USC Trojans

LOS ANGELES -- The Trojans hit the field on Wednesday in shorts and helmets for what coach Lane Kiffin called the first of two “Thursday” practices where the team spent a majority of its time running through plays and the game-plan in general. Whereas yesterday’s workout was light and upbeat, today’s was marked by intensity, but it didn’t go quite as smoothly as Kiffin hoped.

“A lot of mistakes today for our guys coming out and really being exposed for the first time,” said Kiffin. “It’s good that it happened today and not tomorrow, and I would expect it to be a lot cleaner tomorrow.”

When pressed afterward about what the team needs to do tomorrow to regain momentum, Kiffin brought up the mental errors that he felt plagued today’s practice.

“Not repeating plays, things are really crisp, the personnel is going in and out, they know their assignments from A to Z," he said, "and we’re not there yet, so it’s good that we have some time.”

• Watching defensive backs during individual drills, Nickell Robey practicing is really a sight to behold -- not just because he’s so naturally gifted, but because he goes 100% all of the time. There wasn’t one rep that he took during the session where he wasn’t giving it his all.

• The running backs spent a lot of time working on their pass routes, and from Curtis McNeal, to Silas Redd, to Soma Vainuku, it’s safe to say that Matt Barkley has some nice options out of the backfield.

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Todd McShay ranks his top five prospects in college football.

Kirk Herbstreit discusses the weaknesses of USC, Alabama and LSU.

USC is ranked No. 1 in the Grantland Rice Super 16 Preseason Poll, which is voted on by members of the Football Writers Association of America.

Oregon is fifth. LSU is second, Alabama third and Oklahoma fourth.

Trojans QB Matt Barkley is officially the leading preseason candidate -- shocker, I know -- for the Heisman Trophy after capturing 9 of 11 first-place votes in the Heismanpundit/CBSSports.com Heisman Straw Poll.

The poll is a weekly survey of actual Heisman voters from across the country. Barkley was on 10 of 11 ballots, which means somebody decided to be quirky and cute with their vote instead of taking it seriously.

Barkley had 29 points. Wisconsin senior running back Montee Ball, who placed fourth in last year's Heisman vote, was second with 12 points, West Virginia senior quarterback Geno Smith was third with six points, while Michigan senior quarterback Denard Robinson was fourth with five points.

Senior quarterbacks EJ Manuel of Florida State and Collin Klein of Kansas State each received a first-place vote to pull into a tie with Oregon sophomore running back De'Anthony Thomas for fifth place. Manuel and Klein were the only players besides Barkley to merit a first-place vote from the panel.

LOS ANGELES – There certainly was a different feel on Brian Kennedy/Howard Jones Field on Tuesday as the Trojans set their game plan in motion for Saturday’s game with the Hawaii Warriors. The team was in full gear today and it was a more spirited practice than has been seen in quite a while, with defensive line coach Ed Orgeron’s booming voice reverberating throughout the field right from the get-go.

The biggest news of the day came following practice when Lane Kiffin named Max Wittek as the back-up quarterback ahead of Cody Kessler. It was a close battle, but the Trojans head coach felt a decision had to be made -- at least for now.

“Somebody has to be No. 2, and Max is No. 2,” Kiffin said. “It has nothing to do with who will be the starter next season. Both have commanded the offense well, they both made a bunch of plays and had good numbers throughout the fall.”

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Our countdown of the Pac-12's top 25 players in 2012 continues.

Most of this looks back, but, of course, there also is a good dose of projecting forward. A lot of good players, as it happens every year, won't make the preseason list. It is in their hands to make the postseason list.

You can review our 2011 postseason top 25 here.

4. Robert Woods, WR, USC

2011 numbers: Caught 111 balls for 1,292 yards and 15 touchdowns.

2011 postseason ranking: No. 8

Making the case for Woods: No one had more receptions in the Pac-12 last year than Woods. No one had more receiving touchdowns than Woods. And the scary thing is his numbers are probably going to get better. With quarterback Matt Barkley returning for another season, an A-list counterpart across from him in Marqise Lee and two tight ends that are the envy of most teams in the nation, Woods is going to see a lot of single coverage. And if you bracket Woods, you run the risk of getting beat deep by one of the others. And if you still decide to bracket Woods, chances are you are still going to get beat by one of the others. He's that good, and USC's offense is that good. There are maybe two guys in this conference who can run consistently with Woods in man-to-man ... and one of them already plays for the Trojans (see No. 14). And that's why Woods, a first-team All-Pac-12 and AP All-American last year -- headlines a talented group of wide receivers in the conference. At 6-1, 190 pounds, he's one of the truly special players in the Pac-12.

No. 5: Keith Price, QB, Washington
No. 6: Chase Thomas, LB, Stanford
No. 7: Marquess Wilson, WR, Washington State
No. 8: Keenan Allen, WR, California
No. 9: Marqise Lee, WR, USC
No. 10: T.J. McDonald, S, USC
No. 11: Dion Jordan, OLB/DE, Oregon
No. 12: Stepfan Taylor, RB, Stanford
No. 13: Kenjon Barner, RB, Oregon
No. 14: Nickell Robey, CB, USC
No. 15: John White IV, RB, Utah
No. 16: John Boyett, S, Oregon
No. 17: Jordan Poyer, CB, Oregon State
No. 18: Khaled Holmes, C, USC
No. 19: Cameron Marshall, RB, Arizona State
No. 20: Dion Bailey, LB, USC
No. 21: Shayne Skov, LB, Stanford
No. 22: Curtis McNeal, RB, USC
No. 23: Austin Seferian-Jenkins, TE, Washington
No. 24: Isi Sofele, RB, California
No. 25: Jeff Tuel, QB, Washington State

USC (0-0 overall) vs. Hawaii (0-0)

Saturday, Sept. 1, 4:30 p.m. PT

Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum

TV: FOX

Radio: ESPNLA 710am (pre-game show starts at noon)

Scouting Hawaii: New Mountain West Conference member Hawaii, which went 6-7 in 2011 in its 33^rd and final season in the Western Athletic Conference, is guided by Norm Chow, the one-time Trojan assistant who is in his first year as a head coach after 40 years in the profession. UH returns 10 starters (6 on offense). Although the Warriors will be breaking in a new quarterback and will no longer employ the run-and-shoot offense, they return their leading rusher -- powerful RB Joey Iosefa (110 carries, 548 yards, 5.0 ypc, 7 TD in 2011, plus 20 receptions, 122 yds, 6.1 ypc, 1 TD receiving) -- and 4 of their top 5 pass catchers: WRs Billy Ray Stutzmann (78 rec, 910 yds, 11.7 avg, 4 TD in 2011), who led the team, along with Jeremiah Ostrowski (65 rec, 687 yds, 10.6 avg, 5 TD in 2011), Justin Clapp (38 rec, 356 yds, 9.4 avg, 4 TD in 2011) and Trevor Davis (28 rec, 366 yds, 13.1 avg, 3 TD in 2011). Hawaii’s top defenders include returning starters LB Art Laurel (61 tackles, 14.5 for loss, 9 sacks, 1 interception, 1 pass defensed, 1 fumble recovery, 3 forced fumbles in 2011), DL Paipai Falemalu (50 tkl, 6 for loss, 4.5 sack, 1 dfl in 2011) and DBs John Hardy-Tuliau (73 tkl, 1 sack, 3 int, 11 dfl, 3 FF, 4 blocked kicks in 2011) and ex-Tennessee Vol Mike Edwards (43 tkl, 1.5 for loss, 1 int, 11 dfl in 2011, plus 44 kickoff returns, 1086 yds, 24.7 ypr). WR Scott Harding (6 rec, 67 yds, 11.2 avg in 2011, plus 19 punt returns, 141 yds, 7.4 avg and 12 KOR, 253 yds, 21.1 avg), a onetime professional Australian Rules Football player, was a Freshman All-American as a punt returner.

courtesy USC sports information

In 2000, Oklahoma won the national title without any starters missing a game due to injury. Think about that. Think of all the injuries that your team has suffered through the years that make you go "what if?" I hear you Oregon, 2007.

With that thought, we introduce you to the 2012 USC Trojans -- a team loaded with talent and top-ranked by the Associated Press. If the national title game were to be played Saturday, the Trojans would be solid favorites against anyone.

And, yes, when that's the case, the media hype machine opens its maw wide and spews forth words, pictures and video that function as polarizing, love-hate attention-getters. USC and coach Lane Kiffin don't inspire many neutral reactions across the college football nation. Switzerland, USC is not.

As for talent, USC's is fairly remarkable, particularly on offense. There is no better offensive troika in the nation than quarterback Matt Barkley and receivers Robert Woods and Marqise Lee. More than a handful of NFL teams would trade what they have for what USC has. There are a pair of 1,000-yard rushers behind Barkley: Curtis McNeal, who averaged 6.9 yards per rush in 2011, and Penn State transfer Silas Redd. Four starters are back from an offensive line that was very good last year. And both tight ends are NFL prospects.

On defense, the back seven returns intact. And the Trojans welcome back both specialists.

Of course, you've read this before. In fact, this accounting of USC's starting 24 has become redundant. As is the caveat that the Trojans -- limited to 75 scholarships, 10 below the typical limit per NCAA sanctions -- are thin behind that strong starting lineup. In fact, most measures show the Trojans at present with just 71 scholarship players.

Yes, on paper today, this team looks better than anyone. But 12 regular-season games and a Pac-12 championship game lie between the Trojans and a berth in the BCS national title game. Attrition is typically an immutable -- and frustrating -- rule of college football. A redo of Oklahoma in 2000 is probably too much for Trojans fans to expect.

So, starting with a home date with Hawaii on Saturday -- Norm Chow finally getting his chance as a head coach -- the million dollar question is, can USC stay healthy enough to claw its way back to the top of college football? That's the first issue.

The second? How do folks feel about USC's quick return to the national title race despite brutal -- and brutally unfair -- NCAA sanctions that were intended to cripple a dominant power?

In the Pac-12, Oregon fans feel slighted by the USC hype. After all, the Ducks stepped up when the Trojans stepped down and won three consecutive conference titles. Nationally, there's the widespread -- and ignorant -- opinion that USC is one of the nation's corrupt , football-first programs. And down South there's the whispered suspicion that the biggest threat to SEC supremacy is USC.

Wherever you stand, be prepared: If USC piles up wins and impressive performances, the hype churn will only get more frenzied. Just the way it is.

As for depth issues -- so mundane! -- plenty of teams are thinner than the Trojans, whose roster is still full of four- and five-star recruits. But it's not difficult to create worry when fiddling with a black marker and the USC depth chart, particularly on defense.

For example, what if you mark off sophomore George Uko, the Trojans' best and most experienced defensive tackle? The remaining four defensive tackles are all freshmen. The Trojans already were replacing three starters on their defensive line when end Devon Kennard was likely lost for the season due to a torn pectoral. Kennard split time with Wes Horton last year. Any further hit to the D-line could mean trouble.

Or take away one of those talented sophomore linebackers. "Uh-oh" is right. In fact, the only position on defense where there's solid, proven depth is safety.

Things are deeper on offense, though it's worth noting both of Barkley's backups are redshirt freshmen.

As for the schedule, USC stands as a clear favorite -- today -- against all 12 foes, including Oregon on Nov. 3. There's a tough Week 3 road date at Stanford, and then back-to-back visits to Utah (a Thursday night game) and Washington. Those certainly won't be walkovers.

But it's not difficult to look at USC's depth chart -- today -- and look at the schedule and conclude this team will be headed Jan. 7 to South Florida, where it won its last national title in 2004.

The "USC Watch," with all the cheers and jeers it will inspire, begins in earnest this week.

But an observer who can contain his emotions about the polarizing program might want to focus on the Trojans' injury report, which could prove as telling in the early going as the scoreboard.

The high school teams of three USC commits are ranked in this week's ESPN 25 power rankings.

Louisville (Ky.) Trinity, whose defense is spearheaded by Trojans commit Jason Hatcher, checks in at No. 5, while Concord (Calif.) De La Salle (linebacker Michael Hutchings) and Murrieta (Calif.) Vista Murrieta (safety Su'a Cravens) rank No. 10 and No. 19, respectively.

Trinity has opened its season with two impressive wins against teams from neighboring Tennessee, including fellow USC commit Jalen Ramsey's Brentwood (Tenn.) Academy.

Hutchings and Cravens open their seasons Friday. De La Salle meets San Jose (Calif.) Bellarmine at San Jose Community College, and Vista Murrieta hosts Highlands Ranch (Colo.) ThunderRidge.