Another week, another potential rivalry-ending game.
This time around, the No. 24 USC Trojans (6-2, 4-1 Pac-12) prepare to take on the Cal Golden Bears (3-4, 1-3) for the 109th and potentially last time as both teams prepare to join new conferences next season.
While Cal’s four losses might suggest the Golden Bears should be an easy win for the Trojans, USC is on a two-game losing streak and has looked vulnerable to other inferior opponents at points this season. This small skid is only the second multi-game losing streak in the regular season in Lincoln Riley’s seven-year coaching career.
Both of USC’s losses this season have come against ranked teams, but Cal boasts a potent running attack that ranks 19th in the FBS in rushing yards per game. Comparatively, the Trojan defense has yet to play a team that ranks in the top 30 in that stat, all while the unit ranks 99th in rushing yards allowed per game.
Cal will likely feed the ball to sophomore running back Jaydn Ott, who has 615 rushing yards on the year. USC definitely remembers Ott, as the sophomore ran for 40 yards on the first drive in last year’s matchup between the two teams when he was only a freshman. In that game, the Trojans jumped out to a 27-7 lead in the third quarter, but allowed the Golden Bears to crawl back into the game with USC only winning 41-35.
The defense will have to deal with Ott without the help of sophomore defensive lineman Bear Alexander in the first half. Alexander will have to sit the opening two quarters after committing a targeting penalty in the closing minutes of USC’s loss to Utah.
What the Trojans do have in their favor is that the Golden Bears have more losses than wins for a reason. This is partly because Cal’s defense has been worse than USC’s so far this season, allowing an average of 31.1 points per game. And the Golden Bears will have to deal with junior quarterback Caleb Williams, who has thrown for 2,277 yards and 23 touchdowns.
While the USC offense has gotten out to slow starts in each of the last two games — scoring only a combined 20 points through the first halves — the Williams-led unit is still a strength for the Trojans, and it should be the same way this Saturday. There is no better time for a ‘get-right’ game than right now for USC, whose final three games after Cal are against teams currently ranked in the AP Top 25.
The offense has scored over 30 points in all but one game this season, but to achieve that feat again, the unit has to play more than just the one-dimensional strategy of hero ball through Williams. Despite averaging 12.3 yards per carry, redshirt junior running back MarShawn Lloyd only ran the ball 12 times against Utah. Lloyd did fumble during the third quarter of a one-score game, affecting his touches the rest of the contest, but the running back is too electric to only average 10.3 carries per game.
The Trojans are likely out of the College Football Playoff conversation after already suffering their second loss, but they are still in perfect position to play spoiler the rest of the season against the likes of No. 5 Washington and No. 8 Oregon. However, to do so, USC needs to get back on track, and a dominant win over Cal would do just that.
Kickoff between the Trojans and Golden Bears is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Memorial Stadium in what could be the last game in a series that started over 100 years ago. The game will be broadcast on Pac-12 Network.