SC ANALYSIS: USC LOSS A MIXED BAG SOME GOOD, SOME BAD IN SETBACK.Byline: Scott Wolf Scott Richard Wolf (born June 4, 1968) is an American actor. Born in Boston, Massachusetts to Steven Wolf and Susan Enowitch, Wolf was raised in West Orange, New Jersey. He graduated in 1986 from West Orange High School. Staff Writer A narrow loss on the road to a team ranked in the top 15 tends to be a mixed blessing mixed blessing Noun an event or situation with both advantages and disadvantages mixed blessing n it's a mixed blessing → tiene su lado bueno y su lado malo , and that's exactly how USC An abbreviation for U.S. Code. viewed its 27-24 loss to Washington. The Trojans (1-4, 0-3), mired mire n. 1. An area of wet, soggy, muddy ground; a bog. 2. Deep slimy soil or mud. 3. A disadvantageous or difficult condition or situation: the mire of poverty. v. in a four-game losing streak, were encouraged they nearly beat the Huskies, who needed a field goal as time expired to seal the victory. ``We came out and were a different team,'' quarterback Carson Palmer Carson Palmer (born December 27, 1979 in Fresno, California), is an American football quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League. He attended the University of Southern California, where he won the Heisman Trophy Award in 2002 in his senior season. said. ``We played our best since the San Jose San Jose, city, United States San Jose (sănəzā`, săn hōzā`), city (1990 pop. 782,248), seat of Santa Clara co., W central Calif.; founded 1777, inc. 1850. State game.'' But USC was also frustrated that it can't seem to win close games, with two of its past three losses occurring in the final 12 seconds. ``We just had a lot of mistakes. We gave up too many rushing yards and too many passing yards,'' USC strong safety Troy Polamalu Troy Aumua Polamalu (born Troy Benjamin Aumua on April 19, 1981 in Garden Grove, California) is an American football player who plays strong safety for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the NFL. He is of Samoan descent. said. With those opposing feelings in mind, here's some of the good and bad things that emerged from playing Washington. The good: USC almost upset the No. 11 team in the nation. The bad: USC lost to a team forced to use its No. 2 quarterback for 2 1/2 quarters. Good: The Trojans ran the ball effectively (41 carries). Bad: The Trojans barely passed the ball (14 attempts). Good: USC allowed only two sacks. Bad: USC sacked Washington quarterbacks only once. Good: The defense scored seven points on Polamalu's interception for a touchdown. Bad: The offense handed Washington seven points when center Norm Katnik Norm Katnik (born July 2, 1981 in Tucson, Arizona) is a National Football League center for the Minnesota Vikings practice squad. Professional Career He previously played for the San Francisco 49ers. and Palmer mishandled the snap at Verb 1. snap at - bite off with a quick bite; "The dog snapped off a piece of cloth from the intruder's pants" bite off bite, seize with teeth - to grip, cut off, or tear with or as if with the teeth or jaws; "Gunny invariably tried to bite her" USC's 20-yard line and the Huskies scored a few plays later. Good: USC rushed for 132 yards. Bad: USC allowed 441 yards. Good: Freshman quarterback Matt Cassel Matt Cassel [CASS-ul] (born May 17, 1982 in Northridge, California) is an American football quarterback for the New England Patriots of the NFL. Youth and high school career got his first action. Bad: Cassel got his first action at wide receiver. Good: Wide receiver Kareem Kelly Kareem Kelly (born April 1, 1981 in Los Angeles, California) is a Canadian Football League wide receiver. He attended the University of Southern California where he played football and track and majored in sociology. His sports hero is Muhammad Ali. had 98 yards receiving. Bad: Kelly had only three receptions. Good: USC kicker David Davis David Davis, the name of several people, may refer to:
Bad: Punter Mike MacGillivray averaged only 36 yards per kick and kept the Trojans from getting good field position in the second half. Good: Tight end Alex Holmes caught two passes, including one for 19 yards. Bad: No passes were thrown at tight end Kori Dickerson. Good: USC's offense received a confidence boost. Bad: USC's defense couldn't stop the Huskies in the fourth quarter. Bad: Washington converted eight of 16 third downs. Worse: USC converted three of 12 third downs. --Notes: USC linebacker Chris Prosser had a slight concussion and is considered probable against Arizona State. Defensive tackle Bernard Riley will have a magnetic-resonance imaging test today to determine the extent of his knee injury. Defensive linemen Ryan Nielsen (shoulder) and Bobby DeMars (pinched nerve) will try to practice late in the week but are considered doubtful. ... USC coach Pete Carroll on how he deals with fan criticism over the Trojans' 1-4 start: ``I don't deal with it. There's nothing I can do about that other than control the way we play. I join in their frustration.'' REPORT CARD USC vs. Washington GAME: 5 RECORD: 1-4, 0-3 NEXT: Arizona St. THIS WEEK'S GPA GPA abbr. grade point average Noun 1. GPA - a measure of a student's academic achievement at a college or university; calculated by dividing the total number of grade points received by the total number attempted : 2.29 CUMULATIVE GPA 2.16 QUARTERBACKS Carson Palmer threw only 14 times, as the Trojans forgot to establish the pass. His 58-yard touchdown pass to Kareem Kelly was his biggest clutch play of the year. B- RUNNING BACKS Pete Carroll's pep talk with Sultan McCullough worked wonders, but it would have been nicer if six of those 32 carries were pass plays. The improvement means a one-week respite from a reference to Long Beach Poly back Hershel Dennis. B RECEIVERS Other than Kareem Kelly's touchdown pass, they were missing in action, though not really by their own doing. Where was Kori Dickerson? B- OFFENSIVE LINE Who thought the Trojans would be more physical than Washington at the line of scrimmage line of scrimmage n. pl. lines of scrimmage Football Either of two imaginary lines extending across the field parallel to the goal line at the ends of the ball as it rests prior to being snapped and at which each team lines up for , at least in the first half? By any measure, it was the top performance of the year. B DEFENSIVE LINE At times, the Trojans had three freshmen playing - Shaun Cody, Kenechi Udeze and Mike Patterson - and it actually was their best rotation. Cody had five tackles, the most of any defensive lineman. C+ LINEBACKERS Whether it was a touchdown pass in the first quarter or an 18-yard completion on the game-winning drive, Washington's Todd Elstrom gave the linebackers fits. Matt Grootegoed and Chris Prosser were missed. C- DEFENSIVE BACKS Troy Polamalu had a team-high 13 tackles and an interception, but the rest of the secondary gave up too many plays, especially to Washington freshman wide receiver Reggie Williams (101 yards). C SPECIAL TEAMS Punter Mike MacGillivray's mis-hits gave Washington good field position the entire second half. And David Newbury's out-oounds kickoff at the end of the game was costly. D+ COACHING Some questionable decisions arose for the first time this season. The Trojans were too conservative in the second half, and benching center Lenny Vandermade backfired when a fumbled snap led to a touchdown. C- CAPTION(S): photo, box Photo: USC receiver Kareem Kelly had 98 yards receiving but only three receptions Saturday. Cheryl Hatch/Associated Press Box: REPORT CARD (see text) |
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