Trojans' return policy pays dividends

MICHAEL LEV OCRegister.com

STANFORD - An inadvertent side effect of yielding the fewest points per game in the nation is that the kickoff return team doesn't get a ton of reps.

Through its first nine games, USC had 13 kickoff returns. Its opponents had 25.

On Saturday, when the defense sprang some rare leaks, the kickoff-return unit showed what it could do with a little practice.

Ronald Johnson had returns of 50 and 75 yards, and C.J. Gable's 93-yard return for a touchdown in the second quarter was probably the most pivotal play in USC's 45-23 comeback victory at Stanford.

"Our special teams played a big role," said linebacker Chris Galippo, who delivered one of the key blocks on Gable's return. "We must've had four or five knockdowns every single time."

Galippo credited assistant coach David Watson, who's in charge of the kickoff-return team, for discovering a weakness in Stanford's coverage. USC did most of its damage to the left side.

Watson credited the players – and the plethora (relatively speaking) of opportunities.

"They kicked the ball to us, first of all, and gave us a chance," Watson said. "Second of all, the guys executed their blocks. And the returners did a great job of setting their blocks up."

MIXED-UP MAUALUGA

Linebacker Rey Maualuga said he suffered a concussion in the first quarter that affected his play.

"There were some plays that I called where I didn't know what to do," Maualuga said. "It's not an excuse. I was being selfish (by) not wanting to take myself out."

The coaches took Maualuga out for several plays in the second quarter. He returned in the second half to help stifle Stanford's running game.

The defense stayed in its gaps in the second half after straying in the first.

"We were just out there running around," Maualuga said. "We weren't focused on our jobs."

By allowing 17 points in the first half, USC ended a streak of six consecutive games in which it had surrendered 10 or fewer points.

SECOND TO NONE

USC continued its second-half domination, outscoring Stanford, 28-6. For the season, the Trojans have outscored their opponents, 171-19, after intermission.

"When we got in the locker room, it just wasn't going to do," USC coach Pete Carroll said. "It couldn't stay the same on either side of the ball.

"Our offensive line came out and blocked so much better. ... Defensively, the guys came through and just stopped them series after series after series, and it wasn't like that early on."

NOTES

Saturday's game marked Carroll's 100th as USC coach. His record is 85-15. ... USC has a bye next week before playing host to Notre Dame on Nov. 29. The Trojans will take the next two days off before resuming practice Tuesday.

Five observations on USC-Stanford

Mark Whicker OCRegister.com

1. A mobile quarterback can gash USC’s defense, at least for a little while. Tavita Prichard of Stanford had a 40-yard gain when the Trojans let him scramble, and Toby Gerhart got loose for 40 yards on a pitch. “Those were disappointing plays,” Pete Carroll said. “That goes on their rushing yards total, but it’s not really like rushing yards.” Still, USC didn’t tackle well early and got handled by Stanford’s line. Stanford led in first-quarter first downs, 7-0.

2. Stanley Havili finally got to the end zone late, but something is not right when Vidal Hazelton gets the ball before he does.

3. USC doesn’ t have a special teams coach, per se, and might not need one after 230 yards of kickoff returns that led to 10 first-half points that were like gold, since the halftime score was 17-17.

4. A little more Gerhart might have stopped the second half bleeding for Stanford. The Norco baseball-football standout had 85 of his 101 yards in the first half and only eight carries in the second half. Gerhart became the first 1,000 yard rusher for Stanford since Tommy Vardell in 1991. Good grief.

5. USC isn’t in the same league with Florida right now. Trojans fans who claim to be bored with the Rose Bowl should reassess. They looked Holiday Bowl-bound for a while in the first half Saturday. A Penn State-USC Rose Bowl would be more competitive than the past two punchouts of Michigan and Illinois, especially if USC gets out of the gate as slowly as it did Saturday.

One Man's Opinion: Stanford review

Michael J. Davidson WeAreSC.com

There is a reason that we often hear coaches and announcers remind us that a football game lasts for four whole quarters. I don't think it would be unfair to say that tonight, all Trojan fans are very happy that is the case.
USC overcame one of the poorest first quarters of football that I have seen a USC Football Team play in some time to defeat an over matched Stanford team going away, 45 to 23. Maybe not everyone will admit it, but for the majority of the first half of this game, there seemed to be reason to wonder if Stanford could pull off a major upset of USC for two consecutive seasons. Overall, this game was literally two games in one. There was the less than awesome performance by SC in the first half and the overpowering defensive and offensive show that the Trojans brought in the second half.

To start the game, Stanford received the kickoff and proceeded to shred the vaunted USC defense on the way to an 80 yard, 7 play touchdown drive. There were two big plays on the drive, with the biggest being a very long 40 yard run from scrimmage by Cardinal quarterback Tavita Pritchard. The Cardinal finished off that drive with a nice touchdown run by Toby Gerhart and voila, the Cardinal was quickly off to a 7 to 0 start. On the ensuing kickoff, Ron Johnson returned the ball some 66 yards to the Stanford 20 yard line and the Trojans proceeded to gain all of two yards on three straight pass attempts and SC had to settle for a field goal. Now 3 points are better than nothing, but how strange was it to simply see 3 passes without even attempting to run the ball even once? It was not as if any of the three attempts fooled anyone on the defense and it was a moral victory for the Cardinal, something that set a very bad tone for the entire first half.

To be honest, the USC offense was simply out of sync once again for a substantial part of the first half. It would be easier to understand if the Stanford defense was simply a lights out unit and if it were on fire. That is simply not the case. It would be more accurate to state that SC either self destructed by having an ill timed penalty, a pass was off target, the running game was not given a real chance to get it going or Sanchez got sacked. Fortunately, SC was able to sustain one 80 yard drive in the second quarter which resulted in a short touchdown pass from Mark Sanchez to Damian Williams. And of course, USC was helped out by CJ Gable who took a kickoff back for six on a thrilling 93 yards Kick Off return. Prior to that return, it had been quite a while since any SC kickoff returner brought it all the way back.

The USC offense looked like things would be better on its first possession of the second half until the Trojans once again self destructed. The second half started with yet another fine kickoff return by Ron Johnson, only to see the Trojans have to punt as a result of a penalty on Anthony McCoy and another sack on Mark Sanchez. It appeared that the second half might just be a continuation of the first. On its next possession the Trojans showed some signs of life, but once again the drive ended on a sour note. Stanley Havili caught a nice pass for a ten yard gain, but he fumbled the ball deep in Stanford territory and once again, the Trojans came up empty.

Finally, late in the third quarter, SC decided to emphasize the running game and things turned around. USC put up 7 3rd quarter points and 21 fourth quarter points and if somebody were to simply see the final score, one might assume that it was an easy win. As a SC fan, it was nice to see the offense finally put up some big points in a conference game against a team that is not from the state of Washington. It was also especially satisfying to see SC wear down the Stanford team, one which was seemingly keeping the game closer than one might have hoped.

But the final result not withstanding, one can't help but wonder exactly what gives with this USC offense. Is it to be expected that this talented team should go an entire first quarter with virtually no offensive production? Should the team still have so many drive stalling penalties or other types of miscues that seem to be counterproductive. After seeing how the team fairs when it tries to run the ball first and pass second compared to the opposite, does it appear that this offense actually excels more when the run is emphasized ? The regular season is almost over, and there still seems to be some unanswered questions on the offensive side of the ball.

As for the final statistics, how can anyone argue? USC ended up with 283 net yards rushing and only 137 passing yards, with Mark Sanchez hitting 11 of 17. All three tailbacks had very productive games, with Stafon gaining 116 yards, CJ Gable getting 86 and Joe McKnight lighting it up for 73 yards on only 8 carries. It is hard to complain about any offense that ends up gaining 420 yards, but one had to see this game to understand how questions do arise. If one were in a time tunnel, one might assume it was business as usual. TheTrojans came out,(as in years gone by) kept things close, then as the game got to the fourth quarter, USC simply used its overpowering athleticism, strength and depth to wear down the other guys and beat them to a pulp. And come to think of it, even though we have grown accustomed to seeing SC put up lots of points through the air and with big plays over the past several season, just perhaps, this particular version of the SC Trojans is actually a team better suited to running the ball to set up the pass. Even though I personally like to see it the other way around, if the power game is what works, then maybe that is this team's actual offensive identity. After all, there is a whole stable of very good backs, the offensive line is mobile and most of all, on those occasions when SC has tried this approach, it has worked.

As for the defense, it was also a tale of two halves. I think most would agree that over the course of this long season, USC's defense has played lights football for all except two halves. The first half against Oregon State was sub par and USC lost that game. The fisrt half against Stanford was equally bad, but fortunately, the SC defense came out and made quite a statement in the second half and the SC offense also came out and did its job as well. For all but the last play of the game, USC shut down the Stanford Cardinal and held them without a score until that very last play. Unlike in the first half when Stanford could run the ball almost at will, in the second half, USC shut them down. Whatever happened or was said during half time, it was a resounding success. SC controlled the line of scrimmage in the second half and the defense played with an intensity that seemed to be missing in the first half. The poor tackling that we saw time and again in the first half was not anywhere to be found in the second half. The Stanford quarterback was on his heels and the defensive line was in gear.

Several young defensive linemen saw considerable action and at times, the inside of the defensive line had two true freshmen at the same time, Jerrell Casey and Armond Armstead. We also got to see sophomore Everson Griffen in the game quite often so the dline should be in good shape for years to come. As for the linebackers, they were not tackling well in the first half, but they were on a mission in the second. The defensive backs managed to keep everything in front of them and the Cardinal really did not try to challenge USC deep very often.

As for the special teams, all I can say is that it has been some time since I can recall seeing USC kickoff returners have so much success in one game. There were three long returns and one was for a touchdown. In recent years, that has not been a common scenarion, but one can only hope that it happens more often in the future. Ron Johnson and CJ Gable actually form a dynamic duo back there and as we saw tonight, either is absolutely capable of bringing it back the distance. When a team sees a special teams defensive unit struggle the way Stanfords' did tonight, it becomes all the more obvious what a huge weapon David Buehler really is for the Trojans. David kicks the ball so deep that well over half the time there is simply no return and that really helps alot. It also helps that a guy like Buehler is also one of the most accurate field goal kickers in the entire nation. Overall, the special team were clicking for the Trojans. I don't recall any blocking in the back calls and there were no fumbles of the punts.

So now what happens? SC is off for a week and then on the 29th, USC hosts Charlie Weis and the Fighting Irish. Hopefully, SC can use the bye week to get guys like Joe McKnight and Blake Ayles healthy and perhaps some of the offensive kinks can be worked out. It would be very nice to see USC play an entire game on the offensive side of the ball in a productive and relatively error free manner. Although there were fewer penalties tonight than there have been as of late, there were still more than one would like to see. As for the defense, I don't think there is any major problem at all. Nobody is perfect and the other guys have to be given some credit. But in my opinion, this defense is capable of really causing problems for most any offense and so long as the unit is focused, few, if any teams will surpas their norm. It is unrealistic to think that SC can hold each and every team to no points in the second half and to completely shut down all aspects of everyone's offense. On the other hand, I do think that this SC defense will do as good a job as any other unit in the nation against against any offensive unit it will face.

There is nothing USC can do about the other teams in the country. They can only play their best, take one game at a time, and make sure they beat Notre Dame and then the Bruins. As for how the rest will turn out, who really knows? Oregon State is playing very good ball, but Arizona will be tough in the desert next week. The Big 12 teams will continue to beat each other and who knows about the SEC? Florida is tough, but remember this. They also have one loss and that loss is even worse than SC's. Only time will tell.

The Trojans dispense with the fancy stuff and pound Stanford.

Mark Whicker OCRegister.com

STANFORD Knowshon Moreno, Shonn Greene, Beanie Wells, Jacquizz Rodgers ... college football's most productive runners can ease their way into the first quarter like it's a Jacuzzi.

Try the sweep here, the dive here. Figure out which linebacker is drooling uncontrollably, figure out which tackle is soft. After about 10 carries, they're lathered up and ready.

If C.J. Gable and the USC runners approached life like that, they would be sitting on their helmets after one series. The first carry of every game isn't a warmup for them. It's a tryout.

"We can't sit there and develop a rhythm slowly," Gable said here Saturday, after USC put down the bows and ribbons and took hold of the hammer to bludgeon Stanford, 45-23, in front of a largely Trojans crowd at Stanford Stadium.

"We have to get it going as soon as we get in there. I think that's why our guys are better than those other backs, because we have to produce right away. But, you know, that's how we practice. We go at it hard as soon as we get in there. We get our own rhythm."

They used drumsticks to find it in the second half and they conducted a Ginger Baker solo on the heads of the Stanford defense.

Gable had 14 yards at halftime, 85 overall. Stafon Johnson, 21 and 115. Joe McKnight, 8 and 72. The Trojans, 39 and 282.

Gable ran for a 3-yard touchdown and bolted 93 yards for a tying kickoff return touchdown when the Cardinal seemed the better team. Johnson had touchdowns of 7 and 3 yards.

And USC freed itself from a 17-17 halftime tie that had Stanford fans dreaming of a back-to-back seismic event. That is, if you could find any. It's pretty bizarre, watching fans up here fail to respond to Coach Jim Harbaugh, runner Toby Gerhart or this snazilly refurbished ballpark.

Stanford completely throttled USC in the first quarter, burning its world-renowned defense at its extremities, chasing and catching quarterback Mark Sanchez.

And, incidentally, becoming the first team to drive 80 yards on USC for a touchdown, which it did the first chance it got.

"We were doing pretty good to be 17-17 at the half," Pete Carroll said.

"We didn't want it to be deja vu all over again," linebacker Rey Maualuga said, referring to last year's 24-23 dream-busting upset in The Coliseum.

It was time to get down on the ground.

"All the running backs got together at the half and decided we had to take this thing over," Johnson said.

"Every time we'd come off the field we'd tell the coaches, 'It's open, it's open,'" Gable said.

So while the defense awakened and forced five consecutive Cardinal punts, USC got yet another short field, late in the third quarter, and finally dispensed with the French pastry.

McKnight for 23, Johnson for 6, Johnson for 5, Sanchez on an 8-yard scramble, and Johnson for the score.

Why not more often?

"Players play and coaches coach," guard Jeff Byers said, smiling. "But any O-lineman will tell you he'd like for his team to run it every down. Any of our backs can get the job done, and I haven't heard one complaint from any of them, even though I know all of them want more carries."

And there's one ball and only four quarters, and the USC receivers would like to fill their bowls, too.

Gable's carries have ranged from three to his season-high 14 on Saturday. At Arizona he got five calls and gained five yards.

Johnson got the ball 19 times at Arizona, but four times against Ohio State.

McKnight, who's been hurt off and on, ran five times at Arizona but 12 times against the Buckeyes.

They have combined for five 100-yard games individually.

"I knew when I was recruited that it would be like that," Gable said. "That's what makes our program different from others. We come here because we know we're going to win."

Besides, if Gable had been pounding the rock all night he might not have had the juice to leap over Stanford's Bo McNally (grandson of ex-Orioles lefty Dave) on a 19 yard run, that followed a 24 yard run, that preceded his touchdown that put USC up, 31-17.

"I'm looking forward to seeing that replay on Monday," he said.

The grand scheme?

"We messed up against Oregon State and we know it," said Gable, who isn't bothering to run the maze of permutations that would put USC in the BCS championship game. "But we know we can get to the Rose Bowl and that's what we want."

Oregon State gets there if it beats Arizona and Oregon, but the Trojans should be in the Fiesta, Sugar or Orange mix at the very least if it closes out Notre Dame and UCLA.

Technically they would fly to all those locales.

Realistically, they get there by hardnosing the highway.

Trojans use big second half to beat Stanford, 45-23

Gary Klein Los Angeles Times

Reporting from Palo Alto — C.J Gable returned a kickoff for a touchdown and rushed for 85 yards and a touchdown as sixth-ranked USC pulled away from Stanford in the second half for a 45-23 victory today at Stanford Stadium.

Gable's 93-yard kickoff return late in the second quarter tied the score, 17-17. His three-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter gave USC a valuable cushion against a Stanford team looking to repeat last year's upset at the Coliseum.

Before a crowd of 50,425, USC improved its record to 9-1 overall and 7-1 in the Pacific 10 Conference and kept alive its longshot hopes for a berth in the Bowl Championship Series title game.

Stanford suffered its first home loss of the season and fell to 5-6 and 4-4 in conference play.

Gable's electrifying return along the left sideline helped the Trojans go into the locker room at halftime tied, 17-17.

The Trojans gave Stanford an opportunity to get back into the game when fullback Stanley Havili lost a fumble midway through the third quarter at the Cardinal 15-yard line. But Stanford could not capitalize, and the teams exchanged possessions until USC got the ball back at the Cardinal 49 with 4:50 left in the quarter.

Joe McKnight's 23-yard run started a five-play drive that culminated with Stafon Johnson's seven-yard touchdown run off right tackle for a 24-17 lead.

The Trojans got the ball back early in the fourth quarter and Gable keyed a 70-yard scoring drive with gains of 24 and 19 yards before ending it with a three-yard run for a 31-17 lead.

Johnson's 44-yard gain on a third-down play from the Trojans' six-yard line set up Mark Sanchez's 50-yard touchdown pass to Havili for 38-17 lead with 7:35 remaining.

Sanchez completed 11 of 17 passes for 136 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions as the Trojans produced 418 yards. Gable gained his 85 yards rushing in 14 carries. Johnson rushed for 115 yards and two touchdowns, also in 14 carries. McKnight added 72 yards in eight carries as the Trojans ended up rushing for 282 yards in 43 attempts.

Stanford running back Toby Gerhart rushed for 101 yards and a touchdown in 23 carries for the Cardinal.

Quarterback Tavita Pritchard completed nine of 22 passes for 111 yards. Alex Loukas was five for five for 54 yards with a touchdown, which came on the game's final play.

Gable's score-tying kickoff return enabled the Trojans to put behind a mostly sputtering first-half performance by the offense and a spotty effort by the nation's top-ranked defense.

Stanford, playing with confidence perhaps gained from last year's upset victory over the Trojans at the Coliseum, used several big plays by Gerhart and Pritchard to score more points in the first half than the Trojans had allowed in the last five games.

The Cardinal outgained the Trojans, 149-6, in the first quarter and 210-90 in the half.

Gerhart, the junior from Norco, rushed for 85 yards and a touchdown in 15 carries. He scored on four-yard run and also set up the Cardinal's second touchdown with a 40-yard gain.

Pritchard, who engineered last year's 24-23 win over the Trojans, avoided turnovers and scrambled for 40 yards on one play to set up Gerhart's touchdown run.

Sanchez completed only six of nine passes for 51 yards and a touchdown. He was sacked twice.

Stanford wasted no time making a bid to become bowl eligible.

On the first possession, the Cardinal marched 80 yards in seven plays, Pritchard keying the drive with a 26-yard completion to Delano Howell and his 40-yard scramble to the Trojans' 11-yard line.

Two plays later, Gerhart took a pitch and ran around left end for a four-yard touchdown and 7-0 lead.

Ronald Johnson returned the ensuing kickoff 75 yards, but USC's offense could do nothing with the opportunity. Sanchez's first pass fell incomplete. Johnson gained two yards on a pass play and Stanford cornerback Kris Evans broke up a pass intended for Damian Williams, forcing the Trojans to settle for David Buehler's 37-yard field goal.

USC went three and out on its next possession, which ended with Stanford linebacker Max Bergen sacking Sanchez for a six-yard loss.

Gerhart helped the Cardinal convert two third downs on the ensuing possession and Aaron Zagory's 38-yard field goal put Stanford ahead, 10-3, with 1:20 left in the first quarter.

USC ended the period with another three and out by the offense, which included a third-down sack.

The Trojans' offense finally found a rhythm early in the second quarter, Sanchez completing a 15-yard pass to Williams and a 14-yard pass to Patrick Turner during an 80-play drive capped by Sanchez's tying five-yard touchdown pass to Williams.

The Cardinal answered with a 65-yard drive, getting an assist from a personal-foul penalty against Trojans defensive tackle Fili Moala. Gerhart's 40-yard run to the USC one-yard line set up Anthony Kimble's touchdown run for a 17-10 lead with 4:29 left in the second quarter.

Gable, however, caught the ensuing kickoff at the seven, slipped a tackle and broke to his left toward the Stanford sideline and outran Cardinal pursuers for a touchdown that tied the score.

USC avenges loss to Stanford, 45-23

PE.com

PALO ALTO - C. J. Gable made sure there wouldn't be a second Stanford stunner.

Gable returned a kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown and ran for another score to help sixth-ranked USC overcome an early deficit and avenge last year's shocking loss to the Cardinal with a 45-23 victory Saturday.

Mark Sanchez added two touchdown passes and Stafon Johnson ran for two scores for the Trojans (9-1, 7-1 Pac-10), who had their season ruined a year ago when they lost as a 41-point home favorite, 24-23 to the Cardinal (5-6, 4-4).

The loss still stung 13 months later and there were plenty of reminders in the first sellout in three seasons at the remodeled Stanford Stadium. From the highlights of the game played on the video board during warmups, to the "Greatest Upset Ever" T-shirts worn by many fans in the crowd to the Stanford band spelling out the score of last year's game at halftime, the Cardinal did their best to extend the memory.

Their play on the field early in the game did even more to upset the Trojans. Stanford dominated the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball early before Gable's long kickoff return late in the second quarter tied the game at 17.

The Trojans controlled the game the rest of the way, giving up few more big runs to Norco's Toby Gerhart the rest of the way and getting a consistent running attack from Gable, Johnson and Joe McKnight.

There was a bit of gamesmanship in the closing seconds, as Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh sent on Aaron Zagory for a field goal in the closing seconds. USC coach Pete Carroll called a timeout to ice the kicker, so the Cardinal went for it and scored on an 18-yard pass from Alex Loukas to Austin Gunder.

The win helped USC keep pace with Oregon State (7-3, 6-1) in the Pac-10 race and stay in the hunt for a berth in the BCS title game. The Beavers own the tiebreaker in the conference based on a head-to-head win and the Trojans trail five teams in the BCS standings, meaning they still need some help to reach their goals this season.

Stanford has one more chance to achieve its goal of reaching a bowl game for the first time since 2001, needing a win in the Big Game next week at California to become eligible.

Until the second half, it seemed as if the Cardinal had a chance to do that this week. But the Trojans dominated the trenches and the game after halftime. USC ran for 243 yards in the second half, while holding Stanford to 46. The Trojans have outscored their opponents 171-19 in the second half this season.

Johnson finished with 115 yards rushing, scoring on the go-ahead 7-yard TD run late in the third quarter. Gable's 3-yard run early in the fourth extended the lead and the Trojans put the game away on Sanchez's 50-yard touchdown pass to fullback Stanley Havili. That gave coach Carroll the win in his 100th game at USC.

Sanchez, who watched as an injured John David Booty threw four second-half interceptions last year against the Cardinal, went 11-for-17 for 136 yards and the two scores.

Gerhart finished with 101 yards and a touchdown, giving him 1,033 for the season. He is the first Stanford back to top the 1,000 mark since Tommy Vardell ran for a school-record 1,084 yards in 1991.

Tavita Pritchard engineered the comeback to beat the Trojans last year in his first start. But he couldn't do the same this season, going 9 for 22 for 111 yards and an interception.

Stanford started out fast, getting a 16-yard pass from Pritchard to Delano Howell on the second play. Pritchard then ran 40 yards on a scramble for the longest run of the season against USC. Gerhart capped the 80-yard drive with a 4-yard run, completing the longest touchdown drive of the season against the Trojans.

USC didn't even manage to record a first down until early in the second quarter as Sanchez was sacked twice early. He hit Damian Williams on a 5-yard TD pass to tie the game midway through the second quarter, but Stanford answered with another long drive.

Gerhart broke tackles and stumbled his way for 40 yards down to the 1 to set up Anthony Kimble's 1-yard score, but the Trojans tied it at 17 on Gable's kickoff return. The Trojans had three kickoff returns of at least 50 yards, also getting two from Ronald Johnson.

Green to transfer from USC

FOX Sports on MSN

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Southern California redshirt freshman tailback Broderick Green said he is leaving the program to return to Little Rock, Ark. to be with his ailing grandmother.

The 6-foot-2, 235-pound Green did not play against California on Saturday and will officially transfer after the fall semester.

"Because of unforeseen family health issues with my maternal grandmother who raised me and my mother, I have asked the University of Southern California to grant me a scholarship release at the end of the semester," Green said in a statement posted on coach Pete Carroll's Web site. "Over the last few weeks, as I have tried to maintain the desire to be a part of the USC football family, a stronger desire to be closer to family in this time of need has emerged."

Green ran for three touchdowns and 168 yards this season, 121 against Washington State on Oct. 18. He was fifth on the depth chart for the tailback-heavy Trojans.

"Broderick's been a great kid in our program and we're going to miss him," Carroll said on his site. "We wish him the best and look forward to seeing him get settled in wherever he ends up in the future."

Carroll said playing time was also a factor for Green.

"I think the number of guys he's battling against was a concern," Carroll told the Los Angeles Times. "Somewhere in there, that was one of his concerns, but he has a lot of things that are weighing on him."

Trojans defense improving every week

CBSSports.com

LOS ANGELES -- Southern California can't score like Big 12 powerhouses Texas Tech, Texas and Oklahoma.

On defense, though, no team in the country measures up to the hard-hitting Trojans.

California came to the Los Angeles Coliseum ranked 21st in the country and averaging 36.4 points per game, but managed only a field goal Saturday night in a 17-3 loss to No. 6 USC, keeping the Trojans' national championship hopes alive.

"We have a swagger and a confidence. It's not cockiness, it's confidence," defensive end Clay Matthews said. "Our mind-set is to shut down the run and the pass and to shut out each team each game."

The Trojans came close to their fourth shutout in five games against the Golden Bears, who received a 35-yard field goal from Giorgio Tavecchio midway through the second quarter.

Cal wouldn't score again.

"We set boundaries and goals at the beginning of the season," said linebacker Rey Maualuga, who made seven tackles and assisted on three others. "We came together tonight. We have a veteran group of guys, and everybody knows their jobs. We don't try to be superstars, we play within our system."

Mark Sanchez passed for 238 yards and two touchdowns in USC's sixth consecutive victory. The Trojans (8-1, 6-1 Pac-10) have outscored the opposition 231-23 since losing 27-21 as 25-point favorites at Oregon State.

USC has allowed an NCAA-low 6.7 points per game, the Trojans' best defensive performance since 1952, when they gave up 4.3 points per game. They've given up just seven touchdowns -- four by Oregon State and three by their other eight opponents combined. And they also lead the country in total defense, allowing 206.4 yards per game.

"The defense was playing like crazy -- lights out again," USC coach Pete Carroll said. "The game was more in control than it looked because the score was so close. The guys just keep playing, quarters after quarters after quarters. They just don't give up anything."

The Trojans have gone more than 2½ games since giving up a touchdown -- Arizona scored one in the second quarter of a 17-10 loss to USC on Oct. 25. Cal (6-3, 4-2) had only 165 yards of total offense, the fourth consecutive opponent USC has held under 200.

"We have a high regard for Cal and to hold them the way we did tonight is a major accomplishment," Carroll said. "We have a good opportunity to finish this thing and are looking forward to the next challenge. We have a chance to be a really good team with this defense. They definitely give us a good chance to win out."

Even that might not be enough to get the Trojans into the Rose Bowl, much less the BCS title game.

Oregon State topped UCLA 34-6 on Saturday, leaving the 23rd-ranked Beavers (6-3, 5-1) in position to play in their first Rose Bowl in 44 years if they beat Cal, Arizona and Oregon to finish the regular season. USC, which finishes against Stanford, Notre Dame and UCLA, has won or shared the conference title and played in a BCS bowl in each of the past six years.

USC is 25-0 in November games since Carroll became coach in 2001, and has won 43 of its last 44 games at the Coliseum, where a crowd of 88,523 watched the latest triumph.

"We're playing really well right now," said linebacker Brian Cushing, who had six tackles and three assists. "We have a lot of seniors out there who know their roles. We are playing aggressive. We just know how to play."

Trailing 10-3, Cal moved into USC territory three times in the third quarter, but came up empty. The Bears wouldn't threaten again.

"Everyone understands what a special group they have on defense," Bears coach Jeff Tedford said. "You can't beat yourself in situations, have penalties, get a touchdown called back, especially when you play a defense like that."

Style sells, but USC might make case with D

John Walters nbcsports.msnbc.com

Speed-limit scoring is the new black in college football. 69. 66. 63.

As in, USC 69, Washington State 0. Or Oklahoma 66, Texas A&M 28. Or Texas Tech 63, Kansas 21. Or Florida 63, Kentucky 5.

Final scores and Helen Mirren: Two things that are at their most striking in their 60's.

Of course, style points, like chinos and plain white Ts, have never gone out of style in college football. Each week, a limited number of contestants vie for the role of America’s Next Top ... Ranked Team, and each week that team is almost always the one that excavates the most paydirt.

After all, 3rd-down stops rarely make the SportsCenter highlight reel.

Two teams will play in the BCS national championship game on Jan. 6, and there still exists a possibility that only two schools from power conferences, Alabama (SEC) and Texas Tech (Big 12) will be undefeated at that time. And nothing is more fashionable than a zed in the loss column.

However, that will likely not be the case. Most of us outside of Lubbock and Tuscaloosa believe that either the Red Raiders or Crimson Tide (or both) will lose once between now and Christmas. Should that happen, there will almost certainly be a few one-loss programs preening for a spot in the national championship. And if it comes down to a “walk-off”, well, nothing says sexy like a blowout win or four.

Except that this season is different. Only one school, USC, stands to gain much via style points this season and the Trojans of Pete Carroll have a curious quandary: Their most striking pose is a defensive stance.

"I don't care about style points," said USC coach Pete Carroll. "I never have in all of the years I've been here. It feels like a popularity contest at times. It's unfortunate that it is the way it is."

Pretty is as pretty does, and nothing is more comely in college football than scoring barrages. And so Oklahoma, mindful that it needs to remain photogenic following that 45-35 loss to Texas last month, has averaged 62 points per game in its last three contests. Florida, another one-loss team in search of a Miami booking, has been updating its portfolio by averaging 51 points per game in its last four victories -- against SEC foes with winning records, mind you. And Texas Tech, because well, they’re Texas Tech, launched a drive with five minutes to play and a 29-point lead on Saturday night in which five of the seven calls were pass plays.

But, now that Penn State has lost at Iowa, style points matter only to one team: USC. That's because there are six BCS conferences and three of them -- the ACC, Big East and now Big Ten -- have absolutely no shot this season of sending a representative to the national title game.

The Big Ten fell out of the frame whent the Nittany Lions lost 24-23 loss in Iowa City. And though they happen to be a one-loss team with a style-points win of their own (66-10 over Coastal Carolina in the season-opener), the voters are not about to allow a third consecutive Big Ten champ to serve as BCS roadkill in January.

Which leaves three conferences: The Big 12, SEC and Pac-10. One can haggle all they want over whether Texas Tech is better than Texas is better than Oklahoma who may be better than Texas Tech. It doesn’t matter. One of those three is going to win the Big 12 South -- the college football universe will be centered in Norman come Nov. 22 -- and most likely the Big 12 championship game after that. No other Big 12 school will be considered for the BCS title game.

Next up: The SEC. Undefeated and top-ranked Alabama (10-0) is already slated to face 8-1 Florida in that conference’s title game. The winner will be the second viable candidate for selection in the national championship game.

Thus, for the five schools currently ranked atop the two major polls and in the BCS standings (Alabama, Texas Tech, Texas, Oklahoma and Florida), style points are, well, pointless.

Then there’s USC. The Trojans are the Green party candidate, if you will. If the Big 12 and/or SEC produce a one-loss champion, USC has the right to start politicking. And if I were their campaign manager, I’d have them run on a national security platform.

Graham Harrell and Michael Crabtree are fun to watch. Tim Tebow is an extraordinary talent and a charismatic figure. But no unit in college football is more dominant than the Trojan defense. Each of the teams in the top five have allowed at least 30 points in one game this season and at least 21 in another. USC allowed 27 points at Oregon State and a grand total of 33 points in their eight other contests -- all nine games of which were played against BCS conference foes.

The Trojans have allowed just one touchdown in the past five games. One! And that happened as a result of quarterback Mark Sanchez fumbling on his own 15 yard line. USC, whose 11 defensive starters will likely all wind up on NFL rosters (half of them will be first-round picks), leads the nation in scoring defense, total defense and pass defense. And the Trojans are third in the nation in rushing defense, behind TCU and Nevada.

USC’s biggest problem may be our lack of imagination. It’s easy to visualize 66 points being more of a rout than 44 points. But how does one get less than zero (unless he’s Bret Easton Ellis)?

And so that is why I believe that anyone with a weak stomach or even an iota of fondness for Notre Dame best not tune in to USC’s game against the Irish on Nov. 29. By that time, this national championship picture will have more clarity. By then, it will be common knowledge that unless Alabama and Texas Tech are both undefeated (Utah, Boise State: We love you, but it’s not happening), then there will be two spots for three teams: The Big 12 champ, the SEC champ and USC (which may not even be the Pac-10 champ, but that won’t matter).

There will be a mandate for USC, which has already racked up three shutouts and a pair of only-a-field-goal-allowed wins, to produce a high-profile win to catapult themselves ahead of one of the other two candidates. And while there are no ranked foes left on USC’s calendar, who’s more high-profile than Notre Dame?

Carson Palmer cemented his Heisman Trophy with a season-ending 31-point demolition of the Irish in the Coliseum in 2002. Tyrone Willingham sealed his fate with a season-ending 31-point loss to the Trojans in the Coliseum two years later. Come Nov. 29, the stakes for both USC and Notre Dame may both be extreme, albeit at opposite poles.

Style points? It could get ugly.