USC vs. Cal Football 2009
Trojans, Golden Bears Try to Remain in Pac-10 Hunt
A couple weeks back, USC was ranked No. 3 in the nation, Cal was rated No. 8 and the Oct. 3 game between the two loomed as a showdown that would end up deciding the Pac-10 championship.
But The Trojans were stunned by Washington 16-3 on Sept. 19, and the Golden Bears were demolished by Oregon 42-3 last weekend.
So when USC and Cal square off Saturday at 5 p.m. PST in Berkeley. They'll be fighting just stay alive in the conference race. The No. 7-ranked Trojans are 3-1 overall and 1-1 in the Pac-10. The No. 24 Golden Bears are 3-1 and 0-1. Neither team can afford a loss and retain any realistic hopes of a conference title or Bowl Championship series bowl berth.
With Matt Barkley back at quarterback, USC showed a degree of recovery from its loss by defeating Washington State 27-6 last weekend. The freshman sat out the Washington game because of shoulder problems.
California will need to a lot of recovering after being dominated on both sides of the ball in its loss to Oregon. Even star running back Jahvid Best was shut down.
Saturday's game, the 99th meeting between Cal and USC, will be telecast by ABC.
USC Offense Still Needs Some Spark
USC scored 27 points last week, its most since its 56-3 season-opening blowout of San Jose State. But the offensive performance wasn't anything to get excited about.
Coach Pete Carroll's Trojans managed 403 yards last week, but that was 21 below their season average and about 100 fewer than Washington State's been giving up this season. The Cougars rank last among 120 NCAA Subdivision teams in total defense.
But there were positive signs. Barkley fired the team's first two TD passes to wide receivers this season. One went to Damian Williams, who had five catches for 100 yard. The other was caught by freshman Brice Butler.
Williams leads the team with 16 catches for 258 yards, and fullback Stanley Havili is second with 12 for 132 yards. Running back Joe McKnight has eight catches for 81 yards, and tight end Anthony McCoy has seven for 160.
Barkley, who passed for 247 yards last week, is 43-for-72 for 675 yards with three TDs with one interception. McKnight leads the ground attack, running for 354 yards and four touchdowns while averaging 7.5 yards per carry.
Stafon Johnson, who has rushed for 157 yards and a team-high five TDs, suffered a serious neck injury in a weightlifting accident Monday. He is expected to make a full recovery, The Associated Press reported, but it is uncertain when he'll return.
Trojans Defense Continues Impressive Play
There can be few complaints about the USC defense, which ranks sixth in the FBS in yards allowed with a 227 average. The Trojans are second in the FBS with 18 sacks, including six by redshirt freshman defensive end Nick Perry.
Michael Morgan has eight tackles for losses and three sacks among his 20 tackles, and fellow linebacker Chris Galippo has registered a team-high 27 tackles.
Standout safety Taylor Mays has made 18 tackles in three games, and secondary mate Will Harris has 15 tackles. Jurrell Casey has been strong at defensive tackle, making 14 tackles, including three for losses.
The Trojans figure to be a formidable obstacle for Cal's Best. USC's allowing only 59.5 rushing yards per game, ranking fifth in the FBS.
Cal Offense Needs Some Fixing
The 59.5 yards is more than Best gained last week. He rushed 16 times for just 55 yards, and caught two passes for 17 yards. Even then, he was still Cal's most productive offensive player.
Best can get used to games like that if coach Jeff Tedford fails to spruce up the passing attack. The Golden Bears passed 36 times vs. Oregon but had only 130 yards to show for it.
Pass protection is a major concern for the Bears, who have given up 10 sacks this season. Quarterback Kevin Riley was rushed heavily last week, and did not respond well.
On the other hand, Riley still has not thrown an interception this season. He's 58-for-102 passing 821 yards and five touchdowns in 2009. But his wide receivers aren't getting the ball a lot. Verran Tucker leads the Bears with 199 yards on nine catches, Best has nine catches for 199 yards and a TD, and Marvin Jones is third with eight receptions for 118 yards and a touchdown.
Cal's averaging 418.2 yards per game, with the running backs carrying a heavy load. Best has rushed 69 times for 467 yards and eight touchdowns. Shane Vereen has run 36 times for 148 yards and four TDs, and caught seven passes for 75 yards and a TD.
Golden Bears Got Worn Down by Oregon
Cal got ravaged for 502 yards by Oregon, but at least some of that rests on the Golden Bears offense, which failed to sustain drives and give the defense time to rest.
The mobility of Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli was also a factor, as the Bears managed just one sack after getting 13 in the first three games. One thing that didn't change was Cal being led in tackles by Mychal Kendricks and Mike Mohamed, and defensive tackle Tyson Alualu.
Kendricks has 39 tackles this season, and Mohamed ha 2 tackles, four tackles for losses, two sacks and two interceptions. Alualu leads Cal's defensive linemen with 22 tackles, and has 3.5 sacks.
Other leaders for Cal include defensive back Brett Johnson (21 tackles), linebacker Devin Bishop (19 tackles, 1.5 sacks) and DB Syd'Quan Thompson (19 tackles, 4 pass breakups).
Cal is yielding 336 yards per game, two-thirds of them through the air.
USC Seeks 6th Straight Victory over Cal
The Trojans have won five straight games over the Golden Bears and a hold a 62-30-6 series lead. Cal's last win was a dramatic 34-31 triple overtime win in 2003, which was USC's only loss of the national co-championship season.
USC won last year's game 17-3 in Los Angeles.
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