Pete Carroll named Chauncey Washington the starting tailback for Saturday’s game: “Somebody’s got to go first, so let’s say we’re going with the oldest guy…We plan on playing everybody.” Read on for more notes from Thursday, including another statement from the NCAA on progress in the Reggie Bush investigation.

• 6′5″, 300 lb. freshman center Kristofer O’Dowd continues to impress coaches who noted that his communication on the O-line was dramatically improved against Nebraska. Carroll told Rivals, “He’s just a naturally big, strong kid, and he’s got brute strength. He’ll be tremendously strong after he works his years in the program…He’s really smart and really tough.”
• Carroll told Scott Wolf that LB Brian Cushing (ankle sprain) “practiced well” on Thursday and “he’s going to play for sure.” Whether he will start is a game-time decision.
• CB Vincent Joseph (bruised larynx) practiced Thursday but reports conflict on whether he’ll be available for Saturday.
• DE Kyle Moore suffered a groin strain and sat out part of practice but he will play Saturday.
• Rivals is reporting that with the secondary corps now down to 8 players, there is a greater likelihood that the coaching staff might burn the redshirt of safety Marshall Jones, but the decision does not appear imminent.
• After reading an OC Register story in which USC athletic director Mike Garrett and Carroll predicted little would come of the Reggie Bush investigation, an NCAA spokesperson emailed a statement to the Register, reading in part: “Despite the general lack of cooperation from those involved with the case, the NCAA investigation into this matter is on-going and progress is being made.”
• Sourena Vasseghi, a USC grad and an author/motivational speaker who has cerebral palsy, offered the team some inspirational words from his wheel chair after practice.  Carroll calls his “a tremendous story.”
• Safety recruit Will Hill gave a verbal commitment to Florida on Thursday.

Thursday Insider: Secondary Shuffle (Rivals, $)
Washington will start against Cougars (LA Times)
Trojans’ receivers waiting for their turn to shine (LA Daily News)
USC notes: O’Dowd makes impact (Orange Country Register)