USC FOOTBALL: Trojans hope all else stays similar against Cal, which they have not lost to since ’03.
SAN FRANCISCO – Thanks to the aggressive nature of the Pacific-12 Conference, USC plays California tonight in a game that bears little resemblance to the previous 98 meetings between the Trojans and their oldest rival.
Instead of the traditional Saturday affair, the game is now a made-for-TV weeknight attraction.
For years, USC students trekked to the Bay Area for what is dubbed the “Weekender.”
“They can have a longer weekend by staying Friday,” USC athletic director Pat Haden joked earlier in the season.
Students appear to be taking a pass this year, as evidenced by the fact tickets remain
 GO INSIDE USC: For the best around-the-clock coverage of the Trojans, visit Scott Wolf’s Inside USC blog. |
available in the 45,000-seat baseball stadium. Maybe parking downtown during rush hour was a turnoff.
Even USC’s band, which usually brings everyone here, is a smaller, 60-member squad that will not perform at halftime.
For all the changes, the biggest question is whether California will stay the same. Despite the mileage Golden Bears coach Jeff Tedford got out of his 2003 upset of the Trojans, he’s never beaten USC since.
Cal is the only Pac-12 school besides Washington State that can say it hasn’t beaten the Trojans (4-1, 2-1) since that day. The past two meetings weren’t even close, as the Trojans won 30-3 in 2009 and 48-14 last season.
“I never look to years prior to judge how this year’s going to be,”
USC quarterback Matt Barkley said. “I don’t think that’s the right way to look at it. There’s always new, different situations. We’re playing in a new stadium. We’re playing a different team with different personnel.
“We’re coming off a great win (over Arizona), which does give us momentum and confidence going into this week, but last year doesn’t mean anything.”
Cal probably agrees. The Bears (3-2, 0-2) might take solace going in that USC’s four victories have come against teams with a combined five victories over Football Bowl Subdivision teams.
That might be why some big questions remain about the Trojans going into tonight’s game. Even a team such as Cal, which lost to Washington and Oregon, is expected to provide something of a test.
Barkley is certainly cognizant of history, given that the previous two teams he led at quarterback tended to struggle in midseason.
“We had a great start to the season last year, then tapered off, which we can’t let happen this year,” Barkley said. “I’m not happy with anything right now.”
USC gets one advantage despite traveling north: The Trojans are fresher with 10 days off, while Cal played at Oregon last Thursday.
“They were probably landing at 3 in the morning (Friday),” USC coach Lane Kiffin said. “We had more time to rest.”
This game also serves as a chance for USC’s defense to rehabilitate its image. Kiffin said it wasn’t time to overreact after the Trojans allowed more than 40 points in back-to-back games for the first time in school history.
“We’re struggling in the red zone,” USC linebacker Dion Bailey said, “but (Arizona quarterback) Nick Foles is the best quarterback I’ve seen, by far. He does some stuff that regular quarterbacks can’t do.”
While USC’s red-zone defense is maligned, its red-zone offense ranks 10th in the Pac-12.
A victory tonight also helps Kiffin, who needs to win all games against teams the Trojans are favored against. Two of his victories at USC were against Arizona during its 10-game losing streak against FBS teams that resulted in the firing of Wildcats coach Mike Stoops.
The debut of freshman tailback-wide receiver George Farmer could help the red-zone offense and Kiffin. Farmer will play alongside Serra High School of Gardena teammates Robert Woods and Marqise Lee for the first time.
The idea of a defense trying to contain all three might sound tantalizing to USC fans, but it remains to be seen how much Kiffin wants to use a player who sat out the first five games.
Farmer was bullish on playing a big role against Cal.
“I’ve studied the playbook and I’m a lot stronger than I was when I first got here,” he said. “I don’t really think anything is different playing tailback (instead of wide receiver). I don’t want a negative mindset.”
Farmer said he played tailback at Serra in limited situations, such as inside the 5-yard line, so he doesn’t feel reservations about getting hit as a running back.
“Some people compare me to (Minnesota Vikings tailback) Adrian Peterson because of my size,” Farmer said. “And they say my speed reminds them of Reggie Bush.”
If that’s true, USC would have little reason for concern tonight.
No comments:
Post a Comment