I just got back from Tucson, Arizona last night, where I spent the weekend watching the USC-Arizona game on Saturday and hanging out with my sophomore band class. It was a very fun trip for many reasons (the quality of the game itself not being among them). Here are the impressions I came away from the weekend with:
1. Arizona football fans are assholes. I know it's pretty blunt, but I feel it's best to just throw the truth out there. First, when we got to Arizona on Friday night, we bussed into the campus area for a rally at a hotel near the stadium. From the moment we got there, every expletive in the book was yelled at us, people were honking car horns while we were warming up, and one individual tried to walk through the band on the way to the rally while yelling expletives along the way. The real nature of the fans came out on game day, however. When we got into the stadium about 80 minutes before the game, the student section was completely full. About 20 minutes later, Mark Sanchez came onto the field with the offense to warm up. From the moment he took the field, the student section was yelling f*** Mark Sanchez over and over in unison. Classy, huh? When he left the field, the chant simply changed to f*** the Trojans. Even when we were running out the clock on the victory, f*** the Trojans was the call from the student section. I didn't hear a positive Arizona chant all day. For all you knew, it was a USC scrimmage being held at Arizona's stadium. Also, on the way back from the game, without any prompting, an Arizona fan grabbed the mouthpiece off my trumpet and chucked it across the band. In addition, someone's helmet got stolen while we were changing by our buses. Luckily, our security guards caught that guy and gave him what he deserved. If you know me, you know I'm all for cheering loudly for your team and even against the other team at times, but there is a line that shouldn't be crossed, and the U of A fans clearly crossed it.
2. USC's defense is without question the best in the country. When you come into the game outscoring opponents 138-0 in the last 10 quarters, you know you're good. Then, when you hold an Arizona offense that had been averaging 41 points per game over 30 below that average, you know you're really good. The Trojans D made U of A quarterback Willie Tuitama look like a freshman, even though he's a four year starter. The biggest play the D made was in the fourth quarter, when Rey Maualuga stormed through the line to stop the Wildcats on a 4th and 1 from midfield with about 7 minutes left. I've never seen players go crazier in regulation of a Pac-10 regular season game then the Trojan defenders did after receiving the signal that the Wildcats had come up short. They were leaping in the air, sprinting towards the sideline, and hugging each other. They knew the game was on them to win because of the offensive struggles and they came up huge in front of a hostile crowd in Tucson.
3. USC's offense, especially Mark Sanchez needs to be more consistent. For 2 out of the last 3 games now, Sanchez has struggled to find open receivers, has held onto the ball too long, and is relying too much on the big play. On the Trojans first play from scrimmage, Sanchez badly overthrew a wide open Patrick Turner streaking down the middle of the field for what surely would have been an easy touchdown. It set the tone for the game. Sanchez just looked off in his rhythm and timing. He also, I thought, tried to hit the home run play too often, when he could have settled for a short first down gain. One example was on a 3rd and 1 when he could have easily run for the first down, but instead, thought he had an open receiver and tried to force the ball into Stanley Havili (who had a brilliant game, I might add). In that situation, up by a touchdown in the 4th quarter, you have to take the first down. Know the situation, settle down, and don't get too far ahead of yourself. The offensive line also had a terrible game, giving up four sacks. They, however, have played fairly consistently well all year. The Wildcats threw a lot of blitzes at Sanchez, and he just looked at times like he was ill-equipped to handle them, mainly because he held onto the ball too long. If the Trojans hope to win out, they will need more consistent play out of Sanchez and his O-line.
4. Stafon Johnson is a gamer. The block the Trojan running back threw on Wildcats safety Nate Ness to free up Mark Sanchez to throw the touchdown pass to a wide open Stanley Havili was absolutely bone crushing. Ness was coming off the corner, ready to hit Mark Sanchez hard. Johnson picked up the blitz and made Ness never want to try to rush the passer again. He was down for several minutes after the play. Add that hit to the fact that Johnson was the only thing the Trojans could rely on offensively on Saturday (rushing and receiving), and you have to say that he was at least co-player of the game with Stanley Havili. I say, though, that the hit on Ness gives Stafon Johnson the leg up over Havili.
5. Pete Carroll never takes a win for granted. We had the pleasure of sitting directly over the Trojans tunnel where they entered and exited the field, so we had a good view of the players and coaches expressions on their faces. The look of pure youthful joy and relief on the face of Carroll after the game told me all I needed to know about what a victory means to the man in a tough environment in a Pac-10 road game. Even though the performance by the Trojans probably wasn't he desired, Carroll showed with his beaming smile and youthful charisma that every victory is important and you should be thankful each and every time you come out on top. Sometimes, we take that for granted at USC, so it was nice to see that our great coach always keeps it in perspective.
6. The Trojans face a steep uphill climb to the BCS National Championship game in Miami. I could do a whole post on why I hate the BCS (and I will at some point), but things don't look great for USC right now. With Penn State's victory over Ohio State in Columbus, the Nittany Lions look primed to earn a spot in the title game. Basically, the two participants in the game will be chosen from the conference champions of the Big 10, Pac 10, SEC, and Big 12. If Penn State wins out, that leaves the other spot to be chosen from the Pac 10, SEC, and Big 12. Even if the Trojans win out (and they have to in order to have a chance), I can't envision a title game without a Big 12 or SEC team this year. Again that's part of the nature of this screwed up system, but the BCS rewards you for playing in a tough conference, and the SEC and Big 12 are without question the best two conferences in America this year. What USC needs to hope for is a Penn State loss down the stretch. If that happens, we could easily, and probably will see the Trojans in the title game. Right now, the situation is this:
-The SEC still has three teams who could make it: Alabama, Georgia, and Florida. Either Florida or Georgia will play 'Bama for the SEC title most likely. Right now, Alabama is still undefeated, so USC needs them to lose at least one. Will a one-loss team from the SEC edge out the Trojans? That remains to be seen, because it depends who the team is a who their one loss was against. I would venture to say though, that because the SEC is a little weaker then the Big 12, that USC could very well edge out a one loss team from the SEC for a birth in the title game. There are a lot of factors, but it's possible.
-The Big 12 also has three teams who could make the national title game: Texas, Oklahoma, and Texas Tech. I don't think a one-loss Oklahoma State team is truly in the running, though one could make an argument they are. Texas and Texas Tech are still undefeated, but they play at Texas Tech on Saturday. The Trojans should be pulling hard for Texas Tech. Why? Texas is ahead of USC in the rankings and Texas Tech has a much tougher remaining schedule. A victory by Texas Tech on Saturday would make an appearance in the Big 12 title game an uphill climb for Texas, and if you don't even make it to your conference title game, the BCS is unlikely to put you in the national title game. Will a one loss Big 12 team edge out USC? Assuming they are the champion of the conference, the answer is probably yes if the team is Oklahoma or Texas. However, if a one loss Texas Tech team wins the conference, I would guess USC would edge them out because of Tech's extremely weak non-conference schedule.
-Penn State needs to lose, in huge upset fashion. If they do, they will be immediately out of the running to appear in the championship game as a one loss team, just because the Big 10 is weak and they didn't play anybody in their non-conference schedule. A loss by Penn State, I think, would make the odds greater than 50-50 that the Trojans go to Miami. However, I don't see a Penn State loss on the horizon. The Trojans might have to just hope for complete chaos in the Big 12 and SEC.
-Obviously, the last point goes without saying. The Trojans must win out.
Glad to be back home after the big weekend. Looking forward to the start of the NBA season this week. I'll probably do a Wolves preview this week (including why I haven't followed them as much recently, but plan to do so this year), a reaction to the Williams Bros. situation with the Vikes, and when the World Series ends, a wrap up of the MLB season and the long-awaited Twins off-season preview.
Thanks for reading. Fight On.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment