USC faces Washington at the Coliseum for Homecoming this weekend, but it won’t only be a homecoming for the Trojans.
The USC Trojans dropped their last two games against Washington on last second field goals. They're hoping to end that streak with a win at today's Homecoming game.
Huskies’ head coach Steve Sarkisian and his defensive coordinator, Nick Holt, along with Trojans’ head coach Lane Kiffin, coached at USC under Pete Carroll in USC’s glory days. Since Sarkisian left USC to become the Huskies’ head coach, he is 2-0 against the Trojans, thanks to kicker Erik Folk.
In 2009, Washington stunned the Trojans with a 16-13 win after Folk kicked a 22-yarder with three seconds left.
You almost couldn’t get a more dramatic ending – unless you set it in the Coliseum, moved the kicker back 11 yards, and ran the clock down a few more seconds. Last year, on the Trojans’ home field, Folk booted a 33-yard game winner as the clock expired.
In 2009, USC was struggling for the first time in years. In 2010, they were adjusting to a new coach and a new way of life at ‘SC.
This year, though, the Trojans have momentum heading into the match-up. They’re 7-2, including a well played triple overtime loss to Stanford, and they’ve been improving all season. The Huskies, on the other hand, are 6-3, but they’ve lost two of their last three and need to stop the slide against USC this weekend.
Washington’s three losses this season were to teams ranked in the top 15 at the time, but the Huskies were outscored, 150-76, in those games.
Holt’s defense will have its hands full with the USC offense. The Huskies are allowing an average of 283.1 yards per game in the air, and the 113th-ranked pass defense in the country will be up against the Trojans’ potent passing attack, led by Matt Barkley and Robert Woods.
USC is 23rd in the nation in passing yardage, average 293.6 per game. Barkley is third in passing touchdowns with 28 and just six interceptions, and Woods is fourth in receiving yards, with 1121 yards and 11 touchdowns on the season.
Curtis McNeal will get the start at tailback for the Trojans, though senior Marc Tyler will be back from injury and is also expected to play. The two split carries pretty evenly during the Notre Dame game, combining for 188 yards on the ground. They’ll likely rotate again to keep fresh legs on the field and keep the Huskies on their toes.
The Trojans’ defense has played better than many expected after struggling mightily throughout 2010, but they’ll be tested against Washington’s Chris Polk. The junior running back has already surpassed 1,000 rushing yards on the season, and he’s seventh in the nation with an average of 121.8 rushing yards per game. He’s also had 24 catches for 3 receiving touchdowns on the year.
It’ll be up to USC’s young linebackers to stop Polk. Since returning from an ankle injury, true freshman Lamar Dawson has supplanted veteran Chris Galippo as the starting middle linebacker. Redshirt freshman Dion Bailey leads the team in tackles this year; he missed last week’s game after sustaining a concussion against Stanford, but he’ll be back in the starting lineup against Washington.
The USC defense has been successful pressuring opposing quarterbacks – Stanford’s Andrew Luck has been sacked just four times this year, and two of those came against the Trojans. Washington quarterback Keith Price has not had nearly as much protection from his line, which has surrendered 22 sacks on the season; USC should be able to exploit that weakness.
In spite of his shaky protection, Price is having a solid season in his first year as a starter, thanks in part to his ability to scramble to keep plays alive. He’s completing 66.8% of his passes and has 25 touchdowns and 10 interceptions on the season, but like the rest of his team, he’s struggled the last few weeks. In the last three games, Price has four touchdown passes but he’s been intercepted six times.
If it goes down to the wire for the third year in a row, USC will be in much better shape to compete with Nick Folk’s dangerous foot. Andre Heidari, the Trojans’ true freshman kicker, is more reliable than anyone they’ve had for a few years, making 13 of 15 attempts – and one of those misses was due to a sprained ankle.
Right now, USC is the stronger team riding momentum into this year’s Homecoming – but as they know all too well, that hasn’t stopped Washington in the past.
