Updates: Commentary & Analysis

USC’s student newspaper has issued its preview of the 2007 USC football season with a surprisingly comprehensive series of articles. In addition to a general preview report, the Daily Trojan profiles Patrick Turner, analyzes each position group in a separate article, and examines the competition in the Pac-10.
Football Preview (various articles) (Daily Trojan)

ESPN’s Ivan Maisel details junior WR Patrick Turner’s journey from the number #1 high school receiver in the nation through two years of waiting behind future NFL second-rounders Steve Smith and Dwayne Jarrett and finally to becoming the leader of the receiving corps, someone who knows the offense better than any player in the program not […]

Not to diminish the excellent training camp performance of redshirt freshman David Ausberry, but junior Patrick Turner and true freshman Ronald Johnson have truly seized their opportunities to lead and significantly contribute to the receivers unit, respectively. Dan Weber of The Press-Enterprise describes the unique roles and terrific abilities of the two receivers.
Turner’s turn to be USC’s […]

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach examined which teams and conferences were the most overrated and underrated over the last 10 college football seasons by comparing preseason AP polls to their corresponding final AP polls. According ESPN’s formula, 2 of the 3 most underrated teams during the past decade were the Pac-10’s Washington State and Oregon (the other being Boise State).  And […]

It seems that there are writers outside of the Pacific time zone who are anticipating the USC/UCLA game on December 1. UCLA’s 13-9 victory over the Trojans last year and their 20 returning starters have opened some eyes, nationally.  Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post profiles the rejuvenated football rivalry.
L.A. Is More Than Trojan Town (Washington Post)

As Ben Malcolmson of USCRipsIt writes, competition is not just a central tenet of SC’s football team, it oozes out of every pore of the program: “It’s the essence, the central theme of USC football.” On the day following the transfer of RB Emmanuel Moody, it seems fitting that the author would spend some time […]

The Sporting News is the latest of the major national publications to pick USC as the number one team in the land.  If you’re in the mood for yet another breakdown of the Trojan team, by all means, give it a click.
Top 25 countdown: No. 1 USC (Sporting News)

Dan Weber of The Press-Enterprise surveys the most dominant unit on USC’s heralded defense: the linebackers. From a pure talent perspective to the internal mentoring system which is already developing the next group of LBs who will support and eventually replace the big 3 (Keith Rivers, Rey Mauaula, and Brian Cushing) the unit has blossomed in […]

Seattle Post-Intelligencer columnist Ted Miller profiles USC’s sophomore safety and Seattle native Taylor Mays as the one who got away. For University of Washington fans, his departure from the great northwest to LA is a true ”horror story.” Pete Carroll refers to Mays as
the fastest, biggest, strongest, jumpingest guy in our program…He’s an extraordinary athlete. There’s nothing to hold him back.
As Miller […]

As part of an article on running backs in its 2007 college football preview issue (which hits newsstands tomorrow), Sports Illustrated examines the tailback situation at USC. There’s no new information, but there are some good photos of the Trojan backs.
The magazine also ranks USC #1 heading into the season, and features the Trojans on […]