The Trojans defeated the Beavers 42-36 on a hot, crazy night in Los Angeles. Here are my thoughts on the game.
Quarterback
Sean Canfield had a wonderful game against the Trojans, going 30 for 43, passing for 329 yards, and three touchdowns. Even with the loss, I thought Sean had his best game of the year.
Running Back
Jacquizz Rodgers had another great game, rushing for 113 yards on 20 carries, and one touchdown. All this in just three quarters of play. The younger brother missed the entire second quarter due to ankle injury. All in all, another great game for the Quizz Show, keeping alive the slim hopes of a Heisman Trophy.
Ryan McCants saw his first action of the year with Jacquizz's absence, rushing for ten yards on two carries.
Recievers
Joe Halahuni led the recieving corps in a great day of action. Joe recorded nine catches for 127 yards. James Rodgers had another great game with seven catches for 56 yards and one touchdown.
Damola "Microwave" Adeniji had another good game as well, despite dropping a touchdown pass. He recorded five catches for 81 yards and one touchdown. Jacquizz Rodgers came out of the backfield for four catches and one touchdown as well.
Casey Kjos added two catches for 20 yards, and Jordan Bishop, Jovan Stevenson, and Brady Camp all recorded one catch.
O-Line
I thought the O-Line had a very good day against USC. They only gave up three sacks and opened up some nice holes for Quizz and McCants. If they can continue to play like this, the Beavers should finish very strong down the stretch.
Defense
The Beaver Defense struggled at times Saturday, but I thought they did an alright job against the explosive USC offense. What hurt the Beavers most I thought was not sacking Quarterback Matt Barkley. It seemed like everytime we'd get close to him he would find a way to escape. Then on the very next play, SC would come up with a huge play and kill us.
We are tied for dead last in the FBS in sacks. That needs to change if we're going to have a good year.
Special TeamsI thought the Special Teams unit did a pretty good job on Saturday, despite missing a field goal in the second quarter. Justin Kahut went 3 for 4 with Field Goals, and 4 for 4 on Extra Points. He also did a nice job on kickoffs.
We didn't have any special punt returns, but James had a couple nice kickoff returns grouped with a 70 yard return by Jordan Poyer. The Beavers also gave up their first Punt Return for a Touchdown of the year.
USC
The Trojans lived up to the expectations Saturday, especially Quarterback Matt Barkley. He was 15 for 25 and threw for 202 yards and two touchdowns. He also did a great job of escaping the Beaver D and getting his throws away.
The only fault in Barkley's game was his two (should of been three) interceptions, even though the defense made spectacular plays to get them. USC will be tested this Saturday at Autzen, but if they can get out of there with a win, the Men of Troy should lock up a Rose Bowl berth.
The Crowd
I wasn't all that impressed with the ginormous crowd of 89,720. They weren't very loud, but still just the statistic is staggering. The Beaver fans did a good job of traveling once again, with an estimated 2,000 people making the trip to Los Angeles.
Short Pac-10 Recap
Washington-The Huskies kept it close for a quarter, but the Ducks eventually overwhelmed UW, losing 43-19.
Washington State-The Cougars did all they could (and that isn't very much) in Berkeley, falling 49-17 to the Bears.
Oregon-The Ducks set up a monumental matchup with USC this week, defeating the Huskies in Seattle 43-19.
Oregon State-The Beavs hung with USC the whole game, but they couldn't get a stop late and fell 42-36.
California-The Golden Bears got a win against the happless Cougars, winning 49-17.
Stanford-The Cardinal defeated a pesky Arizona State team 33-14 at the farm in Palo Alto.
USC-In a game that had no shortage of offense, the Trojans defeated Oregon State 42-36 on a Saturday night in LA.
UCLA-The Bruins had another bad game in Tucson, this time falling 27-13 against the Wildcats.
Arizona-The Wildcats proved that they belong in the Top 25 with a 14 point win over the Bruins.
Arizona State-The Sun Devils continued to struggle Saturday in Palo Alto, falling 33-14.
Pac-10 Power Rankings
1. Oregon
2. USC
3. Arizona
4. Oregon State
5. California
6. Stanford
7. Washington
8. Arizona State
9. UCLA
10. Washington State
Final Thoughts
I'll never be happy or impressed with a loss, whether it's against the number one team in the nation or the 120th team in the nation. But I will say this, I am extremeley proud of the way our team kept fighting back when we would get down. I think there is a very good chance that we run the table from here on out.
Now, we move on to UCLA. It should be a crazy day in Corvallis with Homecoming and Halloween, but it should be a great time.
Today's Poll
Who will win next Saturday in Eugene?