Utah will have to try to stop sophomore wide receiver Robert Woods, who's coming off a record-setting outing against Minnesota
When the USC Trojans and Utah Utes meet in the Coliseum this Saturday, they’ll be playing in the first conference game in the newly-formed Pac-12.
It’s been ten years since USC and Utah faced off on the football field in the 2001 Las Vegas Bowl – before Pete Carroll brought the Trojans back to the top and Reggie Bush knocked them down again, before Utah became a player on the national stage, and before the Pac-10 had twelve teams.
Back in 2001, current USC head coach Lane Kiffin hadn’t usurped Norm Chow’s duties as offensive coordinator at USC, and many of the players on the Utes’ roster, including quarterback Jordan Wynn, leading rusher John White IV, and linebacker Brian Blechen, were just California kids, growing up watching the Trojans and dreaming of someday playing in the Los Angeles Coliseum.
This weekend, Chow, a Utah grad, will call the plays for his alma mater, and the Utes who cheered for USC will be lining up on the other side of the field.
Both teams will have their work cut out for them.
Utah is coming off a disappointing 27-10 victory over Montana State in their season opener; USC will try to improve on an equally lackluster 19-17 win over Minnesota. Both teams jumped out to convincing early leads last week before stalling in the second half of the game, and both teams told the media they wouldn’t win this week if they didn’t kick it up a notch or two (or more).
USC sophomore Robert Woods was named the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week after his record-setting performance against the Golden Gophers; his quarterback, Matt Barkley, was surely in the running after throwing for 304 yards and three touchdowns. Barkley completed 17 passes to Woods for 177 yards, throwing more passes to one receiver for more yards than his counterpart at Utah, Jordan Wynn, threw all day.
As Wynn seeks to regain his confidence after offseason shoulder surgery, USC’s potent passing game will be tough for Utah’s young secondary to contain, although they’ll have an advantage because they can expect many throws in Woods’ direction.
Barkley may need to vary his targets even more to be effective against the Utes, and he’ll have to make smart decisions. At times during his first two years, he had a tendency to force throws. Utah’s Blechen, a California native who was a freshman All-American at safety last year, had two interceptions in the season opener and will be eager to capitalize if Barkley makes a mistake.
USC’s passing game was the Trojans’ key to victory last week, as the team gained only 67 yards on the ground. They hope to get a boost, especially on short yardage plays, from senior tailback Marc Tyler, who was reinstated this week after a one-game suspension for making inappropriate comments on camera to TMZ.
Senior tailback Marc Tyler will be back in the lineup this weekend.
Though Kiffin would ultimately like to lean heavily on a two-back rotation, the two featured backs will likely still be in question this weekend, as redshirt freshman D.J. Morgan, who started against Minnesota, junior Curtis McNeal, and sophomore Dillon Baxter all vie for playing time. Morgan and McNeal handled all the carries last week, and Baxter and his parents met with Kiffin this week to discuss the lack of playing time.
If the talented sophomore sees the field this weekend, he’ll be motivated to play his way back into the rotation, but it won’t be easy against Utah’s physical defensive line. Blechen and senior linebackers Chaz Walken and Matt Martinez will be formidable opponents for a Trojans’ offensive line that only returns one starter from 2010. The line gave Barkley decent protection last weekend and didn’t allow any sacks, but it’ll have a much tougher time holding off Utah on Saturday.
There won’t be a lot at stake in the Coliseum this weekend – USC is banned from the conference championship game, and Utah can still win the south even after a loss – but between Lane Kiffin and Norm Chow, USC’s stellar passing game and Utah’s raw secondary, the Utes’ strong defensive front and ‘SC’s shaky O-line, expect the first Pac-12 conference game to get interesting.
