USC Survives a Duel in the Desert

The following is a live journal composed during the USC/Arizona State game. All times listed are Pacific Standard Time.

PREGAME

5:00 – The Men of Troy are angry after the Oregon Ducks flew out of a wooden horse and slaughtered them last weekend and have never lost a game in the month of November under Pete Carroll. Can Arizona State end the longest active losing streak to another Pac-10 team (9) or will USC climb back into the Pac-10 race?

FIRST QUARTER

5:13 – Right out of the gate, USC allows the opening kickoff to be returned to near midfield; this first possession will be indicative of whether the Trojan defense will offer an encore of last week’s performance or not.

5:17 – Running back Cameron Marshall is a freshman and he showed it on that play; so much for the Devils getting off to a fast start.

5:23 – That may have been the worst forward pass ever thrown in the history of organized football—college or pro. Sure, a defensive holding call nullified the pick Matt Barkley threw, but people should remember that clunker that was released from the Trojan quarterback’s hand.

5:26 – That did not look like offensive pass interference on USC; there was very little contact.

5:28 – This has nothing to do with this game, but I ask that everyone send their prayers to California running back Jahvid Best; that was a nasty fall he took and he very well might have something seriously damaged in his spinal cord. Worst of all, it was a physical effort that he probably didn’t have to make. Best wishes, Jahvid.

5:37 – An illegal block on 3rd and 1 by the Trojans and Bradford is still stopped for no gain; it wouldn’t have counted anyway, but it’s a telling play nonetheless.

5:42 – Facing a blitz on third down, Danny Sullivan tosses a screen to running back Dimitri Nance, and he moves the chains; a screen against a blitz on third down is a play that has a good chance of being effective.

END FIRST QUARTER. TIED 0-0.

SECOND QUARTER

5:47 – What in the name of Jake Delhomme was Danny Sullivan doing there?! He flees from the pocket, does a little hop on one foot, comes down, and throws it right to USC linebacker Chris Gallipo. Words fail me.

5:50 – USC fails to take advantage of the Arizona State turnover; the Trojan teams of old wouldn’t need to take advantage of an Arizona State turnover. Times have changed folks.

6:00 – How do you not intercept that Sun Devil secondary? Linebacker Vontaze Burfict had the ball in his arms and his own teammates practically ripped the ball out of his grasp.

6:03 – Maybe it’s the constant pressure, but Barkley is not looking sharp so far (4/9 for 24 yards including a nullified interception and another pass that should have been picked); his offensive line needs to do a better job of protecting him.

6:07 – Delayed handoffs on 3rd and short make no sense unless you have some All-Americans on your offensive line. Why would you give the defense more time to react? At least the Devils got the first down on the next play for their own sake.

6:14 – Sullivan just jumped into the air while passing again, but at least he was smart enough to chuck it into the ground this time; a facemask penalty on the Trojans also helps.

6:17 – Bringing in your backup quarterback (freshman Brock Osweiler) to throw a short pass on 3rd and Goal from the 14 is…interesting; the Devils did manage to finally break the scoreless tie though.

3-0 Arizona State

6:24 – USC gets stuck in that no man’s land between field goal range and punting and fails to convert on 4th and 3; Barkley didn’t have time to set his feet and made a terrible throw on the play.

6:28 – With just over a minute remaining in the half, Arizona State has possession and is pitching a shutout; the Sun Devils are about to go in to halftime riding high, but Sullivan throws a pick-six to safety Will Harris. USC won’t need to do anything tonight if the Devils keep stabbing themselves in the foot (with a pitchfork).

7-3 USC

6:33 – USC has now been called for both offensive pass interference and defensive holding. What are the odds?

6:35 – So much for a screen working against a blitz on third and long; then again, you have to remember that this is Danny Sullivan who is throwing the ball (12/23 with two interceptions).

6:37 – It’s a little too late in the half for pinning the Trojans deep in their own end to be an advantage, but at least the punt wasn’t blocked (it nearly was).

HALFTIME. USC LEADS 7-3.

6:42 – Neither quarterback is playing well, but Barkley has had the luxury of being bailed out for his mistakes; it would be no surprise if Sullivan was benched for the second half. That interception he threw near the end of the half was absolutely devastating and sent the Sun Devils into the locker room feeling the complete opposite way of how they should have. As for USC, the Trojans may be in the lead, but they need to wake up; until that pick-six, it would not have been out of line to wonder if this young team had quit on Pete Carroll after getting drubbed by Oregon last week. Of course, Will Harris was given an early Christmas present and the rest of his team can repay the favor by playing the way they’re capable of in the second half.

THIRD QUARTER

7:01 – Coach Dennis Erickson has announced that he is replacing Sullivan with the freshman Osweiler in the second half; well, that’s not a downgrade in talent since Sullivan played like a freshman in the first half…a high school freshman.

7:02 – Wide receiver Damien Williams may not get that call changed to a touchdown (very close), but he sure deserves it after that effort.

7:04 – Williams gets his touchdown, ABC Commentator Craig James nearly blows a blood vessel disputing the call (with good reason), and USC has taken full control of this game with just two plays.

14-3 USC

7:11 – The drive didn’t result in any points, but Osweiler played better on that series alone than Sullivan did in the entire first half—including a dagger to receiver Chris McGaha that was good for 22 yards.

7:28 – USC’s offense has seemed like it has been so close to getting in a steady rhythm and beginning to sustain drives, only for Barkley to make a throw like that. Stick with the running game Coach Carroll—make Arizona State do something on offense to beat you.

7:34 – Osweiler looks really comfortable in the pocket on this drive so far and his receivers are getting open; tonight may not pan out, but the future looks bright for the Sun Devils nonetheless.

7:36 – A 6’8” quarterback just threw a stiff arm and ran for a first down on 3rd and 3; who would have thought a little play like that could be so entertaining—and fire up the crowd—in this situation?

7:38 – Osweiler threw a perfect strike to McGaha for the touchdown and Arizona State is back in it; do you still think he is “not ready” Coach Erickson?

7:39 – Well, Osweiler is ready, but the blocking on that extra point for the Sun Devils sure wasn’t.

END THIRD QUARTER. USC LEADS 14-9.

7:48 – Those last two plays were horrible for the Trojans: A holding penalty that nullified a first down and a quarterback sack (in which the ball was fumbled—but not lost—by USC). This contest is quickly turning into a game of Pong—back and forth, back and forth.

7:50 – What on earth would compel you to do that?! Just like that, a moronic late hit by defensive lineman Lawrence Guy on 3rd and 20 gives USC an automatic first down; he deserves to sit on the bench for the rest of the game—it does not get more boneheaded than that.

7:54 – Barkley finally makes a perfect throw, but the third string tight end (Blake Ayles) lets it slip through his arms and bounce off his knee—a catch there and he’s probably gone. Life isn’t fair sometimes.

7:57 – That drive was straight out of bizarro world: USC faces 3rd and 20 and looks like it will have to punt, then they blow a scoring chance, and then they have to punt anyway after Barkley is sacked.

8:04 – What the hell just happened? After SEVEN bounces of the ball, it’s finally picked off by Arizona State safety Clint Floyd—volleyball, pinball, and hackysack all rolled into one football play! To top it off, there was a fumble at the end of the play too, but the Sun Devils retained possession.

8:08 – Washington’s late interception that beat Arizona a month ago comes to mind (ball off a receivers foot and taken back by a linebacker for a game-winning pick-six with two minutes remaining), but even that has nothing on this play. We’re talking one-in-a-million here.

8:09 – After all that, Arizona State has a first down on the USC 36 yard line; for no other reason than sentimentality, the Sun Devils have to take advantage of this opportunity…

8:13 – …and they don’t. That’s the damage holding penalties can cause.

8:17 – After that anemic offensive series (in fact, ASU only has 1 total yard in the quarter), the Sun Devil D stuffs the Trojans on 3rd and 2 and gives its team another chance—quite possibly their last.

8:24 – Arizona State needs to punt here; you have four and a half minutes, all three timeouts, and a thin USC offense that continues to be ravaged by injuries (as announced, Damien Williams, the Trojans’ best receiver, is out for the rest of the game).

8:28 – The Sun Devil defense needs to make one more play here on 3rd and 5; the game is over if USC gets a first down.

8:31 – Arizona State will have about two minutes to pull off the shocker and drop USC to .500 in conference play. Who would have ever thought this was a possibility after the Ohio State game?

8:33 – Come on ASU’s offensive line—protect Osweiler; you can’t expect a freshman quarterback to do everything himself in this situation.

8:35 – Holding on Arizona State—again. After that, Osweiler is sacked. Glorious.

8:36 – Tick-tock. Tick-tock. Just watch those precious seconds tick away; throw it to the sidelines Arizona State!

8:38 – Wow. If you’re not going to throw to the sidelines, at least throw it past the sticks; this has been a maddeningly horrid example of playcalling and clock management in the two-minute drill.

8:39 – Osweiler throws a hail mary…right to three Trojans; good grief was that last drive terrible.

GAME OVER. USC WINS 14-9.

FINAL THOUGHTS

That was quite a fitting end to this wild weekend in college football.

Arizona State was the better team for most of this game, but aside from one good series in the second half, they could not get anything going on offense. Their defense should not shoulder any of the blame, though, because they held the mighty Trojans to seven points—the other seven came from a defensive touchdown. Much will be made about Dennis Erickson’s decision to punt in USC territory late in the game, but it’s likely that he had more faith in his defense to make a play—or, at least, a stop—than his offense. Based on the Sun Devils’ final offensive drive, that faith was well placed.

USC, when not on the road against a team from the Pacific Northwest, is squeaking out wins—each one seemingly more improbable than the last. Despite all the injuries and a defense that has undoubtedly regressed, the Trojans are still, somehow, alive in the Pac-10 race. Next week’s game against the upstart Stanford Cardinals—who upended Oregon today—may be where the final verdict on what kind of team the Trojans really are will be handed down.

The King of the Pac-10 may not be dead yet after all, but it is definitely on life support.