TrojanMark

This columnist is right on the money. The way to beat USC is to (a) run AND pass the ball. You must have balance. People put down USC for having a close game against Fresno St. last year. What a lot of people don’t realize is that Fresno St. offense was a great offense. It was very balanced – they had a strong running back, a senior QB who didn’t make many mistakes, and a 6’5” Jarrett-type wideout. Then, they mixed up the play-calling, alternating between running up the gut and taking shots downfield. That’s also what Notre Dame did against USC last year, as well as what Cal did when they beat USC a couple of years ago. The other way to beat USC is to (B) have Vince Young. He was a balanced offense BY HIMSELF. Callahan thought he could just pound the rock against USC. But you can’t. USC has proved time and again that they can’t be run on, unless you’re also a legit threat to beat them downfield with the pass. Numerous teams have tried this: Iowa at the Orange Bowl in 2003, Oklahoma in the NC game in 2005, Auburn for 2 years, Michigan in the Rose Bowl in 2004. All of these teams pounded their chests and thought that USC is soft because they’re from the Pac-10, and that their big offensive lines are going to wear down the Trojans. But it’s never worked. The Trojans shut down every one of them. Even Texas didn’t run the ball all that well outside of Vince Young. You’ve got to have balance. Coming into the Nebraska game, I feared that Nebraska had the balance to give USC problems. But Callahan never aired it out, to go along with his running game. I thought the Nebraska defense played very well. I was especially impressed with that D-line. Our offensive line was worn out at the end of that game. That’s a rarity. Congrats on a game well-played, Husker fans. Your team played very hard (not that that’s a surprise). I’ll be rooting for you the rest of the year, especially against Texas.

Just wanted to pass on a congratulations to a game well-played. Here are my thoughts, from the USC side: • I, as much as anybody, was stunned that Callahan didn’t pass more. There was a true frosh at FS, and he went untested. But he is a physical monster – at 6’4” & 225 lbs., he’s a great run stopper, and that’s exactly what he did because Nebraska mostly ran the ball. • To beat USC defensively, you have to do two things: (1) run up the gut – running side to side will get you nowhere, especially with this year’s Trojan defense. They’re too fast, and they will catch you. (2) Take shots downfield. In combination with #1, this stretches the D a bit, and keeps them honest. Nebraska did the first part, but ONLY the first part. They needed to take more shots downfield but didn’t. The two parts together provide a balance that is tough for any defense to defend. But if you’re one dimensional against a Pete Carroll defense, you generally won’t fare very well. • That Nebraska D-line is superb. Carriker and his counterpart on the other side gave USC fits. Everyone is talking about how sluggish the USC offense was, but I think the D-line had something to do with it. It definitely affected play calling: those 3 step drops and rollouts were not by accident, they were called to neutralize the pass rush. • USC lost their FB for the year to a gruesome injury early in the game. The running game never really recovered. • In spite of Callahan’s questionable play calling, I thought USC’s defense played well. This is the fastest I’ve ever seen this unit. • I enjoyed watching the game with Nebraska fans. I was at the game, and almost everyone I met was nice, and of course very knowledgeable. Can’t make the game in Lincoln next year, but I look forward to that contest. Good luck the rest of the year. I hope you guys beat Texas. My theory is the following: Mack Brown can’t win a big game without Vince Young. He couldn’t at North Carolina, and he can’t at Texas.

I don’t think the Pac 10 is soft (but the Cal loss to Tennessee certainly didn’t help). The SEC and the Big have an argument, but the Big 12 doesn’t. The Pac-10 is widely considered to be better than the Big 12. Outside of Texas, you have the following: • An Oklahoma team with no QB – pretty much an 8 win team. • Nebraska – pretty good, and getting better, but not considered anything more than a 8 win team at the moment • Texas Tech – a circus sideshow passing offense and no defense • Colorado – lost to a D-IAA team • Baylor – LOL • Iowa State – good at beating Iowa and no one else • Oklahoma State – bring back Barry Sanders! • A&M – biggest disappointment this side of Cal • Missouri – even with Brad Smith they were bad • The Kansas schools – don’t deserve to be broken out separately Associated Press agrees: http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/artic.../608190364/1019 Look, the Pac 10 is nothing to write home about this year (though I think Oregon will surprise some people), but they are still better than the Big 12.

I think it’s admirable and flattering that Callahan has (allegedly) been preparing for the USC game for three years, but I sort of agree with the other poster about his focus/priority. A win over USC would be nice for the program, but shouldn’t he be focused on the Big 12? He should be working for 3 years to beat Texas (there’s really no other great team in the Big 12, so that’s who you have to worry about mostly), not USC. Wouldn’t you rather run the table in the conference and get the BCS bid, rather than beat USC and lose the conference championship? Also, it’s been well documented that Nebraska’s fan base is rabid. You guys are loyal to a fault (for example, you still think that you deserved that 2001 title game berth). But I think that’s a great thing – it’s great for college football. As far as having a 10 year waiting list for season tickets, that is very true. USC does not have that. But you have to admit…there is a bit more to do in Los Angeles than Lincoln. There are other things to entertain us here. That’s not a put-down. It’s just that Lincoln is a small town, comparatively speaking. This is the same thing as the Green Bay Packers – waiting lists for 20 years, but not much else to do in the city. Perhaps I’m wrong…tell me what other entertainment there is in the area.

Guys, I think you're misinterpreting this. USC doesn't mean any disrespect toward Nebraska at all. The Trojans rarely, if ever, give bulletin board material. Usually, it is perceived bulletin board material, such as what is happening here. Kalil is just internalizing the Trojans' approach. As for the Trojans saying they were the better team after losing to Texas, that was a comment by Leinart. While I'm not happy with him making a comment like that - there is no way for that to be taken except as sour grapes - I could understand his frustration. His team had just had a 34 game winning streak snapped by one guy. The rest of USC outplayed the rest of Texas - but Vince was so amazing that he basically won that game by himself. Not an easy way to have your winning streak snapped, in the Championship game, in your last college game. Still, even if he thought that, he shouldn't have said it. It was poor sportsmanship in the heat of the moment. Back to the point: USC normally does not say things like that.

Hello all, Good to be here – I will be at the game on the 16th, and I expect to see a huge contingent of red. You guys travel really well. As you have heard by now, we lost our starting safety Pinkard and our starting CB Thomas. So it looks like we’ll be going to the freshmen for the Nebraska game. Ugh. It looks like we both have one game under our belt. USC played on the road at Arkansas and won, 50-14. Nebraska played at home against Louisiana Tech and won, 49-10. Probably can’t tell a lot by one game. Nebraska looked good, but it was against a bad team. USC looked good against a SEC team on the road, but their starting RB wasn’t 100%. This week probably won’t tell us much, either, since USC has a bye and Nebraska has a home game against a D-IAA team, which is pretty much the same as a bye. So the first big question is, what does everyone see as the unit advantages for each team? For instance, who has the edge on the DL? Who has the edge at WR? Let me know your thoughts.