miss seeing regular quarterback play for the Golden Bears.

In spite of this weekends win the offense continues to sputter

Paragon SC — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 22:45:10 -0000

Fans and pundits alike continue question and wonder about USC's offensive production this season.

Many want to point to the tired and worn excuse that without Norm Chow the USC offense has never been the same. Some will say that it is because of Pete Carroll's ego, wanting to have complete control to run things his way in respect to the offense and then there is the other faction that simply simply say that Pete Carroll is simply an average offensive coach.

Who knows...

I do not think that it is too far of a stretch that it is probably a little bit of all three. No coach can do it all, no coach is always right and big time football coaches do want to run things their own way.

Go Figure.

Regardless of all the psycho-analysis or pining for the past, the fact still remains that the USC offense this season is far from living up to where many of us thought it would or should be.

Pete Carroll knows it too...

After the seventh-ranked Trojans beat Washington State 27-6 Saturday night, Carroll effusively praised his defense, which took a shutout into the final minute and racked up eight sacks. Carroll even said the defense had "an easy game," handling everything Washington State could throw at it.

The USC offense is where nearly every fault with these Trojans (3-1, 1-1 Pac-10) currently exists, and Carroll isn’t afraid to say it—albeit a little indirectly.

"It’s great to win, it’s fun to win, but we’ve got a lot of work to do," Carroll said. "Gosh, it’s just not at all the satisfying kind of win we would have liked to have had. … Defense played really well. There’s a lot of room for improvement. Most of the problems were self-inflicted."

[...]

The offense wasn’t nearly as impressive, even with the return of freshman quarterback Matt Barkley from a bruised right shoulder. Barkley’s arm still hurts, but he pushed through the pain to pass for 247 yards and two long first-quarter touchdowns.

OK, so what is the problem?

To me it is simple...it is coaching or lack there of.

The biggest problem I see is ball control. 1) Either protecting it once you get it or 2) making sure you get it when it comes your way. The second one really pisses me off. Ellison should have caught that ball in the end zone it was right in his hands. Ausberry seems to have hands of stone...he had one pass placed perfectly by Barkley on the sidelines that he could not hang on to. Ausberry is a pretty big guy so he should be able to muscle opposing defenders away from the ball. Patterson made a nice catch also but he went out of bounds before he caught the ball...that is coaching as well. The receivers need to have a sense of field presence.

Just what are the coaches doing to ensure that our guys are learning the proper technique to protect the ball? You can't teach concentration either the player has it or he doesn't. Ausberry and Ellison, for all the great things we have heard about them, should do a better job at hanging on to the ball. Yes, Ellison did get a TD against SJSU but we are at a critical time now. SC needs to score when they are that deep in the opposing teams territory. That does a lot to build a teams confidence...it takes away all the second guessing. When the team executes on the easy plays it allows them to expand the play book, to start opening things up.

USC for all of their talent, are really being scrutinized for their lack of production on offense. I don't know if it is on Morton, Bates or Carroll.

They are responsible if you ask me...

USC is headed for a season like we haven't seen in a long time if the team doesn't start producing like we expect them to.

Onward and Upward

Sam @ WWAHT — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 16:00:20 -0000

More photos » by J.D. Pooley - AP

3 months ago: University of Toledo's quarterback Aaron Opelt is tripped up by Colorado University's Will Pericak during the first half of an NCAA college football game on Friday, Sept. 11, 2009 in Toledo, Ohio. (AP Photo/J.D. Pooley)

Browse more photos »

Believe it or not, Ohio State has another game this week! The season isn't over! The Buckeyes travel to Cleveland to take on the Toledo Rockets in Cleveland Browns stadium. In the spring, I had this to say about our opponent:

Tim Beckman took the job shortly after Tom Amstutz departed, having been the defensive coordinator at Oklahoma State for all of two seasons (in which the Cowboys finished 101st and 94th in 2007 and 2008, respectively). Beckman had been the cornerbacks coach at Ohio State, and was likely instrumental in the development of one Malcolm Jenkins, who he coached in the 2005 and 2006 seasons. So Beckman has history at Ohio Stadium, but he's probably thanking some lucky stars he doesn't have to take his team there this fall. [...]Toledo is, of course, traditionally known for offense, being a MAC team that can't quite lock down top defensive prospects but will gladly pick up any and all Big Ten leftovers. While it won't be anywhere near as challenging as the first two weeks, stopping the Toledo offense won't be easy.

I didn't realize how prescient that last observation would end up being until I watched the Toledo attack rip through its first two opponents like tissue paper. In two games against BCS conference opponents, Toledo has racked up over 1100 yards of offense and 85 points. Their defensive counterparts, on the other hand, have given up 986 yards of offense and 90 points. Appropriately, their record stands at 1-1, there season filled with as much doubt as hope. An upset of the 11th-ranked Buckeyes would serve as a springboard to a MAC championship and put Tim Beckman squarely in the middle of many discussions circling around the best up-and-coming coaches. Is that likely, though?

A confluence of events would have to happen for Toledo to win, but we'll get to that later. What's drawing everyone's eye in this game are Toledo's aforementioned eye-popping stats. So first, I want to do a little sidebar here. The talent level for both of the teams Toledo has played is um, lacking, to say the last. According to Scout, in his time at Colorado, Dan Hawkins has yet to put together one top-25 talent haul. Purdue's recruiting struggles are well-documented:

Not a good sign, however: [Danny Hope's] first recruiting class: 64th, worse than such college football luminaries as Washington State, Duke and Baylor.

But that's really just par for the course at Purdue, which has brought just one top-50 class to West Lafayette in the last five years. So this we know: Toledo has shredded defenses that consist mostly of a few lower-tier Big Ten and Big 12 recruits to go with kids whose other offers were mostly MAC- and WACrifices. No knock on the Boilers or the Buffs, but Toledo just hasn't seen the defensive speed of a team like Ohio State yet. Aaron Opelt will not be taking one 60 yards to the house against Ohio State, even if it comes on a fullback follow.

That being said, Toledo runs just the sort of offense that has gotten all that talent on Ohio State's defense in a bind before: Tim Beckman has brought over the fast-paced, tempo-based spread from Oklahoma State, complete with goofy signs, and it will give the defense many of the same looks that Illinois will frequently feature next week. Opelt is not a burner, but he's mobile, and that makes me worry just a little bit. Toledo also has some talented wideouts that could be quite dangerous if Opelt is given enough time. Stephen Williams, who I mentioned in my Early Look linked above, is a dangerous weapon at 6'5" and 200+ pounds, and is of similar frame to USC's David Ausberry. Williams is of course a molehill to Ausberry's mountain talent-wise, and Ausberry was held to just 3 catches for 28 yards, and he was frequently covered by Devon Torrence. If Ohio State can't scheme to stop him, color me confused.

Defensively, there just isn't a whole lot to worry about with Toledo. I'll grant you that both Purdue and Colorado are more talented on offense - at least at the skill positions - than their defensive counterparts, but that doesn't really explain away Toledo getting absolutely gashed by both squads. The one thing the Toledo D has definitely done right: picking the ball off. Toledo already has six interceptions so far, and three of them are by defensive lineman Douglas Westbrook (!), who picked off two versus Purdue and another against Colorado. Another name to watch: Barry Church, a four year starter at safety for the Rockets who will probably be playing on Sundays next year.

Looking at these match-ups and attempting to gauge the general mood of both teams, I would expect Ohio State to come out a bit flat early - an early touchdown or two isn't out of the question, but that's it for the first half - but Toledo will come out badly, badly wanting the upset, tossing the ball all over the field when its running game doesn't click immediately. The Ohio State offense will eventually settle into a scoring rhythm against the worst defense it will play all year, while the Toledo offense will run out of gas midway through the third quarter. The defensive line will not look as frequently dominant as it did against USC, and Opelt will roll away from the pressure just enough to be annoying, but his receivers just won't get open consistently and turnovers will eventually bury a Rocket comeback attempt.

Five predictions that will make me look foolish come Monday :

- Aaron Opelt tosses two interceptions

- Ohio State racks up at least 200 yards on the ground

- Jermale Hines decapitates a fool

- Terrelle Pryor throws at least two touchdowns

- Final score: Ohio State 37, Toledo 17

BlogPoll Roundtable - Who 'ya got? Who is off your radar and if you had your personal ATM

Paragon SC — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 20:38:03 -0000

It is that time of year year again.

This years initial BlogPoll Roundtable is hosted by Hey Jenny Slater

1. Without naming names, a few teams seem to have popped up frequently on everyone's "overrated" lists in the preseason, so let's forget about them for the moment and concentrate on a different group: sleepers. Which currently unheralded team are you currently putting at least a few of your chips behind in the hopes that you'll be able to say "totally called that" once they've accomplished big things by the end of the season?

I went back and looked at my pre-season ballot and looked at the teams from #15 down and really could not find anything that I might have missed. So I Iooked at the other ballots to try and glean some knowledge from some of the other voters. Well, two teams stood out... Colorado and Texas Tech. TT is easy, Leach will continue to do well with his easy schedule and he will continue to draw great offensive players with the system he runs. Colorado on the other hand has been doing some solid recruiting and even though they have had some bad losses. Dan Hawkins is building a quality program up there. They could make some real noise in the Big 12 North.

2. In a similar vein, pick a sleeper player on your team whom nobody's talking about right now and tell us why we will be talking about them by December.

WR David Ausberry and CB T.J. Bryant come to mind though with the recent injury to Ronald Johnson and with CB Shareece Wright ruled academically ineligible these are two names that have have spiked within the USC community. We hope to see a lot production out of both of these players.

3. Florida is about as big a consensus favorite as we've seen in recent years, but remember, USC got 62 out of 65 first-place votes in the AP's 2007 preseason poll and still managed to lose to Stanford. Given how difficult it is to go undefeated period these days, where do you think the Gators are most likely to stumble in the regular season?

Well, obviously we know a little about this...The bottom line is this. These are kids who DO read their press clippings so it is easy to buy into the hype. Now, Florida may have it a little bit easier with their schedule but one can never know and they lost at home last year to a better Ole Miss team than everyone thought. Florida has lost a few players this pre-season and they have a few that are banged up so their depth is going to be tested. They also lost their second best weapon in Harvin. The other unknown is that Steve Addazio is now the main play-caller and that will the test for Tebow as he has grown comfortable Dan Mullen. Florida will also have one tough game at LSU (see below) that could trip them up...

4. Which regular-season game not involving your team or conference are you most looking forward to this year?

For a conference game it has to be Florida at LSU - It is not that LSU is better than UF, at least not this year, it is that Baton Rouge is a tough place to play and the Tigers will be looking to make a few sets of luggage out of some Gator trophies. I just don't see any other game on Florida's schedule that would be trouble for them.

For an out of conference game it has to be OK St. against UGA I am sure Kyle and Doug are much better at discussing this game.

5. In honor of Georgia's opening-weekend opponent and their most prolific booster, let's say you somehow come into T. Boone Pickens money and can buy anything you want for your program -- facilities upgrades, an airplane for recruiting, buy out the contract of that coach you hate, you name it. Where does your first check go?

OK, this one is easy...Better facilities!

It is amazing that USC has been so dominant with such crummy facilities. I am not saying that they need what the Ducks have with all that Nike money they spend and it is not like it helped the Ducks win a title but it sure would be nice to some sort of upgrade for the players.

USC Football News and Notes 8/30

Paragon SC — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:00:14 -0000

Apologies for a lack of posting this weekend. Figured I would enjoy the last full weekend without football and spend some time with the family...

Lots of things to discuss from the past two days...

OK, so we already know about RoJo's injury and how that will affect the receiving corps. Devastating? Yes, but when one player goes down it gives another on the depth chart a chance to step up and make a name for himself. That person will be David Ausberry.

[B]ut any buzz about a quarterback controversy going into the opener against San Jose State was muted some by a broken collarbone suffered by receiver Ronald Johnson.

The junior, who was set to start opposite Damian Williams, was injured after catching a 34-yard pass from Barkley. He is expected to be sidelined at least six weeks.

"It's just a crusher," Carroll said.

Junior David Ausberry moves into the starting lineup and redshirt freshman Brice Butler is expected to join the receiver rotation.

This is definitely going to be a test, but I wouldn't want it any other way. Guys who are hungry will step up and make plays. We have head a lot about OZ in practice now he has to bring it on the field.

- - -

As for the QB Barkley had a decent effort but he threw a pick and spent most of his time against the scout team defense. But in the limited action that Aaron Corp saw he had a pretty good showing as well. Of course there are still a lot of questions so let the conspiracy theories begin...

Saturday's USC scrimmage lent credence to the pro-Aaron Corp conspiracy theorists who believe Coach Pete Carroll would have promoted Matt Barkley regardless of Corp's health.

On a sizzling day at the Coliseum when Barkley threw an early interception — but bounced back to direct four touchdown drives — Corp showed flashes of the mobility he lacked after returning to practice from a cracked fibula.

After Corp (Orange Lutheran High) scrambled for 10 yards and finished the run with a slide, "he kind of gave me a little look, which was great," Carroll said. "To me, that was really an indicator. ... He showed that he's ready to play football for us."

Yeah well, the decision has been made so there is not point in trying to dissect what is going on. Those who I see whining on the various message boards that Corp should be the starter need to take a deep breath, chill out and get behind the decision that has been made. As I have noted before I really could care less who starts as long as SC wins. I always want our guys to do well and I always want the best players on the field but it is not my call and I don't have all the information so I will leave it to the coaches.

One thing is for sure, the coaching staff will force feed Barkley everything they can to get him ready for the opener against San Jose St. but they aren't aren't going to dumb it down for him either. Barkley is going to have run the offense the same way Mark Sanchez. There will be no compensating because Barkley is a freshman...

On Aug. 17, a week after Corp suffered a leg injury that ultimately doomed his chance to start, Barkley had an opportunity to take over the quarterback competition.

Instead, he threw his first pass into coverage and stumbled through a five-for-18 passing night.

Barkley has since shined at times, but he also has struggled at others with touch and interceptions.

That's not unusual for a young quarterback, but it could be problematic for a USC program that puts a premium on taking care of the ball.

"We're not making any concessions because he's a freshman," Carroll said.

Barkley, of course, is no ordinary freshman. He understands the offense better than Matt Leinart, John David Booty, Mark Sanchez or Corp did in their first training camps.

However, one of Barkley's greatest strengths is also one of his potential liabilities: his instinct.

The 6-foot-2, 230-pound Barkley wants to make plays. Checking down to shorter routes and throwing the ball out of bounds when necessary go against his nature.

"It hasn't been how I've played in the past, so I'm molding myself to fit this role," Barkley said.

We are just going to have to be patient.

You can read more about the QB situation here...

- - -

Here are some highlights from Saturday's scrimmage

Coliseum Scrimmage Highlights/Interviews @ Rivals Video

- - -

Lots of links from over the weekend...

5 things we learned about Barkley on Saturday - OCRegister.com

Pressure's on Barkley to Prove Carroll's Decision Correct -- NCAA Football FanHouse

WeAreSC.com - What now?

(Video) USC football: Final scrimmage - OCRegister.com

USC shows its stuff - PE.com

Trojans' Bradford back for more - PE.com

Trojans running back McKnight looks to make amends - LA Daily News

Trojans will use stars on special teams - College Football - Rivals.com

Pac-10 football: The team to beat? USC, of course - Pac-10

USC to win Pac-10 title

USC Is Ready to Protect and Defend - washingtonpost.com

B.C.S. Bowl Projections - The Quad Blog - NYTimes.com

Report: Michigan football players allege NCAA violations - ESPN
Hmmmm...

"Killer" Leinart coming of age? | ProFootballTalk.com
I think Leinart is gettiing it...

And....

Your Douchebag post of the day
Great way to break in as a new blogger...real original, nice suck up job with the clowns from across town...

- - -

We will start looking at SJSU this week...It's just about GO TIME!!!!

USC WR Ronald Johnson out 6-8 weeks w/fractured collar bone

Paragon SC — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 00:14:39 -0000

Well, it wouldn't be a USC scrimmage if someone did not get hurt.

David Ausberry come on down!!!

USC freshman quarterback Matt Barkley will have one less major target to throw to when he makes his college debut next Saturday against San Jose State.

Junior wide receiver Ronald Johnson suffered a broken clavicle in the Trojans’ final pre-season scrimmage Saturday afternoon at the Coliseum and is expected to miss six to eight weeks."The hit of the weekend," USC coach Pete Carroll said of Johnson’s injury. "Just a crusher."

Johnson had expected to start at one wide receiver spot. Junior David Ausberry will now start in Johnson’s place, with Damian Williams moving over to start at the other wide out spot, Carroll said.

Carroll said redshirt freshman Brice Butler and freshman De’Von Flournoy also have to step up in light of Johnson’s injury.

SC has had injuries before and we have the depth to fill in the gaps.

Here is a more detailed injury post on the fractured collarbone, but I plan to update it.

This will test our patience...but that that doesn't kill us will make us stronger!

FIGHT ON!

Final thoughts on the win over Oregon

Paragon SC — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:00:06 -0000

The frustration that the defense felt after the Oregon St. game had to be tremendous. Yes the D line got pushed around and there was some lack luster play due to just mailing it in but SC still had issues trying to stop Rogers. When you cant see them coming its going to be tough to stop them but last night they saw what Oregon was going to do and after the Ducks scored their only TD the defense adjusted and they locked them down. Of course everything has to be in sync, so while it wasn’t a pretty performance in the early going SC figured it out and made it work. The adjustment was one that SC used against OSU but this time with D line standing its ground and getting penetration it worked and Oregon’s two running backs who thought that they were going to get 100 yards each didn’t do much at all.

The USC defense held Oregon, the top rushing team in the Pacific-10 Conference, to a meek 60 yards on the ground.

Or about 250 yards below the Ducks' average coming into the game.

The reason for those numbers was because of safety Kevin Ellison. His coming up and being the eighth man in the box went a long way to stiffing Oregon's running attack.

Ellison's presence as the "eighth man in the box" – the football term for the safety who joins the defensive linemen and linebackers for run-stopping duty – had a lot to do with USC shutting down Oregon's prolific ground attack Saturday night in a much-needed, 44-10, bounce-back victory.

Ellison was involved in a team-high 12 tackles – all in the first half, when the tenor was established and the game was decided. And no, it wasn't a case of Ellison cleaning up the mess left by others. He repeatedly crept up near the line of scrimmage to help absorb the blows from Oregon's 1-2 punch of Jeremiah Johnson and LeGarrette Blount.

The two entered Saturday night's game averaging a combined 184.2 rushing yards per game.

They had just 35 in the first half, which ended with USC leading, 27-10.

When the advantage grew to 37-10 late in the third quarter, the Ducks had to abandon the run and play a game they didn't want to play.

The first half played out right in Ellison's comfort zone.

There were a lot of passes that should have been picked off last night once Oregon was forced into passing situations but none of it could have happened had the defense not put forth a superior effort when compared to the debacle in Corvallis.

The defense, once they settled in put up a pretty good performance and the "new look" that we saw due to injuries or previous poor performances didn't affect us for the worse. Good or bad, it was different not seeing Rey Rey in the game because of his injured knee. It was odd, but it also gave some of our depth a chance to step up and show what they can do. Cushing did a great job at MLB and Michael Morgan, before leaving the game with a concussion, played solid in his first start.

A team simply can't turn on a switch and say they going to get motivated they have to come into a game with a certain mind set. A team also can't get angry to the point of letting their anger get the best of them and negatively affect their play on the field, they have to sometimes just get back basics.

When they are at their best, the Trojans are all about balance on offense, but quarterback Mark Sanchez and his receivers will have to sync up better than they did in Corvallis to punish the Ducks.

If the Trojans do take out their frustrations on the Ducks, they may make a resonating statement to pollsters that it's premature to count the House of Troy out of the national title race just yet. Not that Carroll is interested in talking about rankings or big picture stuff like that.

Exactly, the outside noise is for us fans and the media, SC just needed to settle in and find its game. Some people seem to miss that, it isn't always pretty. As long as SC is working through their issues and getting positve results I can live with an average game in terms of performance especially after last week.

Look at Alabama, after smoking UGA they looked aboslutely pedestrian against Kentucky. Yes, UK was undefeated but with what I saw Alabama do to Clemson and UGA in the first half they are clearly ahead of schedule but they are not immune from average play. Heck, they looked pretty pedestrian in the second half of the UGA game.

I would love to see solid wins every game but the fact is it doesn't always happen and sometimes you have a lot of stinkers but still get the win. Some days style points work other days they don't.

One thing that stood out was USC's confidence on that 4th and 2 play where Williams scored his TD.

Saturday's fourth-and-two in USC's 44-10 win over Oregon could never, in terms of historic significance, match the other fourth-and-two.

The difference, though, was that this one worked for USC, and it was the key play in one of the more important bounce-back games Pete Carroll has faced in seven-plus seasons as the Trojans' coach.

USC was down, 10-3, in the second quarter, a week and two days removed from being down 21-0 in an ultimate Thursday night defeat at Oregon State.

The Trojans had to beat Oregon to avoid losing consecutive games for the first time since a Washington-Stanford combo early in 2001 -- Carroll's first season.

But things weren't going well. A roughing the holder penalty on USC allowed Oregon to take a field goal off the scoreboard and trade it for a touchdown.

USC had first-and-goal from the six and had to settle for a field goal.

Then, down by a touchdown, USC faced fourth down at the Ducks' 34.

You knew Carroll was going for it -- he usually does.

Instead of a run, though, the coaching staff went for the kill.

Mark Sanchez found Damian Williams, wide open, streaking down the left crease and hit him on his No. 18 on the way to an easy touchdown.

"Beautiful call," Carroll said of Steve Sarkisian, his offensive coordinator. "But it wasn't one you make to make the first down."

I like the swagger of that play, it showed a lot of confidence that was missing last week.

You saw a little bit of it when Mustain came in as well. I wasn't happy with the INT he threw but I liked the play that was called as showed some aggressiveness on Sarkisian's part to try and get Mustain's confidence up. I actually thought it was a pretty good play by the defender more than it being a poor decision on Mustain's part. It wasn't his best performance there but he made up for it later on the TD to Ausberry. Speaking of Ausberry, he is absolutely huge! I would love to see him get some more touches. It was also nice to See Travon Patterson get into the game.

Let me briefly address the last TD that Mustain threw to Ausberry. I know Mike Bellotti was not happy about it and I can understand if it was the first team in there running up the score but this was the second and third stringers, at home, getting their chance to make some plays and show the staff what they've got. The game was well out of hand and the spread was covered so what's the difference. If it was on the road up at Autzen I could probably see his frustration.

so there are still some issues and kinks to work out but this had to be a big boost to SC's confidence. next week its ASU who is coming off a bad loss to Cal. I still think the Pac-10 is up for grabs...