FOOTBALL

USC Morning Buzz: Bigger But Not Better

USC had new starters at four of the five secondary positions on Friday.

It had new starters at two of the four defensive line spots. A third starter, Nate Clifton, left in the first quarter with a boot on his foot.

So by the end of Game 8, seven of the 12 starters were hurt.

What happened to gaining 1,400 pounds in the offseason? The spin was USC bulked up for the Big Ten. Instead it feels like the Big Ten has spanked USC from a physical standpoint.

It also raises my original question in the offseason: Is bigger necessarily better?

I don’t notice a huge difference in USC’s physicality this season. And frankly, did that bulk make Zacariah Branch slower? What about the tight ends? Do they ever look dangerous past the initial point of making a catch?

You can’t just make a blanket decision to add bulk. Everyone is different. But Lincoln Riley took a one-size-fits-all approach. Of course, no one else raised questions about it but yours truly.

36 thoughts on “USC Morning Buzz: Bigger But Not Better”

      1. When are you, plow and slo pa-troll meeting the real gabby in barstow for a good a s s whipping…..man-up p u s s y boy

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      4. Don’t you remember, you always talk big and chicken out, Cowardly Gabby?

        Plow Horse

        August 31, 2024 At 9:42 PM

        I thought Gabby said a few days back that he was going to the USC marching band pep rally today at the Palms at 2:00 and wanted to “meet up” with Scott. Instead, he spent the day trolling the blog. Once again a threat followed by a no show. That’s our Cowardly Gabby. All talk, no walk.

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      5. Don’t you remember, you always talk big and chicken out, Cowardly fake Gabby, aka scott wolf?

        Plow Horse

        August 31, 2024 At 9:42 PM

        I thought fake Gabby said a few days back that he was going to the USC marching band pep rally today at the Palms at 2:00 and wanted to “meet up” with real gabby Instead, he spent the day trolling the blog. Once again a threat followed by a no show. That’s our Cowardly fake Gabby, aka scott wolf. All talk, no walk.

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      6. Gabby

        FEBRUARY 22, 2024 AT 7:09 PM

        you’re the only limp-di^k who gives a sh%t what I said 8 months back … ….. I F%$#KING LIED…..I FU#$ING LIED…….AND NO ONE GIVES A F$%K BUT A FREAK LIKE YOU….. GO F@#K YOURSELF WHILE A DECIDE WHAT HORSE S&^T VIDEO TO POST

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  3. If Trojan fans are in despair how about Bears’ fans this morning after allowing a ‘Hail Mary’ completion. Such a play can turn a season upside down much as the 63 yard run at Michigan started SC’s spiral

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  5. I had forgotten how in 1967 the SC quarterback Toby Page, without even being hit, fumbled the ball to Gary Beban to give him a chance to do a ‘1965er’ on the Trojans

    -Wonder how many of those guys could play today, the skill positions might be comparable, but today’s linesmen must be big

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  7. Let me try it this way, Censor–

    American football was modeled after rugby and was primarily a ‘running’ game until footballers realized you can go faster by air than by ground

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  8. Undermanned teams can make up for it by having a great quarterback. Stanford did that back in the ’70s with Plunkett and Elway; the scrawny ‘Indians’ gave the Trojans all they wanted

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  10. In SC football’s defense, traveling long-distance to 3 cities to play teams that looked at playing the Trojans as their ‘Super Bowl’ was a tough ‘row to hoe

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  11. The fans rushed the field in all 3 cities. Beating SC is still a big deal in the Midwest, and it would be best for all if it stays that way

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    1. Kamala has been called lazy dozens of times. The description fits. She is too lazy to prepare for press conferences or townhall meetings so she avoids them. She is frequently unprepared to answer the most basic questions. For example, she was asked by The View host what she would do differently than Joe Biden and responded with “nothing comes to mind”.

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  19. Hope SC is practicing with the sprinklers on because the forecast is for rain all week including Saturday’s game

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