USC'S AERIAL CIRCUS DESTROYS OREGON
Sword of Troy
USC passes Oregon test, 44-10
Trojans start slow but hit stride behind quarterback Mark Sanchez, who
passes for 332 yards, three touchdowns.
By Gary Klein
Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
October 5, 2008
USC Coach Pete Carroll hoped for a bounce, a performance that would
restore his team's confidence after its embarrassing loss at Oregon
State.
The Trojans had been manhandled on both sides of the line of
scrimmage.
They had tumbled from No. 1 to No. 9 in the polls.
A slow start against No. 23 Oregon on Saturday did not exactly inspire
optimism, but the Trojans came roaring back for an impressive 44-10
victory before 82,765 at the Coliseum who saw USC reestablish itself
as a contender for a spot in the Bowl Championship Series title game.
"This was exactly what we needed to do," Carroll said. "This is the
game we were looking for."
USC had hoped that Oregon State might further the Trojans' case with
pollsters by knocking off No. 15 Utah of the recently-dreaded Mountain
West Conference. But the Beavers' loss Thursday night had put even
more of an onus on the Trojans against another opponent from the
Northwest.
USC stayed in the BCS picture by overcoming a 10-3 deficit with a 24-
point second quarter en route to scoring 41 unanswered points.
"I guess they answered the wakeup call after Oregon State," Oregon
Coach Mike Bellotti said.
The score belied what early on appeared to be a game that might not be
decided until the second half.
Oregon, with an offense averaging 47 points and 503 yards a game,
drove for a touchdown on the opening series and was ahead, 10-3, early
in the second quarter after taking advantage of a fumbled snap by
Trojans quarterback Mark Sanchez.
But that's when Sanchez and his receivers began a highlight show that
helped improve USC's record to 3-1 overall and 1-1 in the Pacific 10
Conference.
"We came out a little sluggish -- not as bad as last week -- and we
really turned things around quickly before Oregon got too much
momentum," said Sanchez, who led an offense that rolled up 598 yards.
Sanchez completed 19 of 28 passes for 332 yards and three touchdowns
without an interception. USC, however, got a scare when the junior
stayed on the ground for several minutes after he was sacked by former
Mission Viejo High teammate Nick Reed with 3:45 left in the third
quarter.
Sanchez was taken to the sideline and trainers examined the left knee
he hurt during training camp. Sanchez, however, missed only one series
before returning.
"I was more scared than anything but I think it will be fine," said
Sanchez, who was wearing sweat pants with a large ice pack on his knee
by the end of the game. "It's a little sore, not bad."
Sanchez was at his best in the latter part of the second quarter when
the Trojans scored four times in the final eight minutes to take a
27-10 halftime lead.
He connected on touchdown pass plays of 34 yards to Damian Williams,
63 yards to Ronald Johnson and 11 yards to Patrick Turner during the
quarter and finished the half 13 for 18 for 233 yards.
David Buehler, who had kicked a 21-yard field goal in the first
quarter, added a 36-yard field goal to help the Trojans forge their 17-
point advantage.
Stafon Johnson's electrifying 22-yard cutback run for a touchdown on
the first possession of the second half increased the lead to 34-10
and put the game out of reach.
The victory helped ease the sting of last year's loss to Oregon at
Eugene when a fourth-quarter interception ended USC's hopes for a
comeback win. It also got Sanchez back nine days after the defeat at
Oregon State, which also included a costly fourth-quarter
interception.
USC's defense also came back strong after being pushed around by
Oregon State and missing numerous tackles.
Brian Cushing, playing middle linebacker in place of injured Rey
Maualuga, and safety Kevin Ellison, playing closer to the line of
scrimmage than has been customary, led a unit that held a Ducks team
averaging 308 yards rushing a game to 60.
Jeremiah Johnson gained only 45 yards in 13 carries, LeGarrette Blount
zero yards in nine carries.
"They saw last week's game and thought they were going to run all over
us," USC defensive end Kyle Moore said.
Ellison, who had a game-high 12 tackles, said the Trojans "needed to
reestablish things not for anybody else, but for ourselves."
With that done, they move ahead to next week's game against Arizona
State and then remaining opponents they must dispatch if they are to
make a convincing case for a spot in the BCS discussion at the end of
the season.
"Everybody was calling us the best team in college football after the
Ohio State game and that didn't mean anything," Ellison said. "We
learned our lesson last week.
"Tonight, we moved on."
stephenj
> (USC uses the forward pass in the first half and whola an easy win)
>
> USC passes Oregon test, 44-10
oregon was a 'test'?
--
When the facts change,
one's opinion ought to change.
- John Maynard Keynes
GregoryD
> Sword of Troy wrote:
>> (USC uses the forward pass in the first half and whola an easy win)
>>
>> USC passes Oregon test, 44-10
>
> oregon was a 'test'?
>
>
Of course, now that they've lost a game, they sycophantic media going to
play up USC's remaining schedule as nothing but trials and tribulations
to go through to get back into the champeenship game that they so
rightly deserve.
GregoryD
Eric Ramon
South Florida thought so
Glen Heiman
"GregoryD" <deergr...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:BcadnZh8jPL6B3TV...@giganews.com...
Rightly deserve? LOL!
They haven't earned shit, yet. They are still looking for their fourth
victory. Try posting again again in November.
Heiman
>
> GregoryD
stephenj
sadly, this is a likely scenario.
--
for the total eradication of imperialism, the Chinese
people are willing to endure the first U.S. nuclear
strike. All it is is a big pile of people dying.
- Mao Tse-Tung, 1957
Sword of Troy
Tennessee and Michigan would disagree with you.
Sword of Troy
> "GregoryD" <deergrego...@gmail.com> wrote in message
>
> - Show quoted text -
Pete Carroll is undefeated in November. You don't know much.
MountainFramer
"Sword of Troy" <LSF...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:759a6d0d-58ff-4fa6...@e53g2000hsa.googlegroups.com...
What the hell is a "pete carroll" ?
MountainFramer
Roll Tide.
--
President Ronald Reagan describing Bear Bryant's legacy in a statement on
Jan. 26, 1983: "Today we Americans lost a hero who always seemed larger than
life. ... Bear Bryant gave his country the gift of a life unsurpassed. In
making the impossible seem easy, he lived what we strive to be."