Here is how some Trojans are doing at this years NFL combine:

Joe McKnight ran a 4.47 40 yard dash. This was fifth-best among running backs. McKnight had a 10'0" standing broad jump mark and 36.5 vertical leap

Everson Griffen bench pressed 225 lbs. 32 times and ran a 4.66 40, second best time among defensive linemen.

Damian Williams bench pressed 225 lbs. 19 times, fourth best among WRs. Williams also had a 38.0 vertical leap and ran the three-cone drill in 6.79 seconds, eighth best for WRs. He also ran the 40 in the low 4.5 range.

Jeff Byers bench pressed 225 lbs. 33 times, sixth best among offensive linemen.

Anthony McCoy logged the fourth best vertical jump among tight ends with a 35.5, fourth best among tight ends. McCoy also had a 4.79 40 and 19 bench reps.

Charles Brown had a 31.5 vertical leap and 21 bench press reps.

Taylor Mays ran an unofficial 4.24 40 yard dash (video above). Most scouts clocked his 40 at 4.32 seconds. They then changed the official time to 4.43. Mays benched 225 lbs. 24 times and had a 41.0 vertical leap, second best among safeties.

Kevin Thomas benched 225 lbs 19 times, third best among cornerbacks.

Stafon Johnson courageously bench pressed 225 lbs. 13 times. To watch the video, click here.

In news outside the realm of USC, Tim Tebow is at the combine, and NFL scouts report that he is still a virgin.

Here is Kevin Thomas. He will be a steal for any NFL team that picks him up.

Damian Williams, Jeff Byers, Charles Brown and Taylor Mays were all named to the All-Pac-10 first team. Williams was selected twice as a wide receiver and punt returner.

Everson Griffen, Josh Pinkard, Kevin Thomas and Garrett Green were selected to the All-Pac-10 second team. Green made the team as a special teamer.

Trojans receiving honorable mention were Allen Bradford, Jurrell Casey, Chris Galippo, Will Harris, Butch Lewis, Anthony McCoy, Joe McKnight, Tyron Smith and Christian Tupou.

To see full list of the All-Pac-10 teams click here.

Pac-10 Football Awards and All-Conference Announced [pac10]

Here is a list of Trojans that will be playing their last home game at the Coliseum on Saturday.

OL Charles Brown
LB Luthur Brown
OL Jeff Byers (pictured above)
WR Preston Cavignac
K Jordan Congdon
LB Dan Deckas
DB Rob Erickson
LB Nick Garratt
FB Adam Goodman
WR Garrett Green
S Will Harris
DB Justin Hart
OL Nick Howell
TB Stafon Johnson
S Taylor Mays
TE Anthony McCoy
OL Garrett Nolan
P Billy O'Malley
OL Alex Parsons
DB Josh Pinkard
DL Averell Spicer
CB Kevin Thomas

The Senior Salute will take place eight minutes before kickoff. These 22 players will be honored for all their hard work and dedication to the USC football program. Thank you and fight on!

The offense still sputtered, but it was enough to win the game and that's all that matters. Matt Barkley's 48 yard touchdown pass to Damian Williams late in the 4th quarter capped off a great win over the crosstown rivals. Rick Neuheisel's arrogance and refusal to accept a merciful loss offered by Pete Carroll and USC completely backfired on him. You want to play some football, Ricky? You got it!

The UCLA Bruins were a touchdown away from tying the score for most of the game, and they could have taken pride knowing they hung in there until the final minutes of the 4th quarter. Now the Bruins have nothing to take pride in, thanks to Rick Neuheisel poking a stick at the wasp nest that is Pete Carroll and the USC Trojans. Even the Toilet Bowl is no guarantee for these little cubbies. At least USC is going bowling and their dominance over the finest Westwood has to offer continues.

And basketball, once a source of refuge for the bRuins after a crappy football season, is now a sore subject. UCLA hoops is a laughing stock and to consider them the best team in Southern California is a tasteless joke. Whatever you do, please do not mention Cal State Fullerton or Long Beach State when talking about UCLA basketball.

But come on, it's UCLA! Things are not all bad, right? After all they are the first to 100 NCAA Championships. Even though most normal college sports fans care about the successes of football and basketball and to a lesser extent in baseball, let them take pride knowing their women's cross country team or their men's synchronized diving team just won another NCAA title. It's enough to make you not care.

The McKnight-Bradford duo is working well for the Trojans.

The Trojan defense kept the Notre Dame offense in check. The referees assisted the Irish all the way to the end of the game, but even that wasn't enough. Statistically speaking the Irish offense, led by ostrich Jimmy Clausen, is one of the better ones in college football. The Trojan defense is lights out!

The offense got off to a strong start, but they were inconsistent and fumbled more than they should have, but on the bright side, coaches opened up the playbook and allowed Matt Barkley to complete some deep passes. However this offense, and the receiving game in particular, needs to play better. Trojan fans eagerly await the return of the fastest receiver, Ronald Johnson, who suffered a shoulder injury in the scrimmage game in August.

This defense is impressive. They almost held the Cougars to a shutout if it were not for Aaron Corp's fumble late in the game. Defensive back Marshall Jones and defensive tackle Hebron Fangupo each suffered season ending injuries in this game. Injuries are part of the game, and this is why it never hurts to have depth like USC does. Pete Carroll and coaching staff "stockpile" talent, and given the current waves of injuries, this is when the depth is tested.

Don't go into hibernation just yet; there are positives to be taken away from this game shown in the highlights.

Joe McKnight rushed for 100 yards on 11 carries, upping his current season total rush yards to 305. Could he be the first Trojan since Reggie Bush to rush for over 1000 yards in a season?

The offense struggled with the passing game, but there were some great runs by Stanley Havili, Stafon Johnson, and Allen Bradford.

USC's young defense did a great job containing Jake Locker and holding the Huskies to 16 points. If only the offense would have scored another touchdown or two. Sophomore Jurrell Casey and redshirt freshman Nick Perry set up camp in the Huskies' backfield.

TrojanWire has crossed enemy lines and will be publishing a Cal grad's weekly betting analysis for USC football.

Dr. Bob will be helping TrojanWire make weekly picks at the BetUS Sportsbook.

You can get Dr. Bob's Best Bet of the Week by subscribing to his service. Watch the ESPN video after the jump to see how Dr. Bob actually applied the BUAD 310 lessons you slept through.

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USC and Florida were about even in my ratings at the end of last season and it's a shame that the two best teams didn't get to face each other in the National Championship game. The reason for the Trojans' exclusion was a late September loss at Oregon State by a 21-27 count in a game in which USC out-played the Beavers 6.1 yards per play to 5.0 yppl but were -2 in turnover margin. USC may be able to afford one loss this season given the enhanced strength of the Pac-10 this season and the tougher non-conference schedule (at Ohio State and visiting a ranked Notre Dame team). While the Trojans could make it to the National Championship game with one loss, they should be favored to win each and every week, including at Ohio State (although they may not be).

Yes, USC must replace 8 defensive starters that were selected in April's NFL draft, including 4 in the first 2 rounds, but the Trojans' secondary is going to be just as good and most of the replacements along the defensive front 7 are going to be headed to the NFL when they're done kicking ass for the Trojans. FS Taylor Mays returns to lead the unit after earning 1st Team All-American honors last season and replacing departed defensive backs Kevin Ellison and Cary Harris will not be difficult, as new starters Shareece Wright and Kevin Thomas are better NFL prospects than either Ellison or Harris (both 6th round draft picks). In fact, Thomas defended more passes (7 broken up and 3 interceptions) as a back up last season than either Ellison or Harris did as starters. The question on the defense is the front 7, which employs 6 new starters and has to replace 4 players drafted in the first 2 rounds. There is always talent waiting to fill the holes at USC, but the holes are pretty big this year and the lack of experience may be a minor problem early in the season (we'll find out on September 12th). I don't expect the USC defense to be historically good as it was in 2008 (allowed a miniscule 3.7 yards per play to a schedule of teams that would combine to average 5.7 yppl against an average stop unit), but the Trojans should still rank among the best defensive teams in the nation.

While the defense has to replace many stars, the offense only has to replace one. Quarterback Mark Sanchez had an excellent season as the starter and will now be starting for the New York Jets. It's tough to imagine sophomore Aaron Corp or freshman Matt Barkley being as efficient as Sanchez was last season, but the same was said of Matt Leinart when he had to replace Carson Palmer and of John David Booty when he followed Leinart. The only bad year for the USC pass attack was in 2007 when the receiving corps lacked talent and experience after Steve Smith and Dwayne Jarrett left campus, but the Trojans' pass attack has rated between +1.8 yards per pass play better than average and +2.8 yppp in the other 6 seasons since 2002 and the average new starter during that time had a rating of +2.3 yppp. The receiving corps is loaded with talent and experience heading into this season and WR Damian Williams is poised for an All-American season after nabbing 58 balls at 15.0 ypc and 9 scores as s sophomore last season. I expect the new USC quarterback to be about 2.3 yards per pass play better than average, which is down some from the +2.7 yppp rating of Sanchez last season. The rushing attack, meanwhile, should be even better than last season. The top 4 backs return to run behind the nation's best offensive line, which returns 5 starters (although C O'Dowd is questionable to start the season) and the Trojans could average over 6 yards per running play after averaging a stellar 5.6 yprp last season behind an inexperienced line that returned just 1 starter. Stafon Johnson, Joe McKnight, and company should enjoy running through the holes that this year's Trojans' offensive line should create. USC averaged 6.7 yards per play in 2008 (against teams that would allow 5.1 yppl to an average attack), and I think they could be even better this season.

USC's special teams were a mixed bag last season, as the punting (33.0 net average) and punt returns (opponents averaged 36.7 net) were bad while the kickoff team was the 2nd best in the nation (21.8 yard line average opponent field position after kick-offs) and the kick return unit was good (26.5 average return). The Trojans must replace the punter (no problem there) and kicker David Buehler but the kick and punt return specialists are back. The departure of P Woidneck is likely to be a positive, but Buehler did a great job on kickoffs (although a bit worse than average on field goals) and I doubt the Trojans can repeat their great kick-off coverage stats. However, I expect more out of the punt return team and the kick returns should continue to shine. USC should once again be good overall in special teams.

The Trojans rank as my #2 rated team behind Florida entering the 2009 season, but that rating is contingent on Corp or Barkley continuing the recent tradition of great USC quarterbacks. The first big test is at Ohio State on September 12th, but I think the Trojans will be better than the Buckeyes on both sides of the ball even if the new quarterback isn't quite ready to play at typical USC standards. The Pac-10 schedule presents tough tests at Cal and at Oregon and a non-conference road game against a Notre Dame team that for once may actually be pretty good (although still likely to lose by 10 to 14 points to the Trojans). It will be a tough task for USC to come away from those 4 challenging road games with 4 wins, but I'd favor the Trojans in each of those games. An 11-1 season and another BCS bowl win is the most likely outcome (unless that BCS bowl game is against Florida), as USC tends to slip up in one Pac-10 game every year.

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.