USC begins preparation for top-20 battle
The Trojans stayed at the top of the Pac-12 South standings behind redshirt junior quarterback Cody Kessler’s record-breaking seven-touchdown pass performance at the Coliseum on Saturday.
Dixon it up · Freshman tight end Bryce Dixon had a breakout game against Colorado on Saturday, catching two touchdown passes. Dixon previously had one score this year, in the season’s first game against Fresno State. – Mariya Dondonyan | Daily Trojan
With Kessler setting a new school record for passing touchdowns in a single game, breaking the previous mark of six set four times by Matt Barkley, USC (5-2, 4-1 Pac-12) took care of business against unranked Colorado (2-5, 0-4) with a 56-28 win. The victory moved USC up two spots to No. 20 on this week’s AP Poll.
Though the Trojans were 20-point favorites against the Buffaloes, head coach Steve Sarkisian was pleased with his team’s performance.
“We were good in the second half,” Sarkisian said. “But I think we can do better.”
Staying Healthy
Another benefit of the big win was that Sarkisian was able to give some of the veteran players on the team some rest in the second half, leaving the younger players more playing time to develop their skills against a Pac-12 opponent.
Junior defensive end Leonard Williams, who has been the subject of injury troubles that resulted in him missing the majority of practice last week, took 54 reps in Saturday’s game, compared to the 94 he played the week before against Arizona.
Sarkisian was happy that freshman wide receiver JuJu Smith got some special teams experience, taking the second-most snaps on the team in that unit. Smith caught four passes for 104 total yards and a touchdown against the Buffs.
“JuJu [Smith] brings a great attitude and mentality every day to practice,” Sarkisian said. “It showed on Saturday.”
As for injuries, Sarkisian said that senior safety Gerald Bowman is healthy to play against Utah, and that freshman cornerback/wide receiver Adoree’ Jackson will manage the hip flexor injury that he suffered against Arizona throughout the week.
LenDale White Scuffle
Following Saturday’s game, news surfaced that Athletic Director Pat Haden allegedly had former USC running back LenDale White escorted out of the Coliseum.
After the incident, 29-year-old White took action on Twitter, where he called Haden a coward, in addition to asking for his job.
Sarkisian said that he had spoken to Haden but not White about the incident, and Haden gave him an abbreviated account of what happened.
“They had a discussion on the field and then went their separate ways,” Sarkisian said.
Preparing for Utah
The Trojans will now spend the week preparing for No. 19 Utah in a game with important implications for the Pac-12 South standings and the national rankings.
The Utes (5-1, 2-1) come into the game with some momentum. Utah defeated Oregon State in Corvallis, Oregon on Thursday night by a score of 29-23.
In addition to having the extra time for rest and preparation, Utah will host the Trojans in a late-night, potentially cold-weather game, conditions that USC players are not accustomed to.
Utah does have a controversy at the quarterback position looming, however, as head coach Kyle Whittingham has gone back and forth between starter Travis Wilson and backup Kendal Thompson in the past three games.
It remains unclear which one of them will be tapped to take the reins of the offense against the Trojans on Saturday night.
USC’s tilt with the Utes will kick off at 7 p.m. and will be televised on Fox Sports 1.