I don't know about you, dear readers, but I've had just about as much as I care to read about epochal shifts, historic beatdowns, and the like. Shit, it's so bad Plaschke almost wrote a couple of paragraphs with more than two sentences yesterday. That's baaaaaaaaaaaad. So. As we've been hashing over the offensive lacunae of this season, there's... more »
Here are some week 9 highlights of former Trojans now playing in the NFL. This week features
David Buehler, Dwayne Jarrett, Reggie Bush, Terrell Thomas, Steve Smith, Kevin Ellison, Keith Rivers, Rey Maualuga (Cinco Ocho), Carson Palmer, Troy Polamalu and Brian Cushing.
Fight On!
(Video created by Eric Espinoza and the USC video operations department)
I think three reasons can trace USC's decline in scoring in Pac-10 games from 2002-05 to 2006-08. 1. Norm Chow. 2. Reggie Bush. 3. The decrease in takeaways. Here's some stats from the Morning Buzz: USC's takeaways decreased the past four seasons. The Trojans averaged 38 per year in Carroll's first five seasons. But in the next three seasons... more »
How bout some USC Alumni NFL highlights…. Carson Palmer had a big day on Sunday going 20 of 24 for 233 with 5 TD passes. Other former Trojans featured in the highlights are Clay Matthews, Troy Polamalu, Reggie Bush, Fred Davis, Steve Smith, Terrell Thomas, Justin Fargas and Mark Sanchez.
The NFL 2010 Pro Bowl ballots are now available online. Click here to vote for any of your favorite Trojans.
(Photo of Damian Williams returning a punt on Oregon State by Icon Sports Media)
Here is a fantastic feature from the LA Times on Damian Williams punt returning abilities. Williams has already returned two punts for touchdowns this year, a 66-yarder at CAL and the game changing 63-yard return last week vs. Oregon State that Coach Carroll called, “the play of the year.” The last player to return two punts for TDs for USC was Reggie Bush in 2004. Williams also leads the Trojans in receptions with 34 and has three touchdown catches. Here is a tease from the piece:
Damian Williams does it while walking to and from classes at USC. He does it when navigating a crowded off-campus sidewalk. As pedestrians approach from the opposite direction, Williams fakes. He cuts. He finds a seam, slips through and continues on his way. Williams is practicing punt returns "It used to be a game," he said. "Now it's a habit." So is the fourth-year junior's propensity for making big plays....
There are some interesting stories out there over the past few day that are putting a lot of pressure on Charlie Weis and Notre Dame to beat USC. Moment of truth for Weis, Clausen - Wetzel Notre Dame's aim: Win USC game to regain name - Dodd Notre Dame and QB Jimmy Clausen must rise to occasion against sixth-ranked... more »
Because no one reads the newspaper, and SportsCenter's anchors are too perky for this early in the morning, Deadspin combs the best of the broadsheets and the blogosphere to bring you everything you need to know to start your day. •People Magazine is reporting that Reggie Bush and Kim Kardashian are getting back together. Sources say Bush took a... more »
What a surprise! USC had another post-big game letdown entering Pac10 play.
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.
From our resident guru, here is John Skinner with the Skinny on USC's 18-15 win over Ohio State.
1- McKnight shines when it counts: Though Matt Barkley is getting most of the praise for USC's final improbable game winning drive, Joe McKnight accounted for about 2/3 of SC's yardage on the drive and ran with a purpose we haven't consistently seen from him. He doesn't have the explosiveness of Reggie Bush but he does have the moves and showed Trojan fans that he can put the team on his back and get them down the field when it counts. Without McKnight on the final drive SC is probably 1-1.
McKnight Part II: Though McKnight was the major player on the final drive, he needs to improve his pass blocking to help the offense get going. He has a hard time picking up the blitz and one time a Defensive End just flat out ran around him causing a sack. Last year, SC was fairly predictable when McKnight was in the game and he has to be multi-dimensional for SC to get away from showing its cards offensively.
Thoughts on Barkley, the Defense and Special Teams after the jump.
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