| Pac-10: USC tries to bounce back from last week’s shockwave |
LOS ANGELES — Each of the past two years, mighty Southern California was knocked off by a Pac-10 underdog. Each time, the Trojans bounced back with some impressive victories — and then lost again.
They’ve already had their first shock of the season, in their conference opener at Oregon State last week. Another loss almost certainly would knock USC out of national title contention and dent their chances of a seventh straight Pac-10 title.
Dropped from No. 1 to No. 9 after their 27-21 loss in Corvallis, the Trojans (2-1, 0-1) try to return to form when they face No. 23 Oregon (4-1, 2-0) on Saturday at the Coliseum.
"An opportunity is what this is," USC coach Pete Carroll said. "We want to see our guys find our way to get the focus that takes us right back to the way we’re capable of playing.
"That’s what we do. We’ve done this before and been in this situation."
The Ducks beat USC 24-17 in Eugene, Ore., last year, but still couldn’t break USC’s grip on the Pac-10 title and Rose Bowl berth.
"There are all those different elements there, playing in a huge game in the Coliseum on national television," Ducks quarterback Jeremiah Masoli said. "We’ve just got to stay level-headed like we were playing (Washington State) last week."
Watching USC’s loss to Oregon State on Sept. 25 probably gave the Ducks clues to what might work against the Trojans’ defense. USC had all kinds of problems tackling 5-foot-7 freshman Jacquizz Rodgers, who rushed for 186 yards and two touchdowns to key the Beavers’ victory.
The ground game is Oregon’s strong suit, with their running back tandem of LeGarrette Blount and Jeremiah Johnson. Blount has averaged 7.3 yards a carry and 96.2 yards a game and scored eight touchdowns, while Johnson has averaged 6.8 and 88 and has scored six TDs.
USC defensive end Kyle Moore said the Trojans didn’t do a good job of getting rid of their blockers and spotting the diminutive Rodgers.
"This week, the coaches have been telling us that we have to beat the man in front of us first, then worry about the runner," Moore said.
The Ducks’ ground attack has helped them survive a string of quarterback injuries. Starter Nate Costa was lost of the year in the preseason to a knee injury. Second-stringer Justin Roper been in and out of the lineup with a knee injury. Either he or Masoli, who had been No. 3 on the depth chart, will start against USC.
TRASH TALK: Coach Charlie Weis didn’t even bother to post Stanford offensive tackle Chris Marinelli’s comments on Notre Dame on the locker room bulletin boards.
"This one got more individualized attention," Weis said, smiling. "It didn’t have to go to the bulletin board."
In an interview with CardinalReport.com, Marinelli ripped Notre Dame, its defense, Notre Dame Stadium, the field itself and the whole South Bend area. He even got a shot in at people in the Boston area where he is from.
"I grew up with a bunch of Irish and Italian Catholic people back home. And all the Irish Catholic people, all they talk about is Notre Dame this, Notre Dame that," said Marinelli, who is from Braintree. "And they’ve never even been there, ya know. So I hate those guys. I hate that school."
He also had a prediction about the game Saturday between Notre Dame (3-1) and the Cardinal (3-2), which has lost six straight to the Irish and hasn’t won in South Bend since 1992.
"We are going out there to mash them up, and that’s all there is to it," he said.
Most Irish players who spoke to the media Thursday after Marinelli’s comments became public would say little about them. They admitted they were aware of what he said.
"It gives it a little fuel," safety Sergio Brown said.
DEVILS REFOCUS: Arizona State coach Dennis Erickson knows a bye week isn’t always a good thing when it comes too early in a college football season, and it can be even worse when it comes right after a loss.
The Sun Devils (2-2, 1-0 Pac-10) could have spent the past week stewing on back-to-back losses to UNLV and Georgia that scuttled their national title hopes and put them on a downward slide heading into Pac-10 play, starting at California. Instead, Erickson hopes his team used the time off to refocus on what’s still important, including this key early season matchup with the Golden Bears.
The Bears (3-1, 1-0) had the week off after their embarrassing loss at Maryland last month, but they responded with a one-sided win over Colorado State last Saturday. Quarterbacks Kevin Riley and Nate Longshore spent the week competing for the Cal starting job. Tedford will announce a starter Saturday.
PAC-10 SCHEDULE
Saturday
Stanford at Notre Dame, 11:30 a.m., KING/5
Arizona State at California,
12:30 p.m., KOMO/4
Washington at Arizona, 4:30 p.m., Versus
No. 23 Oregon at No. 9 USC, 5 p.m., KOMO/4
Washington State at UCLA,
7:15 p.m., FSN
| " | "We are going out there to mash them up, and that's all there is to it," |
