USC vs UCLA

     I wanted to start off by saying that I'm sorry for missing two blog posts. Those two blog posts would've been about USC's win against Colorado, and USC's loss to Oregon. The Trojans beat Colorado 27-24, and loss to Oregon 28-48. The Trojans have played great the last two games, but they couldn't beat Oregon's powerful offense. Now that I've cleared up USC's last two games, I'd like to talk about the most recent game. USC beat their great rivals, UCLA 40-21 on 11/28/15 to receive the Victory Bell. The Victory Bell is a bell that is given to the winner of the USC vs UCLA every year. This was a huge win for the Trojans due to UCLA being a huge rival. Some people could argue that USC and UCLA are the biggest rivals in college football. USC played amazingly against UCLA which obviously led to the win. The Trojans offense played absolutely amazingly by racking 175 passing yards, and 235 rushing yards. The Trojans quarterback, Cody Kessler greatly impacted this game by completing 15 out of 26 throws, throwing for 175 yards, and throwing two touchdowns (to Darreus Rogers and Taylor McNamara). The offense played amazingly, but the defense really won the game in my opinion. The USC defense shut down UCLA's quarterback, Josh Rosen (freshman) by only allowing him to complete 19 out of 27 throws, throw one touchdown, and throw two interceptions. Those two interceptions by Josh Rosen were caught by cornerback Iman Marshall (freshman). The defense also shut down UCLA's rushing by only allowing 140 rushing yards. In addition, Adoree' Jackson had a momentum shifting 42 yard punt return that really set the tone for the game. After Adoree' Jackson's punt return right before halftime, the Trojans were unstoppable for the rest of the game. The most important part about this game was that, the winner of this game would be named the Pac-12 South Champions. Since USC won the game and title of Pac-12 South Champions, they're going to play the Stanford Cardinal (Pac-12 North Champions) in the Pac-12 Championship at the Levi's Stadium on 12/5/15. Hopefully the Trojans can beat the Stanford Cardinal, to win the title of Pac-12 Champions!

USC vs Arizona

     The USC Trojans beat the Arizona Wildcats 38-30 on 11/7/15. USC played an overall great game against the Wildcats which lead to a victory. The offense came out firing on all cylinders by racking up 243 passing yards and 229 rushing yards. There were a lot of offensive stars in this game, such as quarterback Cody Kessler, running back Justin Davis, running back Ronald Jones II, and wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster. All of the stars above had one touchdown, except for Cody Kessler, Justin Davis, and Ronald Jones II who had two touchdowns. The USC defense had a decent game by only allowing the Arizona Wildcats to rack up 60 rushing yards, but they allowed far to many passing yards (352 passing yards). Although, the defense played a decent game, and held their own for the most part. All in all, both the USC offense and defense had amazing games. Hopefully, the Trojans can beat the Colorado Buffaloes on 11/13/15 to advance their record to 7-3.

USC vs Cal

     The USC Trojans beat the Cal Bears 27-21 on 10/31/15! The USC Trojans had an overall great game to beat Cal. The USC offense had a great game by racking up 220 passing yards, 185 rushing yards, and two rushing touchdowns. Although star quarterback Cody Kessler didn't throw any touchdowns, he still had a great game by completing 18 out of 22 throws and throwing for 186 yards. The USC defense also had a great game by recovering one fumble and two interceptions. One of those defensive interceptions was recovered by Adoree Jackson and taken to the house (pick-six). Adoree Jackson's interception against Cal was his first college interception ever. The USC defense also did an excellent job of stopping Cal's explosive running back, Khalfani Muhammad (Sutter Middle School alumni/ Notre Dame High School alumni). They stalled Khalfani Muhammad's extraordinary running skills by only allowing him to rack up 30 yards on 11 carries. In conclusion, the USC Trojans had a great game to defeat the Cal Bears. Hopefully, the USC Trojans will have another great game to defeat the Arizona Wildcats on 11/7/15 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. If the USC Trojans defeat the Arizona Wildcats, they will advance their record to 6-3.

USC vs Utah

     The USC Trojans beat the number three best team in the nation, the Utah Utes on 10/24/15 . The Trojans basically shut down the Utes with a final score of 42-24. The Trojans had an amazing game the whole entire game. They played with swagger and with a sense of fearlessness. It came as more of a surprise to me that USC beat the Utes because this was Clay Helton's (interim head coach) first game since former head coach Steve Sarkisian was fired. The USC offense had an amazing game racking up 264 passing yards, 116 rushing yards, and six touchdowns. Star quarterback, Cody Kessler greatly impacted the win by completing 21 out of 29 throws, committing a rushing touchdown, and throwing a touchdown. The USC defense also had a great game by catching four touchdowns, one of which was a pick-six (when you catch an interception and score a touchdown). Freshman linebacker, Cameron Smith had an amazing game by catching three of the four interceptions and committing the pick-six. All in all, the Trojans had an amazing game. Hopefully, the Trojans can beat the Cal Bears on 10/31/15 to advance their record to 5-3.

USC vs Notre Dame

        Unfortunately, the USC Trojans lost to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 41-31 on 10/17/15. It was definitely a great game because it was a battle the whole game, up until the fourth quarter. Notre Dame scored 17 points in the fourth quarter, while the Trojans didn't score a single point in the fourth quarter. The Trojans offense had a pretty good game by rushing for 150 yards, throwing for 440 yards, and by ultimately scoring 31 points against Notre Dame (their record is 6-1). Although the Trojans lost the game, it was definitely a moral win for them because they almost defeated the eleventh best team in all of college football, Notre Dame. The Trojans defense also had a decent game by not allowing too many points. All in all, Notre Dame was the better team and deserved to the win the game. Unfortunately, the Trojans chances of making the playoffs are practically demolished. Hopefully the Trojans can have a good rest of the season, so that they can build up their confidence for next year. This year will be good to let freshman get experience, so that can be ready for next year. The Trojans will play the number three Utah Utes on 10/24/15 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The Utes are highly favored to win the game on Saturday, but the Trojans might just play the game of their lives and upset the Utes. I feel that the Trojans are going to put up a challenge against Utah because they're going to play energized and determined because they're mad of how their season had gone. Hopefully the Trojans defeat the Utes to advance their record to 4-3.

USC vs Washington and Head Coach Sarkisian

    Unfortunately, the USC Trojans lost to the Washington Huskies on Thursday 10/8/15. The final score was 17 for the Huskies and 12 for the Trojans. The Trojans for some reason looked very unconfident in themselves, and to be honest just had no energy. I feel that the lack of enthusiasm occurred because the game was played on a Thursday instead of a Saturday. The Trojans started the first drive off throwing an interception. After the interception was thrown you could really notice that the Trojans had very little enthusiasm. The USC defense had a pretty good game but they slacked off at times due to being tired from being on the field so long. The Trojans couldn't build any type of rhythm on the offense until the end of the game. Once they created a bit of a rhythm they ran out of time because the Huskies had the ball for a good portion of the game. It was a very unfortunate loss for the Trojans, and greatly thinned their chances of making the playoffs. Luckily, their is still a chance of making the playoffs, although it would take unlikely circumstances for that to happen. Hopefully the Trojans will defeat the Norte Dame Fight Irish on 10/17/15 to advance their record to 4-2.
      The head coach of the USC Trojans, Steve Sarkisian (referred to as coach Sark) was fired on Monday 10/12/15. Coach Sarkisian was fired by USC athletic director Pat Haden due to health and alcohol issues. Coach Sarkisian has been showing signs of alcohol issues before the season even started, he was under the influence and using NSFW language at an event in August called the Salute to Troy. The day after the event he responded by saying that he mixed alcohol with medication that he was taking, and that his actions will never happen again. Coach Sark being fired was triggered by him being under the influence at an on-campus special teams meeting on Sunday 10/11/15. Once Pat Haden heard about the special teams meeting, he talked over the phone with coach Sark and they both agreed on coach Sark taking an indefinite leave of absence. Then, he was later fired the next day by Pat Haden. Coach Sark was supposedly under the influence during the USC win over ASU (Arizona State University). Coaching assistants noticed coach Sark acting unusual and emotional during the ASU game. Pat Haden has named former offensive coordinator Clay Helton, interim head coach in place of coach Sark. Hopefully, the Trojans can overcome this tragic circumstance, and have
an extraordinary season.
 

USC Bye Week

             The number 17 (on the AP top 25 poll) USC Trojans had a bye week for the fourth week of the regular season. When a team has a bye week, they don't have a game that week. A bye week gives a team time to relax and practice to get better. Since USC had a bye week this week,  I decided to do a recap on the Trojan's season so far. The offense has had an amazing season so far. Offensive stars such as Cody Kessler and JuJu Smith-Schuster have had a great impact on the offensive success. The USC offense have created some remarkable stats such as 1,428 passing yards, 712 rushing yards, and 1408 reception yards. The Trojans have also scored 15 passing touchdowns and nine rushing touchdowns. In addition, the Trojans are number seven in the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) for points per game.  The Trojans defense have had a decent season only allowing 60 points, 31 of which came from their Stanford loss. The Trojans defense didn't have too good of a game against The Stanford Cardinals, due to their run-heavy offense. They were later able to somewhat stop the Stanford run-heavy defense, but their wasn't enough time for the Trojans to come back. But, other than that game they have had a pretty good season, especially by already intercepting three passes. In conclusion, the Trojans have had a good season even though they already have one loss. Hopefully the Trojans will be able to beat the Washington Huskies in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Thursday, 10/8/15. If the Trojans beat the Huskies they'll advance their record to 4-1.

USC vs Arizona State

      On 9/26/15 the number 17 (on the AP top 25 poll) USC Trojans beat the Arizona State Sun Devils 42-14. The Trojans had an amazing game on the road and had a much needed win, after loosing to Stanford on 9/19/15. Cody Kessler (quarterback) and the USC offense had an amazing game. Cody Kessler had an excellent game by throwing for 375 yards, completing 19 out of 33 throws, and throwing an amazing five touchdowns. The Trojans threw the ball more than often this game, but it certainly worked because the Trojans blew out the Sun Devils. Adoree Jackson (starting cornerback/back-up receiver) played offense more than often this week, but he had a game to remember. Adoree Jackson had three receptions, 131 yards, and an 80-yard touchdown. JuJu Smith-Schuster also had an amazing game (like always) by having five receptions, 103 yards, and two touchdowns. The defense also had an amazing game by shutting down a very good quarterback, Michael Bercovici (Taft High School alumni). Michael Bercovici completed only 23 passes out of 44 throws, and threw for only 272 yards. Arizona State was forced to run the ball once they realized that their pass offense wasn't going to win the game for them. The Trojans defense was having a little trouble stopping Demario Richard (Arizona State running back), but they quickly figured out a way to stop him. Once the Trojans got a comfortable lead, they started substituting in back-ups to keep the starters healthy. The Trojans had an overall great game, which led to a blowout win. The Trojans will get a chance to rest next week and get better because they have a bye week next week. Hopefully the Trojans will be able to beat the Washington Huskies in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum to change their record to 4-1.

USC vs Stanford

          Unfortunately, the USC Trojans were upset (unexpectedly defeated) by the Stanford Cardinals on 9/19/15. The USC Trojans dropped from number six on the AP top 25 poll to number nineteen. The Trojans offense had an amazing game, but the defense couldn't find a way to stop Stanford's run-heavy offense. By the Cardinals running the ball for a majority of the game (causes the clock to rarely stop), they were in possession of the ball for most of the game. The Cardinals had the ball for almost double the time of the Trojans (Stanford- 39:29/USC- 20:31). Although the Cardinals ran the ball for a good portion of the game, they beat the Trojans in every aspect of the game. The Cardinals had more total yards (Stanford- 474/USC- 427), passing yards (Stanford- 279/USC- 272), rushing yards (Stanford- 195/USC- 155), and time of possession. The Trojans offense had a good game, but the defense just couldn't figure out a strategy to stop the Cardinals. The Trojans quarterback (Cody Kessler) had an amazing game by completing 25 out of 32 throws, throwing for 272 yards, and throwing three touchdowns. JuJu Smith-Schuster (wide receiver) also had an excellent game by having eight receptions (catches), catching for 153 yards, and one touchdown. Hopefully the Trojans bring their A-game to play ASU (Arizona State University) on 9/26/16 to bring their record up to 3-1.

USC vs. Idaho

       On Saturday (9/12/15) number six (AP Top 25 poll) USC faced unrated Idaho in the LA Memorial Coliseum. The USC Trojans had an amazing game, but I can't say the same for Idaho. The Trojans beat Idaho 59-9. The game was expected to be a blow out because the Trojans are a college football power house, while Idaho isn't such a dominant team.The Trojans quarterback had an impeccable game by throwing for 410 yards, completing 26 of his 31 throws, and throwing three touchdowns. Another star of the game was wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster who had ten receptions, 192 yards, and two touchdowns. The stats above are very rare to get in one game, so it was really amazing to see the sophomore JuJu Smith-Schuster get them in one game. Both running backs Tre Madden and Justin Davis had amazing games by combining for 434  yards and two touchdowns each. The defense also had an amazing game allowing only 2.2 yards per carry, and a total of 311 yards (a small amount of yards compared to the 737 yards that USC totaled). All in all, the Trojans had an amazing game and are now 2-0 (have won two games and have zero losses) after beating Arkansas State 55-6 last week. Hopefully they will be able to beat Stanford on Saturday (9/19/15) to go keep their winning streak alive!!