Written by Robert Henry
The University of Southern California Trojans suffered a pretty bad beating from the Notre Dame Fighting Irish last week but USC looks to turn their sights towards the PAC-12 Championship. Arizona State has been doing fairly well this season, at least in the PAC-12. They currently are in second place in the PAC-12 South division, sitting right behind the Trojans. The Trojans are clearly out of the running at this point for a spot in the College Football Playoff. This does not mean the Trojans wont look to better their season. This weekend will be a clash between two PAC-12 titans and the end result will help dictate the future of their respective season.
The Arizona State Sun Devils look to put more of a damper on the Trojans season. The Sun Devils have been red hot in their last two games. One of those wins comes against the University of Washington Huskies. Arizona State has the weapons to beat USC but can they stop the USC offense when it gets rolling? The Sun Devils were able to capitalize off of turnovers when they faced the Utah Utes and with USC quarterback Sam Darnold having thrown 10 interceptions so far this season, the Sun Devils will more than likely have opportunities to make big plays off USC turnovers. The big question is can Arizona State force Darnold to turn the ball over? If Arizona can mimic what Notre Dame did, the Sun Devils may be able to shut down the explosive USC offense.
USC head coach Clay Helton at this point, has to be telling his Trojans that last week’s performance is behind them and they have to look towards the Sun Devils as a way to regain control of their season. The Trojans need to buckle down on defense and create more three-and-outs, forcing the Sun Devils to punt the ball away. If USC can accomplish this task, this will allow Darnold to possess the ball longer, allowing him to get into a rhythm and in turn, put points up on the board.
Darnold also has to work on better timing with his passes and ball control. Not all of the turnovers have been his fault, as there have been some issues ranging from miscommunication between him and his wide receivers, to his center giving him some low and high snaps. All of these issues force Darnold to waste extra time holding the ball and not looking for his receivers. Luckily for Darnold and the USC offense, they still have running back Ronald Jones II in the backfield and wide receiver Deontay Burnett as their number one option. If Darnold and the USC offense can establish the run or passing game early, they will be able to over power the stingy Arizona State defense and take the win.
This potentially growing rivalry will be a battle for what some people are calling a possible PAC-12 South Championship game. We should see some amazing plays from the Trojan offense and the Sun Devil defense. If Arizona State wins this weekend, the rivalry will ignite more than it has ever been in the past in Los Angeles. With the Sun Devils coming off a two-game winning streak, expect them to come out swinging ready to prove to the rest of the PAC-12 that they are a team to watch out for. USC will need to be ready to face the Sun Devil defense with offensive aggression, making it clear that they are still a nationally ranked team. The game will start at 7:45 PT live from Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona on ESPN this Saturday, October 28th.
The Arizona State Sun Devils look to put more of a damper on the Trojans season. The Sun Devils have been red hot in their last two games. One of those wins comes against the University of Washington Huskies. Arizona State has the weapons to beat USC but can they stop the USC offense when it gets rolling? The Sun Devils were able to capitalize off of turnovers when they faced the Utah Utes and with USC quarterback Sam Darnold having thrown 10 interceptions so far this season, the Sun Devils will more than likely have opportunities to make big plays off USC turnovers. The big question is can Arizona State force Darnold to turn the ball over? If Arizona can mimic what Notre Dame did, the Sun Devils may be able to shut down the explosive USC offense.
USC head coach Clay Helton at this point, has to be telling his Trojans that last week’s performance is behind them and they have to look towards the Sun Devils as a way to regain control of their season. The Trojans need to buckle down on defense and create more three-and-outs, forcing the Sun Devils to punt the ball away. If USC can accomplish this task, this will allow Darnold to possess the ball longer, allowing him to get into a rhythm and in turn, put points up on the board.
Darnold also has to work on better timing with his passes and ball control. Not all of the turnovers have been his fault, as there have been some issues ranging from miscommunication between him and his wide receivers, to his center giving him some low and high snaps. All of these issues force Darnold to waste extra time holding the ball and not looking for his receivers. Luckily for Darnold and the USC offense, they still have running back Ronald Jones II in the backfield and wide receiver Deontay Burnett as their number one option. If Darnold and the USC offense can establish the run or passing game early, they will be able to over power the stingy Arizona State defense and take the win.
This potentially growing rivalry will be a battle for what some people are calling a possible PAC-12 South Championship game. We should see some amazing plays from the Trojan offense and the Sun Devil defense. If Arizona State wins this weekend, the rivalry will ignite more than it has ever been in the past in Los Angeles. With the Sun Devils coming off a two-game winning streak, expect them to come out swinging ready to prove to the rest of the PAC-12 that they are a team to watch out for. USC will need to be ready to face the Sun Devil defense with offensive aggression, making it clear that they are still a nationally ranked team. The game will start at 7:45 PT live from Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona on ESPN this Saturday, October 28th.