It is done. The USC Trojans have risen from the ashes and climbed the ladder back into elite status with an easy victory over the UCLA Bruins, 24 - 7.
The Bruins, depleted at QB, were fed to lions at the Coliseum and never really had a chance against a dominant Trojan defense. And the Trojan offense, while not completely efficient, relied upon its strength in the running game to over-power the Bruins.
Let's tally up the grades:
Offense:
QB - JD Booty played a solid game. He was 21 for 36 and 200+ yards with a TD pass, and once again his WRs dropped 3 or 4 passes that hurt his stats.
Grade: B
RBs/FB - Strong game from the running backs as Washington, McKnight and Johnson all had over 70 yards rushing. McKnight could have had a huge day if not for stepping out of bounds on a sideline run that could have been a 70 yard TD run, and fumbling later in the game after a 30 yard run. FB Havili made a critical running mistake early that cost SC a first down pickup, but rebounded by catching the ball well. Grade: B
WRs/TE - What can be said . . . Fred "The Truth" Davis was dominant in this game as he has been all season - (6) catches and a clutch TD reception to add to his resume as the best TE in college football. The WRs didn't perform as well. Several dropped passes, including a 3rd down killer by David Ausberry, haunted this unit that has not strung together consistent performances this year. Grade: C+
OLine - Another strong effort as SC leaned on this group to keep the Bruin pass rush off Booty, and clear the way for rushing yards. They did both to the tune of giving up only (1) sack, and bulldozing the Bruin DLine for 231 yards. Grade: A minus
Defense:
DLine - Another masterpiece. The DLine absolutely controlled the line of scrimmage, and although they had no sacks, they accounted for (3) TFLs and only allowed 52 yards rushing by the Bruins. DT Fili Moala had 1.5 TFLs for the game. Grade: A minus
LBs - A terrific overall game for this unit. Rey Maualuga did a nice job filling gaps and led the team in tackles with (8). Thomas "Hit Man" Williams made 5 tackles, forced a fumble and broke up a pass. Kaluka Maiva had a sack and another TFL, while Brian Cushing and Keith Rivers both made impacts forcing an additional fumble and disrupting the passing lanes. Grade: A
DBs - Solid game. The Bruins did get a TD pass and one longer pass against the CBs, but the Bruins never got into a great rhythm. The CBs were active at the line of scrimmage as Shareece Wright had a sack and Terrell Thomas had a TFL and followed that up with an interception later in the game. Grade: B
Special Teams - FG kicker missed an attempt, but nailed a 46 yarder. And the return guys were solid, but unspectacular. Punter Greg Woidneck, however, finally nailed a punt inside the 10 yard line, and had another fair caught at about the 11 yard line. Grade: C+
Coaching - It was redemption time for the offensive coaches who didn't do a good job last year of making adjustments in this game. But this year they got it done. They went to the running game just enough for 231 yards, although they probably should have leaned upon it even more. In general, they kept the Bruin defense off balance. Defensively, the Trojans executed the way they wanted to - stuffing the run game, and then pressuring the Bruin QB garnering (4) sacks. Grade: B +
Game Balls:
Offense - TE Fred Davis
Defense - LBs Rey Maualuga and Thomas Williams
Special Teams - Punter Greg Woidneck
Prediction Winner: Payback (Who else?)
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