FOOTBALL

Sunday Buzz: My Analysis Of USC-Michigan

If you want the quickest description of what happened Saturday at the Coliseum, a multi-dimensional offense (USC) faced a one-dimensional offense (Michigan).

Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood is 18 years old and he led an anemic passing attack against USC.

I don’t know how a football program with Michigan’s unlimited funds can fail so much at the QB position AND with its play calling (FOR TWO YEARS!). Couldn’t they get someone like Joey Aguilar to come for a year so they did not need to solely depend on an 18-year-old sidearm passer?

This game masked some issues for USC because Michigan did not ask many questions (especially after tailback Justice Haynes departed).

Did the USC secondary improve? Who can tell when it wasn’t really pushed, although that 69-yard touchdown pass was worrisome.

The USC defensive line received plaudits for being better at the line of scrimmage. That was undeniable but there wasn’t a lot for them to worry about with Underwood, who was erratic and troubled by any pressure.

USC can run the ball, better with King Miller than any of the other tailbacks, which is good because Eli Sanders appears lost for the season and Waymond Jordan sounds like he will miss the Notre Dame game (and more).

But the USC offense is rarely the problem.

  • Let’s address a few issues Yogi Roth glossed over below.

No. 1. — He says “defense elevating.” Really? Is the USC defense elevating or did it just play a worse offense than Illinois?

No. 2 — He says “Team getting better as the season goes on.” I would say USC has been fairly consistent the past few games. It all depends on the opponent.

No. 3 — “Biggest win since Lincoln Riley showed up.” Nope. The 46-45 victory over No. 16 UCLA was way more dramatic and kept College Football Playoff hopes alive (in a four-team era, mind you). The following week’s win over No. 15 Notre Dame wrapped up the Heisman Trophy for Caleb Williams.

Those two wins are bigger than beating whatever that team was that played USC at the Coliseum on Saturday.

I think it would be wiser to make these statements if USC beats Notre Dame next week.

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75 thoughts on “Sunday Buzz: My Analysis Of USC-Michigan”

  1. well, that is not really an analysis…it is a subjective opinion…SC beat a top 15 team on both sides of the line of scrimmage…period. Now it is true the q/b is not the top of the line passer. But he is the q/b of a very good football team, and did pass for over 200 yards.

    This win shows SC should have a good chance of a win next vs ND.

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    2. Scottie, the glass yesterday was 3/4 full, and you are going 1/4 empty.

      USC with nearly 500 yards of offense, 226 yards rushing vs a team that gave up only 77 yards per game.

      USC totally dominated LOS. Makes me wonder what happened vs. Illini. Maybe food poisoning really did the team in.

      Terrible to see Jorden and Sanders go down, but King Miller and Bryan Jackson were outstanding.

      At this stage of the season, it looks like Ohio State is way better than any other team.

      What is up with Blackledge calling OPI on USC? It’s not PI until the ball is in the air, and Ja’Kobi released while Jayden still had the ball in his hand as far as I could tell.

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      1. actually Blackledge didn’t call it it was the officiating analyst who called it then balckledge agreed. The analyst is an actually crew cheif in the big 12 and big 10. Was engaged and had 2 hand fills of Jersey when the ball was on the way. Didn’t mean much since they peobably would have still scored at least 3. But Mi got nabbed on a non existent OPI later in the game.

        Liked by 2 people

      2. It chaps Wolf’s a*s*s to say anything positive about Riley or the football as a whole. So, he deflects and uses the QB as a scapegoat to justify more shlt-talking.

        Riley wants to give him a good ass***whipp1ng

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      3. KAM: Brain dead vile antisemitic and racist Board Pest Board Cancer Cowardly Gabby aka Sparrow Calypso aka TebowObama aka Charlie Bucket the UCLA Fan aka The Guy who posts as Buddhakarma & So Cal’s Wife & Michael Guarino & Trojan RJJ & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse and TrojanFan 1-3 & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young and KATHY and Foreskin Thoughts and SCOTTLOVESTHEROOOOOTTÞ and Manureman and eric  and Smacky is as giddy as a school girl that her Bruins beat Michigan State!

        DON: Yes Cowardly Gabby is a Bruin who loathes USC. She has wasted 25 years of her life spamming this site to destroy it.

        Liked by 1 person

      4. Can’t find the video off the Ja’Kobi TD. I could have sworn ball was still in Jayden’s hands. In any case, thanks for responding.

        Liked by 1 person

    1. KAM::Brain dead vile antisemitic and racist Board Pest Board Cancer Cowardly Gabby aka Sparrow Calypso aka TebowObama aka Charlie Bucket the UCLA Fan aka The Guy who posts as Buddhakarma & So Cal’s Wife & Michael Guarino & Trojan RJJ & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse and TrojanFan 1-3 & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young and KATHY and Foreskin Thoughts and SCOTTLOVESTHEROOOOOTTÞ and Manureman and eric  and Smacky was destroyed yesterday . She thinks it is fair that the Democrats already gerrymandered Alta Kalifornia with 43 of 52 Congressional seats and permanent 2/3rd majorities in the Assembly and State Senate in a state with only 45.27% registered Democrat voters.

      DON: Cowardly Gabby and Governor Mimbo are fascists who want total control over us.

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    1. KAM: Cowardly Gabby’s hero Governor Mimbo has blood on his hands. A serial criminal illegal alien k i l l e d 6 innocent people, while driving drunk—AFTER Governor Mimbo’s California authorities ignored an arrest detainer lodged by ICE. Sanctuary policies protect the WORST OF THE WORST criminal illegal aliens.https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/10/09/drunk-driver-criminal-illegal-alien-leaves-six-dead-gavin-newsom-releases-serial…

      DON :We will do everything in our power to remove this serial drunk illegal alien driver, abuser, m u r d e r e r and drug user from our country.

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  7. KAM: SC fans who were at the Michigan game said it was electrifying, especially some long Trojan runs that set afire the fans.

    DON: A writer said that the raucous SC crowd made a difference with the players, and reminded him of the loud sellout crowds from the Carrot era. He writes, “It was one magical throwback night”

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    1. KAM: Popular professor fired at HBCU files lawsuit alleging anti-white discrimination. A tenured white professor at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore who was fired with little explanation has filed a lawsuit claiming that her termination was race-related.

      DON: Professor Donna Satterlee alleges that she was regularly harassed by administrators and denied promotion despite having unanimous support from her department. What can be done about racist black Democrats?

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    2. Plaschke has a good column in LA Times, if you can get behind the paywall. I tried to cut and paste but it is a no-go. He noted the coliseum had the same energy as back when Pete was HC.

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      1. Plaschke jumps to premature conclusions because a little sensationalism will get you read, I guess he thinks. But that was an excellent SC-Michigan piece

        Liked by 1 person

    3. The atmosphere [and the big victory] at the coliseum last night secured our top ranked 2026 recruiting class. The future looks very bright.

      Last night was huge for USC.

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  8. After SC’s sterling Michigan game I was afraid Scott would start gushing and getting sentimental over the Trojans, but instead we get some level headed advice. That was an anemic passing “attack” with one SC defender confessing “We knew we were dealing with a young guy”

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    1. KAM: Eight Wars and Conflicts Ended: Trump Delivers Peace, Mainstream Moderate Democrats Like Cowardly Gabby and Tranny Bruin Still Angry.The Israel-Hamas deal isn’t even finalized yet, and already several Muslim-majority nations have expressed interest in joining the  Abraham Accords, the monumental peace agreement President Trump brokered during his first term.

      DON: Originally signed in Washington, D.C., on September 15, 2020, the accords normalized relations between Israel and Arab states beginning with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. Now, driven by the momentum of the Gaza peace deal, the administration is pursuing further normalization with Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Mauritania, Algeria, Syria, Lebanon, and Qatar, marking the most ambitious regional diplomacy effort since the accords were first established.

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  9. KAM: Another Trojan player said “People thinking they can just come out here and do anything to us”

    DON: That was disspelled in the Michigan game. But it’s hard to be “on” like that game after brutal game

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      1. KAM: We couldn’t make this sh*t up if we tried …

        🤣
        😂

        …

        Per Po-LIB-ico, Senile Joe Biden is accusing Trump of “stealing his Gaza Peace Plan” … and he’s angry! Gropey Joe is calling Trump “depraved” and claiming he’s getting “way too much credit!” Biden believes he deserves the Nobel Prize, not Trump …

        DON: …and if the Nobel Prize committee had known earlier how Senile Joe felt, I’m sure they would figure out how to give it to that senile p e v e r t crook .

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      2. KAM: Poor Cowardly Gabby got nuked!

        Fight On

        October 10, 2025 at 2:57 am

        This is asking a lot but isn’t it about time you found some purpose in your life rather than wasting more time (years?) when no one cares what you have to say about anything?

        DON: I love the smell of napalmed Cowardly Gabby in the morning!

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  11. DON: That King Miller guy doesn’t have to wait to be anointed, his ‘King’ name has already done that for him

    KAM: When Wiley was asked how he cleverly chose King to go in, he said, “Hell,” I didn’t have anybody else left

    DON: Wiley was so giddy after the game he even answered 3 questions from a t.v. commentator, albeit reluctantly

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    1. I checked a couple Michigan blogs after the game. Besides the usual complaints about officiating and how their coach should be fired, the wolverine fans couldn’t believe how much their smash-mouth team was pushed around, and how much faster USC is than michigan.

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      1. Just like in the old Rose Bowl days, Michigan would come out as a plodding, weak pass team and get stomped by the Trojan gazelles

        Liked by 2 people

      1. Maybe Coach Riley told ’em, “anybody who draws a 15 yard penalty doesn’t play for us anymore….. unless their last name is Lemon..”

        Liked by 1 person

  13. DON: You know how I can be on the negative side when determining what SC’s prospects are. Illinois had a nice balanced run-pass attack, and ND is better.

    KAM: Plus ND needs this game worse than SC. 3-losses and a team is out of the National Championship race

    DON: But that’s better than in the old days when a single loss could kill your championship hopes

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  14. KAM: I saw the picture of Ja’Kobi Lane scoring the first touchdown for SC and looking up at the sky with his arms out-stretched as if saying “Thank you God for that”

    DON: It reminded me of James Bond bouncing onto the stage and his first words are, “I feel good!”

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  15. Enough with the over tbe top criticism.

    It was a tremendous victory.

    You could be critical of redzone interception by #14 as it was ill advised pass.

    Riley did a good job.

    The Michigan coach was outcoached and outclassed.

    Less than 20K Michigan supporters. Very few in Section 120 from my vantage point.

    Fight On and Enjpy A Great Sunday.

    Liked by 3 people

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      1. KAM: Brain dead vile antisemitic and racist Board Pest Board Cancer Cowardly Gabby aka Sparrow Calypso aka TebowObama aka Charlie Bucket the UCLA Fan aka The Guy who posts as Buddhakarma & So Cal’s Wife & Michael Guarino & Trojan RJJ & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse and TrojanFan 1-3 & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young and KATHY and Foreskin Thoughts and SCOTTLOVESTHEROOOOOTTÞ and Manureman and eric  and Smacky was wasted a quarter century stalking this site.

        DON: Such a waste of life,

        Like

    1. KAM: The Mainstream Moderate Democrat author of the Antifa Handbook and his wife Yesenia Barragan have fled the US now that the group has been declared an international terrorist organization. Mark Bray provides Antifa groups an instruction manual filled with terror tactics. Bray wrote the terrorism ‘how-to’ manual after meeting with 61 Antifa leaders in 17 countries. He brought his findings back to the US. Yesenia Barragan was convicted for conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine but her sentence was commuted by President Biden in 2024. Barragan and Bray claim they are in exile in Spain…

      KAM: Good riddance!

      Liked by 1 person

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      1. Gabby–They were TOLD to leave the country —so that prosecutors couldn’t investigate their money sources….

        #CriminalDiscoveryIsTheLastThingTheMoneyMenWant

        Liked by 1 person

    1. you’re lucky that your head wasn’t blown off…..

      I keep picturing trump’s head splitting like a watermelon

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      1. KAM: Brain dead vile antisemitic and racist Board Pest Board Cancer Cowardly Gabby aka Sparrow Calypso aka TebowObama aka Charlie Bucket the UCLA Fan aka The Guy who posts as Buddhakarma & So Cal’s Wife & Michael Guarino & Trojan RJJ & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse and TrojanFan 1-3 & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young and KATHY and Foreskin Thoughts and SCOTTLOVESTHEROOOOOTTÞ and Manureman and eric  and Smacky is a Mainstream Moderate Democrat.

        Gabby

        June14, 2025 at 7:50 pm

        #TwoInchesToTheRight

        DON: She is evil

        Liked by 1 person

    1. KAM: You sure do,  Brain dead vile antisemitic and racist Board Pest Board Cancer Cowardly Gabby aka Sparrow Calypso aka TebowObama aka Charlie Bucket the UCLA Fan aka The Guy who posts as Buddhakarma & So Cal’s Wife & Michael Guarino & Trojan RJJ & LawyerJohn & Pudly & Plow Horse and TrojanFan 1-3 & steveg49 & DOJ & Scott Wolf and Frank Young and KATHY and Foreskin Thoughts and SCOTTLOVESTHEROOOOOTTÞ and Manureman and eric  and Smacky:

      Charlie Bucket
      on May 18, 2016 at 10:15 pm said:
      Mora+Rosen+Guerrero=PowerHouse Trio

      #BruinPowerRising

      DON: Cowardly Gabby aka Charlie Bucket is a bruin.

      Liked by 1 person

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    1. KAM: Peace in the Middle East was impossible—until it wasn’t. Donald Trump started to traverse that impassable domain in his first term with the Abraham Accords. Then, just a few days ago, he managed another impossible passage when he brokered peace between the irreconcilable forces of Israel and Hamas. Almost as impressive, Trump solicited and received the support of Muslim countries from Indonesia to Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar, and Egypt. Amazing.

      DON: How did I do it? Well it was “the art of the deal” in practice.

      Liked by 1 person

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  20. KAM: The public still has not completely bought-in to the idea that the Trojans are back, and consequently SC is a 8 1/2 point underdog at Notre Dame

    DON: Historically SC loses 2 out of every 3 back there, and even the computer says ND has a 68% chance of winning. The good news is a different computer only gives them a 59% chance

    KAM: SC will score. The question is can they score enough?

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    2. You said it would be hard to put together another effort like last night’s against Michigan….

      #OddsLikeThoseYouPostedWillHelpGetUSCVeryFrickingFocused

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  21. KAM: I just saw a mug shot of Mark Sanchez and he looked as if he was saying, “What have I done to myself!”

    DON: And the jokes are flying– One wag said Sanchez could get jailtime, or worse, be sent back to the Jets

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. KAM: THE RETURN OF LAW AND ORDER: US Attorney Lindsey Halligan Expected to Drop More Charges Against Serial Liar Letitia James – John Bolton, Pencil-Neck Schiff, Fani Willis, Lisa Cook, John Brennan Being Investigated!

      DON: Sugar Sweet!

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  22. SC still has the problem of letting teams hang around. They just can’t deliver the kill shot. There is always turnover. D gives up a big play. O stalls with a bizarre sequence of play calling. Riley has this weird thing where he gets to clever instead of simply doing what works. (Of course, Kif and Sark did this when SC as well). Chow rarely did this.

    Still seeing the SC lines hold their own against a big bad beefy midwest O line is certainly promising. Didn’t get pushed around.

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  23. Newest A. P. ranking have USC at #20 —-the highest ranking of any of the previously unranked teams to enter the Top 25 this week……

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    2. Yes, it’s all Franklin’s fault that this barely above average team was rated Top Five in the pre-season….

      Franklin deserves all the criticism & humiliation Penn State HASN’T meted out to their past [more deserving] coaches…. that’ll even things out….

      [btw, I think bringing in Mike Tyson as their new coach will solve all their ‘toughness’ problems]…..

      Liked by 1 person

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      1. Tyson half time speech:

        “Knock off their helmets and bite their ears off”

        #”ItWorkedForMe”

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      2. Unrealistic expectations at Penn State. They were a CFP team last year. Great recruiting classes. Always in the top ten. Are they really going to do much better with a new coach? I think Franklin is better than Sark. I wonder if Kiffin would be interested in the job?

        Liked by 2 people

      3. Plow–Something tells me we aren’t gonna have to worry about Penn State on our schedule anymore….

        #LooksLikePetulantPennStateBitOffTheirNoseToSpiteTheirFace

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  25. Sound bytes… Penn State starting QB Drew Allar was knocked out of the Northwestern game, and it could very well have ended differently had he not been injured. I would not underestimate David Braun as a HC. Northwestern came ready to play a bowl game. And I think the ucla win over PSU last week was not a fluke, the ruins former HC and OC seem to have been the problem. So PSU had no plan B at QB. David Braun may be getting that NW squad turned around with a lot of upperclassmen on their roster. If they beat Purdue and then Nebraska, their visit to the Coliseum could make for an interesting matchup.

    But on more important matters. The USC win yesterday was majestic. Michigan schemed to take the pass away, and found out the hard way that USC can definitely run the ball. That was awesome to see. On defense, once Haynes was out of the game, Michigan lost their running attack. And Underwood, while talented, is not yet mature enough as a QB to shoulder a passing attack centered offense, particularly with the pressures USC was bringing. So, saying all that to say this: what about the ND game next week? Gameplan will be similar for USC as the Michigan game, but it is on the road. USC needs to stop the irish running game cold. But can USC really win on the road? We seem to give opponents 20 more points when we are the away team, which is the curse of LR. The USC secondary is still a question mark, as Michigan’s receivers were getting open and making plays, and we have no shutdown corners. It may come down to whether ND schemes wrong for USC the way Michigan did.

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