Trojan Upset

Corvallis, Oregon. Before last night, I didn't even know this place existed. For most Trojan fans, it's a place that they will never want to return to, but they will think about it for the rest of this year. The Oregon State Beavers shocked the world last night by beating the #1 team in the nation, the USC Trojans. The stadium looked like a bad orange juice commercial, but it was orange and the fans were loud as the Beavers jumped out to a 21-0 score going into halftime. The Beavers were led by diminutive freshman running back, Jacquizz Rodgers. This guy ran for 186 yards on 37 carries and had 2 TDs. Jacquizz is 5-6 and 180 pounds, until last night. He had to have lost about 10 pounds from the workout he had. 37 carries against a stout USC defense that just destroyed #5 Ohio State weeks ago. The Beavers played an all around great game on both sides of the ball. Rodgers got all of the sizzle for the game but his O line did work. They were running the ball right up the middle of the USC D. No trick plays, not too much motion, just 'hey we're running the ball right here'. The Beavers D did a great job also. They pressured the normally unflappable Sanchez for most of the night. They played some kind of zone that gave the Trojans fits because the defensive backs were just playing an area (which is normal in a zone), they were allowed to read the patterns of the receivers and make plays. USC looked out of sorts and never really got it together. Sanchez was over throwing receivers, sure handed Joe McKnight couldn't hold on to the ball or get those lanes that he's used to running down hill through. As good as they looked against Ohio State, they looked as equally bad against the Beavers. I'm not saying that to give the Trojans a pass, because they got it handed to them the entire game last night by a gutty Oregon State team. The noise you heard last night were the fireworks going of in Oklahoma, Florida, Georgia, and LSU.

Showdown in Pasadena

Well, this was billed as the best game of the week with the #5 Ohio State Buckeyes traveling to Cali to battle the #1 ranked USC Trojans. This was an opportunity for Ohio State to finally win the big one since their National Title with Maurice Clarett. Things that I noticed during the game:

Joe McKnight - To say this guy is elusive just doesn't cover it all. This guy gave the Buckeyes' defense more shakes than Steak & Shake. They put his guy in the slot and in the backfield and just got him the ball. The O line didn't even have to really block anyone, they just needed to get in the way. He's Reggie Bush, but smaller. It's sad when you look at 3rd and 22 and you hand the ball off and get the first. McKnight converted on several 3rd and longs.

Buckeye Kickoff Return - Did they bobble all of them? That really throws off the timing of the blocks for your return team. They'll be working on that all week.

Rey Maualuga and James Laurinaitis - Talk about some good linebackers. These guys will both be playing on Sundays next year. They both play hard and I'm glad that neither of them are hitting me. It's rare that you get good LB play on both teams.

Mark Sanchez - Tough. This guy just gets it done. Not too many gaudy stats, but he gets it done. Good arm, and he normally makes good decisions. It helps to have the athletes that he has on his team, but I think this guy can play at the next level and be good.

USC - They just looked like the better team, especially in the 2nd half. Their guys just looked bigger and faster than Ohio State. They have talent at each position and I don't really see them being tested for the rest of the year, especially at home.

I won't be the first person to second guess Tressell, but once he saw how USC played when Boeckman was in the game, he should have sat him down. USC's defense came after Boeckman as soon as he got off the bus, but they had to play Pryor honestly. When they brought the blitz against him, he could roll out and get a few yards. We all know that the knock on Pryor is that he isn't as experienced with the passing game that the Buckeyes run, but this kid was the only way that the Buckeyes were going to pull this win off. True, the Buckeyes hurt themselves with penalties, but to me this came down to QB play.

This really got out of hand in the second half and it was a terrible showing for the Buckeyes. I know that's a long plane trip home to Ohio.