2011 USC Football Predictions
Written by Steve Janus
The USC Trojans struggled to an 8-5 finish in the first year under head coach Lane Kiffin. While an 8-5 season would be a great season for many teams, it doesn’t come close to the standard that Pete Carroll set at this university. Some of the struggles last year likely had to do with the fact that they were suspended from postseason play, leaving them little to play for. They won’t be eligible again in 2011, but there is enough talent on this team to not only be one of the best in the newly formed PAC-12 but one of the top teams in the entire country.
The Trojans return 13 starters from the 2010 season and are expected to add a bunch of talented young players to the mix this year. Let’s take a closer look at who they will be sending to the field on both sides of the ball, plus I’ll give my prediction on where I see them finishing the year in the PAC-12.
Offense:
A big reason why the Trojans should bounce back in 2011 is the fact that they return junior starting quarterback Matt Barkley, who is considered one of the top NFL prospects for next year’s draft. Barkley threw for 2,791 yards with 26 touchdowns to just 12 interceptions in his sophomore season. Even though the Trojans don’t have a ton to play for, Barkley figures to be in the Heisman mix if USC returns to the top.
The Trojans used a number of backs to help them rush for 189 yards a game in 2010. While they lose Allen Bradford (794 yards) and C.J. Gable (253 yards), they bring back senior Marc Tyler who led the team with 913 yards and nine touchdowns. While Tyler will likely take on the bulk of the carries this season, sophomore Dillon Baxter and redshirt freshman D.J. Morgan are two very talented backups that should give the Trojans one of the top rushing attacks in the country.
USC loses three of their top four wide outs from last season, but bring back their biggest threat in sophomore Robert Woods. As a freshman Woods led the Trojans with 65 catches for 792 yards and was second on the team with six touchdowns. With a year of experience Woods has the potential to put up monster numbers in 2011. While the Trojans will like insert senior Brandon Carswell into the starting mix, redshirt fresham Kyle Prater, true freshman George Farmer, and sophomore Markeith Ambles are the three guys that could really make a big impact this season.
Up front on the offensive line the Trojans return two of the top lineman in the conference in junior center Khaled Holmes and junior left tackle Matt Kalil. The other three spots are up for grabs heading into the fall. Sophomore Kevin Graf and junior college transfer Jeremy Galten are the two leading candidates for the starting right tackle job. Galten will also compete with redshirt freshman Giovanni Di Poalo and sophomore John Martinez for one of the two starting guard spots. Even with just two starters back, this unit should be one of the best in the PAC-12 this season.
Defense:
USC has not sent out a dominant front-four the last two years, and in 2010 they wound up allowing 140 yards a game on the ground (most since 1991). They lose their best defensive lineman from last year in tackle Jurrell Casey, but the expectations for this unit are very high heading into 2011. They return one of the top defensive ends in the conference in junior Nick Perry and both starting tackles from last year in seniors DaJohn Harris and Armond Armstead. They add in redshirt freshman defensive tackle George Uko, who could end up stealing Armstead’s starting spot, and will likely send out junior Wes Horton at the other defensive end slot.
At linebacker the Trojans bring back junior middle linebacker Devon Kennard and senior weak-side linebacker Chris Galippo. Both of these guys should be near the top at their respective positions in the conference this season. There is an opening at strong-side linebacker, where redshirt freshman Hayes Pullard and sophomore Marquis Simmons figure to battle it out this fall. Overall this unit is less experienced, but has all kinds of talent that should make it very tough to put up points on the Trojans this season.
In the secondary USC returns two of the best defensive backs in the conference in sophomore corner Nickell Robey and junior free safety T.J. McDonald. Robey led the Trojans with four interceptions as a true freshman, while McDonald led the team with 89 tackles and was second to Robey with three picks. Junior Jawanza Starling returns at strong safety, while junior college transfer Isiah Wiley looks to have the edge at the other starting corner.
PAC-12 Prediction: 2nd PAC-12 South - While there is no question that the Trojans have the talent to compete with the likes of Oregon and Stanford in the PAC-12 this season, I think not having anything to play for at the end of the year really hurts this team. I currently have them rated just behind Arizona State in the South, who they have to play on the road this year.
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