Last Updated on September 15, 2009 7:12 pm by drew
USC-Washington Odds
Seattle,
Washington has been a conference doormat for most of USC’s reign, but the resume of first-year coach Steve Sarkisian – a former Trojans assistant – bodes well for a turnaround.
Coming off a thrilling victory over one of the nation’s top teams, the third-ranked Trojans begin their quest for an eighth consecutive Pac-10 title Saturday when they visit the Huskies, looking for a hallmark win to jumpstart their rebuilding process under Sarkisian.
Oddsmakers from online sports book SBGGLOBAL have made
USC comes into Pac-10 competition riding the momentum of a key non-conference victory. Freshman quarterback Matt Barkley and tailback Joe McKnight marched the Trojans downfield to set up Stafon Johnson’s 2-yard touchdown run with 1:05 remaining, lifting USC to an 18-15 win at then-No. 8
"We’re Trojans. That’s what we do," said the 19-year-old Barkley, who completed 15 of 31 passes for 195 yards, no touchdowns and an interception but composed himself to lead the final drive.
"This is what we dreamed of, coming back like this. Doesn’t matter where we are in the score. We found a way. I love this."
Though his offense was contained for the majority of the game, coach Pete Carroll was more than satisfied with the victory.
"I think it’s a beautiful statement for our whole team," Carroll said. "It was really a great job by a lot of guys."
USC has defeated
The Huskies, though, have some added incentive – and perhaps some inside information – with Sarkisian on their sideline. Sarkisian was with USC for each of its seven conference titles, including the last two as assistant head coach and offensive coordinator. He’s largely credited for the Trojans’ offensive success in recent years.
The architect of USC’s defense followed Sarkisian to
While the connections could give underdog
"I think our biggest fear is we put too much into this game, we try and build this thing up to be too much than it is," Sarkisian said.
"If we try and put too much into this there can be the repercussions after the game if it doesn’t go the way we want or if it does go the way we want there can be repercussions afterward. So we’ve got to be careful of that."
Sarkisian got his first win as a head coach last Saturday, as
Locker, a highly touted recruit out of nearby
"I think Jake – and I’m going to keep saying it – has all the tools to be as special a player and quarterback as there is in the country, if not the best," Sarkisian said. "He keeps showing it. He shows it to us every day and I think as we keep moving forward here, he’s going to keep showing it to the rest of our conference and the country."
The Trojans are just as confident in their quarterback, but Barkley bruised his right shoulder in last week’s game and didn’t do any throwing drills in practice Monday. Carroll said Barkley "will be OK" in a statement released by the school but didn’t specify how much practice time Barkley would need to be ready for the conference opener.
Sophomore Aaron Corp, who lost the starting job to Barkley in training camp, took snaps with the first-team offense Monday.
Posted: 9/15/09 7:12PM ET