The USC Trojans have had enough of this off-season – enough talk of sanctions, enough speculation about how well they will (or won’t) rebound from last year’s disappointing season, enough two-a-days without even getting to tackle away their frustrations. Good thing it’s almost game time. 
The USC Trojans have had enough of this off-season – enough talk of sanctions, enough speculation about how well they will (or won’t) rebound from last year’s disappointing season, enough two-a-days without even getting to tackle away their frustrations. Good thing it’s almost game time.
The Trojans travel to Hawaii tonight for tomorrow’s season opener against the Island’s Warriors. Since NCAA sanctions prohibit the Trojans from participating in a postseason bowl this year, a number of team members have spoken about proving they’re the best team in college football by going undefeated instead of going to a bowl. That road starts tomorrow in Hawaii.
USC is 6-0 all time against the Warriors, and even though the Trojans scored more than 60 points in each of the last three, the 13th game on the schedule certainly isn’t the kind of cupcake many other FBS schools are facing this weekend. ‘SC should come away with the win, as well as a better idea of just where their program, under new management and a personnel shortage, stands.
Lane Kiffin will make his debut as head coach of USC over on the island, and while no one’s really sure yet if he can actually coach, this game should help him ease into it. It also gives the team a chance to ease into the rhythm and rigor of a game environment. A number of new players, including true freshman, will be in the starting lineup, and contact was limited in practices to prevent injuries to the already-depleted squad. It will be interesting to see how well and how quickly the Trojans get up to speed.
Hawaii’s fast offense and prolific passing attack will be the first challenge for the Trojans’ relatively young, inexperienced secondary. Senior cornerback Shareece Wright is the only returner, and Nickell Robey beat out several upperclassmen to become the first true freshman corner to start a season opener. Expect Hawai’i to lean on its passing game to try to exploit the untested ‘SC secondary.
Junior quarterback Bryant Moniz started eight games last year and has a star receiver in Greg Salas, who was 4th in receiving yards nationally last year. He led the Warriors in both catches and receiving yards last season, but up-and-coming receivers include Kealoha Pilares mean the Trojans can’t afford to focus all their attention on Salas.
The Trojans’ defensive front seven should be one of the more cohesive, talented, healthy units on the field on Thursday. They’ll be facing a Hawai’i O-line with only one returning starter, junior Austin Hansen, so even though Moniz can be elusive and shifty in the pocket, if the Trojans D-line can pressure him, it’ll help take pressure off the young guys at corner and safety.
Hawai’i returns only one man on its defensive line as well, which is a good sign for the Trojans’ linemen, a depleted group already playing hurt. It will be essential for them to get healthy and stay healthy this season, so going up against a less physical defense in the first opener - especially coming off a nearly tackle-free offseason – should help.
The Hawai’i defense in general should give the Trojans’ offense enough breathing room to get into a rhythm. Sophomore QB Matt Barkley needs to improve his decision-making this season after throwing 15 TDs and 14 INTs as a true freshman; his main targets will be junior Ronald Johnson and true freshmen Robert Woods and Markeith Ambles. The Warriors’ defense was responsible for giving up more than 200 rushing and 200 passing yards per game in 2009; if this year’s stats are similar, the Trojans should have no problem picking up their first win of the season, and the Kiffin era, before returning to the mainland.