• DE Armond Armstead (wrist): Probable

• WR David Ausberry (calf): Out

• RB Allen Bradford (knee): Probable

• LB Chris Galippo (neck): Probable
• 
DE Everson Griffen (toe): Probable

• FB Stanley Havili (shoulder): Probable
• 
LB Jarvis Jones (neck): Questionable

• S Drew McAllister (hip): Out

• TE Anthony McCoy (ankle): Questionable

• RB Joe McKnight (ankle): Probable
• 
DE Nick Perry (knee): Questionable
• 
LB Malcolm Smith (shoulder): Out

• WR Damian Williams (glute): Probable

The Trojan nation will remember where they were Halloween night 2009 for many years to come after watching a true horror movie being played out in Auzten Stadium as Oregon dominated the Trojans 47-20 and literally beat them up as the Trojans suffered quite a few injuries on the defensive side of the ball. For the first time in his SC tenure, Coach Carroll seemed to doubt his own game plan of stopping Oregon’s run offense because of a few early completions to the Oregon slot receiver early and chaos ensued.

Oregon proved they are one of the best teams in the country and Head Coach Chip Kelly has done a masterful job of getting his team to rebound from an early loss against Boise State.

It is easy to beat up on the Trojans right now and quite frankly some of it is deserved. However, if they can pull it together they still have an easy shot at another top 10 season, a potential BCS at-large bow bid and the chance to carry quite a bit of momentum into next season with a very young team. Even faint hope remains for the Rose Bowl.

We will learn a lot about the Trojans from the coaching staff down in terms of how they rebound from this type of loss over the next few weeks. The invincibility factor of the SC jersey is no longer going to give them a mental edge in 2009.

After the jump is a quick analysis of the keys to the game from Friday's Skinny and an injury report

Big Anthony McCoy! #22 is no Tommy Z, that's for sure; he got shredded all day.

The light shineth on this one. May we worship him for a long time to come.

If Armond Armstead doesn't block this (even though in this picture it looks like Galippo #54 is going to), your balls shrink up inside your stomach on Notre Dame's last shots inside the 10.

By far the hottest Northern Indiana will get for a couple years.

After the jump, just another glorious shot of a hard working Song Girl doing all she can to defeat the ugly, green Leprechauns, and all that is Irish. Enjoy.

This is the best Notre Dame team USC has played since the Trojans barely escaped South Bend in 2005 with a win. Quite a few experts are picking a Notre Dame victory due to the Irish being led by Heisman Trophy candidate Jimmy Clausen, the Trojans playing back-to-back road games (please note the bye in between) and this being a landmark game for the Irish program.

The experts who are predicting a Notre Dame upset must also think the Trojans are going to revert back to penalty and turnover laden football. If the Trojans keep penalties down and win the turnover battle, they will win the game. Unless the Trojans get up big early, I expect it to be a tight battle that will come down to some classic 4th quarter drives.

1-- Play Disciplined Football: #1 priority every week! Limit turnovers and penalties.

2-- Contain ND's running game: Though Jimmy Clausen has thrown 12 TD's only 2 Int's and leads the nation in passing efficiency, he will only have success against the best secondary in the country if the Trojans give up over 120 yards on the ground. If the Trojans put Clausen in obvious pass situations, he will make mistakes. The throws he has gotten away with against much lesser defenses will not happen against the Trojans.

3-- Don't Let the Golden One get loose in the Red Zone: Wide Receiver Golden Tate is having a phenomenal year. He is a big and athletic and Clausen loves to throw him fade routes and he is great at catching high passes. The Trojans need to make sure he is well covered in the red zone and force other ND players to make plays when it counts.

4-- Stay aggressive and balanced offensively: QB Matt Barkley is playing with a swagger after the Cal game and the Trojans need to take advantage of that. Barkley seems to have his hands around most of the playbook and with Ronald Johnson back, the Trojans need to stretch the field early. Even if some of the deeper throws are incomplete, it will soften the ND defense up and the Trojan running game should be able to have a great day. The Trojans should be able to run for over 200 yards.

5-- Avoid the 2nd and 3rd quarter lull: The Trojans cannot suffer some of the 2nd and 3rd quarter lulls they have had this season. The best case scenario for the Trojans is to get up early on the Irish and not let them back in the game for a 4th quarter run. The Trojans are best to avoid the 4th quarter magic that Clausen has been mastering this season.

More notes after the jump...

(I love how PeteCarrollTV goes to bars before the video ends.  Dammit.  Just dammit.)

For the Irish to win Saturday, they're going to have to put some pressure on Matt Barkley, both with large men chasing him and by putting points up on the board.  Everything you'll watch and read about Barkley leads you to believe he's not easily rattled.  The Tribune and the LA Times weigh in.

ESPN is giving the game wall-to-wall coverage, anchored by this Ivan Maisel piece.  If you have Insider, check out the Scouts, Inc. preview. (Also, ESPN, do we need to automatically start videos on every page?  What a great idea.)

From the South Bend Tribune, a fun little A to Z on the series (did anyone clear it with Orson?).  I barely made it past A, but it's solid.

While the Irish are getting some players back from injury, the Trojans are maximizing the bye week as well.  Ronald Johnson will make his season debut for the wide receiving corps, while Armond Armstead will be entering the already terrifying defensive line rotation after missing the first five games with a broken bone in his foot.

Stafon Johnson won't be playing on Saturday - although he is out of the hospital now - but that doesn't mean he won't be on the minds (and helmets) of his teammates:

The Trojans’ very recent past was a bye week that gave the coaches a glimpse at the future.

Freshman safeties T.J. McDonald (right) and Jawanza Starling received a ton of invaluable reps, and it isn’t difficult to envision the pair starting side by side sometime soon.

The thing defensive coordinator and secondary coach Rocky Seto likes best about them? They’re quick studies.

“They learn their lessons,” Seto said late last week.

“They may be out of position (on one play), and then they get it, which is neat. They’ve taken, I don’t know, 70 reps the last couple days. Think about those 70 lessons.”

The coaching staff obviously was impressed from the start with McDonald, who became the second-string strong safety despite missing a large chunk of training camp because of a sprained ankle.

“Some guys come in a little more prepared than others,” said Seto, who compared McDonald to recent Trojan Kevin Ellison. It’s no coincidence that both come from football families, T.J. having played for father Tim McDonald, a former USC All-American and NFL All-Pro.

More from the USC blog:

• USC football: A most productive weekend
• USC football: The value and versatility of Garrett Green
• USC football: 5 games that mean something to the Trojans
• USC football: The latest on Stafon Johnson’s recovery
• USC football: Carroll hits recruiting trail feeling good
• USC football: Is Mustain No. 2 on the depth chart?
• USC football: Rick Neuheisel burns on Trojans
• USC football: Everson Griffen isn’t satisfied
• USC football: ‘Marvelous’ test results for Stafon Johnson
• USC football: Armond Armstead ahead of schedule

Post from: USC

A quick review of the keys to victory:

1- Contain Cal's running game: The Trojans held the vaunted Cal rushing attack to only 86 yards. Former Heisman Trophy candidate Jahvid Best was held to 47 yards rushing and only 5 yards receiving. The Trojans forced Kevin “I don’t like big games and throw a high ball” Riley into passing situations that he is not equipped to handle which allowed the Trojans to dominate the Time of Possession 36:46 to 23:14.

The game was basically over when Trojan Safety Taylor Mays ran down Jahvid Best from behind in the backfield in the second quarter. The statement was made that USC’s best defensive player was not going to let Cal’s best offensive player get loose.

(More analysis and some team notes after the jump)

News and notes around the Pac-10 as preseason camps transition toward game week.

• Arizona: The plot thickens at quarterback after Nick Foles outplayed Matt Scott in Saturday's scrimmage, just as it appeared Scott was going to be named the starter. Offensive coordinator Sonny Dykes told me last week that he'd likely make a call by Monday or Tuesday, but we shall see.
• Arizona State: Coach Dennis Erickson confirmed quarterback Danny Sullivan will start the season-opener against Idaho State, but the defense dominated the weekend scrimmage, with true freshman linebacker Vontaze Burfict continuing to make plays. True freshman Brock Osweiler may be Sullivan's backup because Samson Szakacsy is nursing tendonitis in his right elbow.
• California: There is no reason to believe Kevin Riley won't be Cal's starting quarterback against Maryland, and that announcement is expected on Wednesday. In fact, coach Jeff Tedford seems so confident about the Bears' roster, preseason camp is on the cusp of transitioning into game preparation after a day off. One thing that as of yet is unclear is who will be the fourth starting linebacker.
• Oregon: If you're wondering how Oregon's offense might change this fall, look at how well the receivers are catching the ball. The Ducks, with quarterback Jeremiah Masoli owning a deeper understanding of the offense -- and the offensive line not as powerful as 2008 -- figure to throw downfield a lot more. But the story of camp might be how well the defense is playing.
• Oregon State: It appears that both Rodgers brothers, James and Jacquizz, will be good to go for the opener, but quarterback Lyle Moevao is still a ways away, meaning Sean Canfield likely will have to lose the starting job this season. As far as team concerns, it appears the defense is going to be OK -- more than OK -- but the offensive line is young and thin.
• Stanford: Redshirt freshman Andrew Luck only increased his lead over senior Tavita Pritchard during preseason practices, and Luck will have a much deeper receiving corps to work with this fall. It appears the offensive line will feature two redshirt freshmen starters.
• UCLA: Things are going according to expectation. The defense looks very good but there hasn't been much consistency at quarterback and along the offensive line. Tailback Christian Ramirez has struggled with injuries.
• USC: While the quarterback competition has garnered the most headlines -- Aaron Corp must return to practice by Tuesday if he wants to beat out freshman Matt Barkley for the opener vs. San Jose State -- the Trojans' defensive line might be down two starters when it plays at Ohio State on Sept. 12, with end Armond Armstead (broken foot, out) and tackle Averell Spicer (ankle, questionable) hurting. Nonetheless, the defense has mostly controlled things during the preseason.
• Washington: Johri Fogerson's switch from safety to running back looks like a success -- he could share snaps with Chris Polk. There has been an apparent shakeup in the receiving pecking order, with true freshman James Johnson and Jordan Polk and Devin Aguilar running with the first unit, ahead of D'Andre Goodwin and Jermaine Kearse.
• Washington State:  The quarterback competition between Kevin Lopina and Marshall Lobbestael is on-going, though Lopina has seemed to be ahead while Lobbestael tries to regain his form after knee surgery. There also is uncertainty due to injuries at receiver and left tackle, where sophomore Steven Ayers, freshman Tyson Pencer and junior Joe Eppele are competing.

Notes of interest:

1) USC will play up in Oregon on Halloween (however an even bigger freak show will be assembled in Indio, California when Phish plays at the Empire Polo Fields).

2) Christian Tupou is higher on the depth chart, but if Jurrell Casey blows shit up like he did at the Spring Huddle, USC's front four could be wearing #91, #92, #93, and #94 (Jurrell Casey, Hebron Fangupo, Everson Griffen and Armond Armstead).

3) You may notice (how could you not) a new banner in between the TrojanWire logo and the starters gridiron. Yes, that is what you think it is -- an entire video devoted to purity, innocence, white sweaters and the USC Song Girls will be unleashed by TrojanWire on September 3rd, 2009. Try to contain yourself or keep your pants on until then...

Follow the jump for the complete list.

Ever wonder what a coach might say about a quarterback competition the day before he announces a pecking order?

You're in luck!

USC coach Pete Carroll stopped by for a chat with the Pac-10 blog on Monday, the day before he announced on his Web site that Aaron Corp would emerge from spring practices No. 1 on the quarterback depth chart, ahead of true freshman Matt Barkley and Mitch Mustain.

	Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images
	Pete Carroll boasts an 88-15 record since arriving at USC.

That bit of stolen thunder aside -- and the announcement was mostly a foregone conclusion -- it's never a bad time to talk with a coach who's 88-15 in eight years at USC and has finished ranked in the top four of the AP poll seven consecutive seasons.

After all, he's got a new book deal to benefit his charity, A Better LA, and a new Web site for kids.

And he's got a football team that likely will be favored to win its eighth consecutive Pac-10 championship and again compete for a national title.

Word on the street is you guys have an intense quarterback competition going on over there: Where does that stand?

Pete Carroll: Guys have really battled hard and done well. We're pleased with the play at the quarterback position. The competition is going to continue. We'll name a guy who's going to start the spring game for us and then the competition will just continue. We've got to call something here after a month of playing. We'll find out what happens when we get back to camp in the fall.

You've told me in the past you prefer to anoint a quarterback as early as possible to allow him to develop into a clear leader: How will that be a part of the decision in the fall?

PC: We'd like to do that [name a starter], but you've got to do the right thing and let the competition play itself out. What that means is, in the past when we named Matt Leinart over Matt Cassel, it meant that Leinart was going first and Cassel was battling him. The competition remained on. It will be the same situation. It's a very hard-fought, close competition and in fairness it's going to take longer to know exactly what we are going to do for the long haul.

It seems like running backs Curtis McNeal and Marc Tyler have asserted themselves this spring: Have they done enough to eclipse the established guys?

PC: I don't think there's any question Curtis McNeal has. Marc Tyler has been hurt most of the spring -- he's only had a couple of days when he's full speed. He's done well. But McNeal has taken advantage of the opportunity to be out there every day and he's really been effective.

<!--more--> You guys are pretty much rebuilding your front seven: How has that gone so far and who is having a great spring?

PC: Malcolm Smith, Chris Galippo and Mike Morgan, our linebackers have really jumped to the front and given us really good play. They've been out there every day battling. They give us good speed and athleticism and they've all played the last couple of years. Now they take over, they look like they are going to be really nice players for us. We're really excited about them. [Defensive end] Everson Griffen has had his best camp by far. Armond Armstead, we moved to strongside defensive end, has had a great camp too.

It seems like, on paper, this is your most experienced and talented secondary. How good is this secondary going to be?

PC: Led by Taylor Mays, such a solid guy playing in the middle back there, and Kevin Thomas had a great year at corner playing for us last year. Shareece Wright was a starter for us before he got hurt, and Josh Pinkard returns and he started at corner last year and is playing safety now and can play some corner for us. Also, [safety] Will Harris who's started a bunch of games is back. So it's as good a secondary as we've had since we've been here. We have really high expectations for these guys to be aggressive and really be a factor.

What does Rocky Seto, promoted this offseason to defensive coordinator, bring to the defense?

PC: He's been around since the outset of this program, so Rocky brings us great continuity and really in-depth direction of the littlest things that we are doing to the biggest things we are doing. He's been a big factor. He's had a great spring with these guys. I think we are as good as we've ever been at hawking the football, which is great. He has the most background of anyone I've been around in our specific stuff. He gives us great insights and great leadership there.

With Jeremy Bates and John Morton now running the offense: What have they changed this spring?

PC: Nothing has changed. Nothing's changed on defense really. We're just continuing to try to recapture the spirit of the offense and make sure we're utilizing our personnel well. The familiarity between Jeremy and the rest of the guys has been going along beautifully. When you're developing a quarterback, a lot of the focus goes to the quarterback position and Jeremy has done a good job of making sense of all that, so those guys have performed well. And we've also continue to do our installation like we have to do to keep this thing going. They've gotten along great. Jeremy has called all the plays in our scrimmages and our practices that isn't normal scripted stuff so he can work at it and practice at it, too. He's totally up to speed and has done a great job so far.

Running the Pac-10 blog, it seems like a rivalry has developed between the SEC and USC: Any chance we're going to get a matchup between the Trojans and an SEC power any time soon?

PC: I don't know. We've played a bunch of SEC schools over the years -- well, not a bunch -- we've played SEC schools and when we do we enjoy that matchup [USC went 4-0 in home-and-home series with Auburn and Arkansas, winning by a combined margin of 167-48]. There's nothing we can do about schedules that are already set. At the end of the year, if we are fortunate enough to play against those guys, we'd look forward to it.

Are you learning to live with the BCS process, or are you ready to lead a march on Washington to get the system changed?

PC: I don't have a better system for it. I advocate a playoff. Everybody in America wants a playoff -- in any sport, at any level, no matter where you are, to find out who the champions are. We want to do the same thing.

Heard about your new book deal that's going to benefit your non-profit, A Better LA, anything you want to get the word out about?

PC: We've been hard at it to help fight the violence and things that are going on in the streets here and make sure we're doing our part. We've been very active for a number of years and have worked hard to continue to generate funds for the foundation, so we do have a book thing we are working on to bring proceeds to "A Better LA" and to enhance our fundraising efforts as we go along.

But when a reporter asked Carroll on Tuesday if he could foresee a scenario where Armstead moves back to tackle, the coach said no way.

“He’s too good at what he’s doing,” Carroll said. “He’s just learning. I think he’s a real factor.”

Despite weighing about 20 pounds more than Kyle Moore, his predecessor at strong-side defensive end, Armstead has made as many visits to the offensive backfield as the rest of the Trojans’ young, active defensive line.

“I really like the way he’s doing his stuff,” Carroll said. “He’s physical, he can rush the passer and he’ll chase the ball, too. It’s a great move for him.

“We didn’t know it at the time. It was an experiment. But it didn’t take (more than) a couple of days to see this was a good move for him, and for us.”

More from the USC blog:

• USC football: Defiant Mustain plans to ‘keep throwing it’
• USC football: Joe McKnight’s return imminent
• USC football: Quarterback quotes
• USC football: Taylor Mays and Ronnie Lott
• USC football: 5 spring practices, 5 observations
• USC football: Stars of the scrimmage (defense)
• USC football: Stars of the scrimmage (offense)
• USC football: The ups and downs of Matt Barkley
• USC football: Why Taylor Mays made only a cameo
• USC football: More scrimmage stats

Post from: USC

DE -- Armond Armstead, Wes Horton
NT -- Christian Tupou, Jurrell Casey
DT -- Averell Spicer, Derek Simmons
DE -- Everson Griffen, Malik Jackson