Pac-10 Preview - Week 2 PDF Print E-mail
Written by Erik Lord   
Thursday, 10 September 2009 01:34

Erik Lord

Joe McKnight
RB Joe McKnight; Jeff Gross, Getty Images

Game of the Week


USC at Ohio State
Saturday, September 12th (8:00 PM EST, ESPN)

When USC has the ball: The Trojans looked downright scary last week as they obliterated San Jose State in the Coliseum. True freshman QB Matt Barkley looked eerily comfortable in his first game, but this will be his first real test as he tries to ignore the 100,000+ fans in the Horseshoe. He will lean heavily on a trio of very talented running backs in C.J. Gable, Joe McKnight, and Stafon Johnson. The running game should have success against a Buckeyes defense that allowed 4.2 yards per carry last week against undersized Navy. WR Damien Williams is the go-to guy in the passing game and should find some holes in the Ohio State defense.

When Ohio State has the ball: There's no question that QB Terrell Pryor is a rare talent, but he wasn't spectacular a week ago. That's not good news for the Buckeyes, a team that lost nearly all of its skill players in the offseason. Sophomore RB Daniel Herron showed promise last week and will be called upon to give Ohio State a second weapon in a very monarchist offense. The Trojans have a fast and talented defense that will definitely give Pryor nightmares if he becomes the only threat.

Intangibles: Last season USC completely embarrassed Ohio State 35-3 in the Coliseum. The Buckeyes would like nothing more than to knock off the favored Trojans and gain back some respect for themselves and the rest of the disrespected Big Ten. But that's easier said than done.

Prediction: Barkley has a decent game in his road debut, but makes a few mistakes that keep the game interesting through halftime. In the second half, the Trojans prove to be too much for the Buckeyes as they wear down their defense with a strong running game and punishing defense.

My pick: USC

Keep an eye on: Junior RB Joe McKnight hasn't yet broken out as the star of the Trojans offense, but he proved last week that he's the best player in their backfield, as he tallied 145 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries and had one receptions for 21 yards.

 

Upset Alert

Stanford at Wake Forest


Wake Forest is a formidable opponent and a tough team to take down in their own backyard. But the Wake defense was overmatched last week by the Baylor Bears, yielding 197 rushing yards at 5.3 yards per carry. Stanford has one of the strongest rushing attacks in the Pac-10, and has an offensive line that has the talent to out-muscle the Wake Forest defensive line. But they'll have to limit their turnovers against one of the most opportunistic teams in the nation – Wake Forest forced an NCAA best 37 turnovers last season.

About to go Nuclear

California RB Jahvid Best

Jahvid Best
RB Jahvid Best; AP Kim Komenich

Best will have a chance to boost his Heisman campaign as the Bears face FCS Eastern Washington at home. Best should easily eclipse the 137 yards he ran for against Maryland last week.

Numerical analysis

37

You know those football games you play on your video game system...where you know you're going to slaughter the opponent, but your goal is to score more POINTS than the total YARDS you allow the other team. That's exactly what happened...in real life...to Idaho State on Saturday. They had just 37 total yards against the Arizona State Sun Devils...who put up 52 points. Yeah. That's sick.
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