Updated: September 13, 2007, 3:53 PM ET

Keller faces USC defense for second time in three seasons

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McShay By Todd McShay
Scouts Inc.
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Saturday's game between USC and Nebraska will mark Sam Keller 's second start against a top-ranked Trojan team (ABC, 8 p.m. ET). The first encounter -- as Arizona State's starting quarterback in 2005 -- was a forgettable one for Keller.

Keller and the Sun Devils took an 18-point lead (21-3) into halftime against the two-time defending national champs that year. But the dream quickly turned into a nightmare, as USC intercepted Keller four times in the second half en route to a 38-28 victory.

Since the game featured such a drastic tale of two halves, I decided to dust off the game film to break down to see what could be learned. Quite honestly; it wasn't the complete meltdown I expected. In fact, Keller wasn't nearly as good in the first half as the score and his statistics would indicate -- and the exact opposite can be said of his second-half performance. Regardless, there was an awful lot to be learned from the 77 offensive plays I studied of Keller versus the USC defense -- most of which can be applied to Saturday night's showdown in Lincoln, Neb. Here's what I learned:

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