Lane Kiffin has USC on the right track

When you are in the business that I'm in, you really can't afford the "luxury" of having a favorite team. Still, I was born and raised in Southern California and grew up watching and loving the USC Trojans.

Saturday, I watched every play of the Washington/USC game with great interest. I had no dog in the fight so I was able to watch the game with near 100% objectivity even though a small piece of my heart was with the Trojans.

At the end of it all, after watching Washington's Eric Folk FG split the upright with no time left for the second straight year, I came away with an indelible impression of USC. Lane Kiffin has the Trojans on the right track!

After sputtering on offense against lesser competition, the Trojan offense was effective and efficient. Kiffin is slowly developing a power running game behind the big horses up front and the result was 298 yards on just 39 carries good for 7.6 yards per carry. You'll take that all day every day against anybody.

Highly touted sophomore QB Matt Barkley was a nearly flawless 14-20 for 186 yards and no interceptions showing strong leadership and game management. Gimme an offense that produces 484 net yards, rushing for almost 300 with a QB that completes 70% of his passes with just one turnover, you should win this game.

The problem is the defense and that isn't necessarily Lane or DC/dad Monte Kiffin's fault. After years of getting raided by the NFL and from the attrition of graduation, the Trojans just don't have the people in place to run the complex Cover-2 defense that is such a recruiting draw.

That the Trojans were shredded for 536 yards, 420 by Jake Locker who played himself back into the first-round of the NFL draft is unacceptable but for now a reality. With Stanford, Cal, and Oregon on deck ... the Kiffin's will have to find a way to stop the bleeding quickly.

Overall, you have to like what you see in the Land of Troy. The offense is rock solid, the defense is a work in progress that can only be addressed through solid recruiting. That will be no mean feat with USC's impending loss of scholarships but after what I saw on Saturday, loss of scholarships or not, the Kiffin's will have the Trojans competitive and a force to be reckoned with for years to come.

Posted by Ken O'Brien on Oct 5, 2010 03:42:42 pm

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