FOOTBALL

USC-Cal Report Card

QUARTERBACK

J.T. Daniels, the transfer portal is calling . . .

Grade: A-

TAILBACK

I know USC doesn’t use a tight end. I wonder if schools are starting to tell running backs not to go to USC, at least for the next week or so.

Grade: C-

WIDE RECEIVERS

Whatever good will Justin Wilcox generated the past two seasons at Cal disappeared when he thought his man-to-man coverage would fare any better than top 10-ranked Utah.

Grade: A-

OFFENSIVE LINE

What do they do consistently besides false start?

Grade: C-

DEFENSIVE LINE

Cal loses its tailback and quarterback and we are supposed to say the defensive line played better? Not having it.

Grade: C+

LINEBACKER

At least John Houston is ending his career positively. Has anyone addressed how Palaie Gaoteote was apparently brought back too soon from his ankle injury and then hurt again?

Grade: B-

DEFENSIVE BACKS

They didn’t look too good when Chase Garbers was playing but got better when Devon Modster took over. What a coincidence. Is Olaijah Griffin still dancing?

GRADE: C-

SPECIAL TEAMS

No major screw ups that I can remember, which counts as a flawless performance for John Baxter.

Grade: C+

COACHING

The team is getting better as the season progresses . . . especially when you are playing a bunch of 4-6 and 5-5 teams. Even in a blowout, USC has 12-men on the field on defense.

Grade: C-

12 thoughts on “USC-Cal Report Card”

  1. I don’t agree with the DL grade. Should be much higher. DE Wrecktor laid out the Cal RB eliminating hthe RB from the game with a clean hit to his chest. DE Drake Jax landed on the Cal QB during a clean tackle eliminating the QB from the game. Seems to me like the DL deserves an A.

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    1. Spot on!
      From the above grades, you’d think the Trojans were embarrased at Cal.

      Pilli, Tufele, and Tuipulotu continue to impress.
      LB are the problem–Houston is a classic WLB not MLB. It flows down from there.
      CB are vastly improved over last year. Solid B

      As mentioned by others previously, Kevin Bruce (former all-american LB) has a great weekly, honest, technical summary of the defensive performance.

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  2. Scottie, Slovis is the 12th ranked QB in the country after Saturday.

    29/35, 406 yards, 4 TD, and 0 Int. Only A-?

    And he made plenty of throws on the run because the o-line can’t protect him.

    What does it take to get a solid A?

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  5. Referees:D- targeting a player on a clean hit that incidentally included helmet contact. Helton was instructed to agree with the call. Pass interference on an uncatchable ball.
    PAC 12 conference: F extremely late start in a cold stadium just so they could push Utah ahead of Helton’s group. If Bohn hadn’t stopped Larry Scott the refs would have made Cal a bowl eligible team.
    Announcers: D+ Shut the hell up. If they hadn’t made a fuss in slow motion, Rector would have finished the game. They were continually lobbying for calls that weren’t called in real time. Otherwise making disparaging remarks about the Trojans.

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    1. “PAC 12 conference: F extremely late start in a cold stadium just so they could push Utah ahead of Helton’s group. If Bohn hadn’t stopped Larry Scott the refs would have made Cal a bowl eligible team.”

      In addition, Rialto:

      Slovis–likely one of the more exciting TRUE Freshman QB IN THE NATION–and no one in America (outside of Los Angeles) has watched him play (due to the stupid Pac 12 after dark scheduling)!

      Larry Scott is slowly and assuredly destroying the USC FB brand…one season at a time. Slowly, methodically, quietly destroying the NATIONAL BRAND that is USC FB. Sarkiffin didn’t help, and Helton has not curated the brand, but Scott is the real malefactor.

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  6. Either you need a good pass rush, or athletic defensive backs to beat USC, and most of the PAC 12 teams have none. And i have a feeling JT Daniels will be content as a backup for the Trojans, because he knows that’s all he’ll ever be, no matter where he goes .

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