FOOTBALL

USC Morning Buzz: Before You Pick The Score

A Pac-12 defensive coordinator called me Friday, so I asked him about the USC-Utah game.

“I don’t think Utah will lose two straight games, especially when they are playing at home,” he said.

Hmmm. Well, I’m throwing that out there before you make your pick. I’m making my pick later today.

70 thoughts on “USC Morning Buzz: Before You Pick The Score”

    1. I always like the way you think, steveg49!

      I’m heading to my local “high-end” liquor store to find the best Bourbon in town. The little bottle of Woodfords is not quite good enough for tonight.

      The Turks in Vegas are off tonight…
      USC 31–Utah 30.

      Liked by 2 people

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      4. If you think about it —which I know you and others here have done — that’s ALL the American taxpayer has been doing for the last 2 years…. subsidizing fuck ups…..

        Liked by 3 people

      6. Oh no, not that braindead!
        Seriously, that “20%” [which I think is more like 35%] are defending the “globalist” agenda —without even realizing that, in reality, “globalism” means: Chinese style communism. I just talked to a sick friend [who I called to check on] and ended up having to call him on his bullshit about Biden trying to “save democracy.” The guy is smart but he’s so wedded to liberal talking points that he doesn’t realize that all the FBI raids on political opponents, all the de-platforming of opposing opinion and all the persecution of political prisoners is being done by the Biden Regime. I know he’s gonna be surprised when the dems get slaughtered in 3 weeks.

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  2. Back from the heavens of a California “Mountain-High” blazing Fall,
    and falling back into the reality that this is the game of the year for SC
    Beat “insurmountable” Utah and Troy likely marches into sucla 10-0

    Wondering how both teams’ players woke up thinking about the game-

    Utah– “We got this, we’re tired of losing we’re better than this. Rising should rise to the occasion if he wants to prove his mettle, we got the battering-ram NFL-headed running back that that SC-line is not going to be happy about.
    Our Defensive Line will have ‘Celeb’ inventing some new dance moves to evade our vultures’ clutches.
    And we got the Trojans at Utah whose Anti-SC delirium rivals
    Tehran’s prayers of ‘Death to America’ Fridays.
    The cold, well Indians don’t feel cold, but the poorly-evolved Troy boys are lost without their heaters as their play freezes up at Below-50.”

    Now SC– “Lot of pressure riding on this game, we win and fans will boast ‘SC’s back,’ lose and our team will be listed in the L.A. Times
    back-pages with sucla taking over Page-1
    I’ve been to this Utah graveyard a few times in past years to always lose
    But in 2022 we have horses in the barn to complement Traveler
    And we Trojans saw this Ute-train coming since Spring, we’re ready
    We will be bringing our all-out Kamikaze effort without the bad ending While Utes are looking for imaginary SC scalpings and non-imaginary

    Liked by 3 people

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      1. Yeah, thanks MG, but ‘thoughtful’ is not what I’m after,
        did the piece elicit at least a mere chuckle (or 2)?

        Liked by 2 people

  3. Utah is too young this year. 30 – 27 USC. If the offense struggles, too many injured o-linemen? Utah 31-27 in overtime.

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  4. “A Pac-12 defensive coordinator called (Scottie) on Friday”. A D coordinator seeking out Scottie? Must be for advice on offbeat LA restaurants.

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. “So you think Rod’s still has the best hamburgers in town? Thanks! By the way, did you know there’s an obscure law that prohibits Utah from losing 2 games in a row? Pass it on!”

      Liked by 1 person

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      1. if a place serves a ‘real’ malt and great onion rings with that juicy LOADED med rare burger …IT IS THE BEST…we have a ‘red robin’ that does just that

        Liked by 2 people

      2. A “real” malt! Nothing like it. Wonder how many youngsters have ever tasted one? Or a freshly ground, bloody hamburger?

        Liked by 2 people

      4. Ha! Exactly what I said to my wife when she ordered one and said it didn’t have much taste…while I munched on a delicious cheeseburger…

        Liked by 1 person

  5. USC ranked 74th in sacks allowed in D1. With a slower QB, they probably would be close to the bottom, so I hope the mantra today is “Protect the QB”.

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    1. …and “no slow developing plays in the first half…get the ball into somebody’s hands in fewer than two and a half seconds… repeat speedily down after down until Utah gets tired…”

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      1. …to those who say it’s not smart to shrink the field with nothing but short stuff and handoffs I say, ‘let’s see if Utah can stop us from going down the field that way.” Caleb can always throw in one [very] quick pump to signal he’s going long [even though there won’t be any one out there] before he dumps it off short.

        Liked by 2 people

      3. We’ll do just fine if we don’t waste downs getting greedy….short passes, aggressive blocking on runs and Caleb taking off when the 10 yards in front of him looks green.

        Liked by 2 people

  6. 2 possible outcomes:
    #1 – If USC plays best game of the 2022 year – USC 34 Utah 17
    #2 – If USC plays like the Dodgers in game 2 or game 3 – Utah 35 USC 13

    Hoping for #1 but since the stench of Clay has not been 100% removed, #2 is a possibility.

    Remember Utes wearing special jersey’s in honor of player killed last year as well. This will be huge psych test for the 2022 Trojans!!

    Just hoping no injuries to anyone and clean game with no major mistakes on USC’s part.

    Being the optimist (still have not sold a share of stock in 2022), I am picking USC to win.

    Liked by 2 people

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    1. Whatever happens Riley will have USC ready to play as well as they can play….he’s been there before….this isn’t bigger than the Texas or Oklahoma State game….
      #It’sGonnaBeANailbiter…
      #ButIPickUSC

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    2. I have kept 2/3 but but just sold some this week,expecting at least another 5-10% down during this depression…DEBT IS ENORMOUS and interest rates make debt even more enormous…will hold to buy back or buy others with low debt and more dividends…I too think SC has this one …ucla clobbered utah,SC should at least win by slim margin,but utah is gonna’ be embarrassed.

      Liked by 1 person

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    1. Scott is gonna pick Utah for 2 reasons:
      (1) To make us crazy…..
      …and…
      (2) … He’s invoking the “Utah can’t lose 2 in a row” law…..

      Liked by 1 person

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  9. Williams plays his game and doesn’t miss those easy targets and USC wins. Plus Utah has never played against a Lincoln Riley coached team. Kyle Whittingham is a really good coach but he doesn’t belong in the same class as Lincoln Riley.

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    1. … but some of his skill players ALMOST belong in the same class as ours…. and his line guys are really solid….
      #Still,WeWin….

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      1. MR. Guarino is in rare form today and I love it. This is the game I’ve been waiting for. All along I have known Utah brings physical disciplined football with a hostile environment to boot. If USC proves me wrong and wins I will vote Republican in the next presidential election. 😂
        Utah 33 USC 20

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  10. The USC offensive line needs to dominate on run plays. USC also needs to get the ball out fast to minimize the rush. My guess is that Riley has kept some cards up his sleeve for this game. The most important position on the field this game is our left tackle. Can Haskins finally offer decent pass protection? or does Murphy play more?

    On defense, the Trojans front seven has been getting better each week, can they stop the explosive run plays?

    I say that Riley and Grinch are better coaches than Whittingham and they create a gameplan that pulls out a win in Utah. I just think they will unload on some new tactics that will help to flip the game to USC.

    The game could turn on turnovers, so if USC is negative on turnover margin, that will be the dagger in the heart.

    Nearly impossible to predict, but I dont think USC loses by more than 7. They could win by 20 or it could be close, but USC wont lose in a blowout is my guess.

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  11. Wolfe what team was it? You can at least say the team but you are not going to do that. Come on Wolfe tell us the name of the team, it’s not like you have a wealth of sources at USC. Well I can see your point of view, you have to find something to give us to reblog because most of the time it lacks substance. Not trying to put you down, I just speak n write what I see from your post. Everyone has an opinion on this site u either like or you don’t. Today quote of the day “Play Fast Physical Smart”

    Liked by 3 people

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      1. MG, I just wanted to let you know how gracious and eloquent your posts are, you are one of top bloggers on this site. Pasadenatrojan Parcelman007 Marvienna LJ Trojan1967 Gametv YoungDole and let me not forget Gabby and GT. Your posts are great too if I missed anyone who I shouldn’t name because I either don’t like posts or I forgot to mention you. All of those I’ve mentioned above have inspired me to he a better blogger. I appreciate your likes n your disagreeing with me. SPEAK THE TRUTH N NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH (AKA D. TRUMP) I’M DECLASSIFYING THIS POSTS!!! FIGHT ON 4 :40 minutes to game time. #GuiltyOfBeingAKissAssFanBoy

        Liked by 3 people

  12. One of the differences between Wolf and God, Eric, although there are a couple of others, is that Wolf never speaks to us as individuals whereas God does speak to us
    or so some have claimed

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      3. Eric….Your analysis and football IQ are well respected by all of us regulars. Like MG said- “Love your stuff”. What stands out for me, is your knowledge regarding the history of So Cal high school football. A true student and lover of the game

        I appreciate your shout-out!….. The feeling is mutual

        #FIGHT-ON!

        Liked by 2 people

      4. Thanks Gabby I’ve always stay connected with my high school sports. Just a fanatic of football basketball. I ran a successful youth sports program at Anderson Park in Carson from 88-91. I got burned out due to the nature of coaching fundraising year round. Coached a lot of players who went on to play big time D1. Once again thanks you also have great analysis too.

        Liked by 3 people

      5. Well our undefeated season came to an end in a tough entertaining game we did everything in our power to win the game, tough watch Addison and Gentry go down. We will rebound next week n still have a great season no matter what. Fight on. We need better refs tired of watching poor ass calls. That was not roughing the passer on Bullock int.

        Liked by 4 people

      6. What happened to your mantra of “I appreciate your disagreeing with me,” and besides, sparrow’s retort had nothing to do with you and there was nothing for you to agree or disagree with. I left your rebuke alone because at first I thought you were an imposter until I read MG’s explanation of our benign nature around here, so let me simply say that your God comment is quite weird.

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  13. Alabama is looking like shit, they can be beat by a great coaching game plan. 21-7 start of 2nd. Defense isn’t as stout as their stats say. Tennessee is for real. Michigan has a great running game. Ohio State hasn’t been tested yet. Clemson plays against Florida St., hopefully J Wilson has monster day for upset. Oklahoma St overrated. So we must continue winning just to maintain our poll position because if we don’t beat Utah by 21 we could win by less and still drop in the polls. Y? Michigan Clemson Tennessee wins then the only place Alabama is our spot n we move down to 8th. Trojans we need to win big today impress the CFP Committee ESPN USA Today Coaches.

    Liked by 2 people

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      1. oh,well
        #7 for this team has always been too high at this juncture…highest Pac12 should be around 15th…ucla is going to be highest now…crap.

        Liked by 1 person

      1. So Cal — The President’s Press Liaison just released a statement saying, “the chastity advice the President gave to that captive audience of young school girls yesterday shouldn’t be construed as applying to Hunter’s 14 year old prostitutes ….and, of course, to any young girls within the Biden family —-Joe considers them fair game.”

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      3. Gabby —look at the expressions on the faces of Biden’s victims….they are in pain… these are memories that’ll haunt them….maybe even ruin their lives….
        #[HowCloseDidIComeToSoundingLikeAsiaArgento]?

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      1. Demonstrates the culpability of democrats and the media in this conspiracy which will be more honestly portrayed (hopefully) hundreds of years from now.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. The days of serious scrutiny of media whoring are probably over….
        #ICanLiveW/ThatAsLongAsWeThePeopleGetToVote….
        #IJustWantTheLastLaugh

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  17. The odds were stacked against SC in this game fro the start. This year was expected to be one of Utahs greatest seasons and they had extra incentive because the rumor is that this will be Whittinghams last year. All of the extra curricular activities like pictures of their 2 fallen players on their helmets and the black uniforms and the black shirts of the fans shows us that they knew that they couldn’t lose 2 games in a row. If they did, then their season would be over.
    They knew they would be going into a mad house and still they were in the game and would have won had they not lost 2 key players at the end. I don’t think that they were intimidated. But they are still a year or so away.

    Liked by 1 person

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