USC kicks off season at home against Arkansas State

After an offseason full of storylines, redshirt senior quarterback Cody Kessler and company are looking to take control of the Pac-12 and play for a national title. The road to a championship starts on Saturday, when the No. 8 Trojans open their season against Arkansas State in the Coliseum.

The Red Wolves finished 7-6 last season, though they are usually a conference title contender in the Sun Belt. It marked the first time the team had won fewer than eight games in a season since 2010.

The Trojans finished 9-4 last season, a disappointing record for a school with the football prowess of USC. Though the Trojans showed a lot of promise, they also displayed an inability to finish games, losing to unranked Boston College early in the season.

Though USC is favored to cruise to victory given the strength of the Pac-12 versus that of the Sun Belt, these two teams share a lot of things in common.

This is the first season since 2010 that Arkansas State has been able to retain a head coach for two consecutive years. Blake Anderson will return for his second season after former head coaches Hugh Freeze, Gus Malzahn and Bryan Harsin departed for Ole Miss, Auburn and Boise State, respectively.

Like Anderson, Trojans head coach Steve Sarkisian is returning for his second season at Troy after finishing 9-4 last season. Both head coaches have a lot to prove in their second seasons with less than favorable records to improve on.

Another similarity the teams share is the leadership and experience at the quarterback position. USC will be led by a quarterback in Kessler who, thanks to his impressive numbers last season, is already receiving Heisman buzz.

Kessler completed just shy of 70 percent of his passes last season for 3,826 yards. He threw for 39 touchdown passes compared to just five interceptions.

The Red Wolves will be led by second-year starter, senior Fredi Knighten. Like Kessler, Knighten had a single-digit pick count, throwing 24 touchdown passes to seven interceptions on 3,200 total yards in 2014. Knighten also had 800 rushing yards and an additional 11 rushing touchdowns last season. Though there is no Heisman buzz surrounding Knighten, he is a preseason All-Sun Belt Conference first-team selection.

Knighten is the type of versatile quarterback that the Trojans struggled to subdue last season.

Much like Arizona quarterback Anu Solomon and former UCLA quarterback Brett Hundley, Knighten can do as much damage on the run as he can with his arm.

He will lead an up-tempo Red Wolves attack that averaged 476.5 yards in total offense last season. Senior running back Michael Gordon rushed for 1,100 yards and 13 touchdowns last year as well and will be joined by a trio of dynamic wide receivers in Tres Houston, Dijon Paschal and JD McKissic.

“[They have a ] very explosive offense, [play] up tempo, and really go after you,” Sarkisian said.

The Trojan defense especially struggled in the fourth quarter last season, but that can likely be attributed to the lack of depth caused by a reduced number of scholarships. Though the Trojans will be without Leonard Williams, linebacker Su’a Cravens and cornerback Adoree’ Jackson headline a strong defense.

If Knighten and his offense play to their ability, however, the Trojans could have their hands full with such a versatile quarterback.

The Red Wolves will need to rely on their offensive production, as the defense allowed 27.8 points per game last season and will likewise have their hands full with Kessler and an experienced USC offense.

Sarkisian isn’t underestimating the Red Wolves’ defense one bit, though.

“I’ve been extremely impressed with how hard they play defensively and how hard they run to the football,” Sarkisian said. “This is a team that is a very, very scary one.”

Kessler will be joined by sophomore wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, who had a breakout year as a true freshman in 2014.

“Saturday’s going to be a blast,” Kessler said. “I’m already pumped.”

Smith-Schuster will become the number one target at wide receiver since the former number one Nelson Agholor was drafted by the Eagles in the 2015 NFL Draft. Running backs Tre Madden and Justin Davis also add a lot of talent to Kessler’s arsenal.

Newly appointed play-caller and offensive coordinator Clay Helton should have no problem adjusting to his new role as the Trojans return 16 starters from last season.

“Clay Helton has such a good handle of our offense right now,” Sarkisian said.

The Trojans are heavily favored to win Saturday’s matchup but can’t sleep on a mobile quarterback like Knighten.

The Trojans are favored to finish first in the Pac-12 while the Red Wolves are picked to finish third in the Sun Belt conference.

As the team heads into its season debut, Kessler commended the team’s preparation, especially the younger players, over the course of fall camp and practice this past week.

“The maturity of this team and these freshman is unbelievable,” Kessler said. “We play at a high level and guys my age hold them to those standards, but they’ve had a great willingness to learn from the older guys.”

Kessler and the Trojans will try and start the season on the right foot come their Saturday night showdown with the Red Wolves.

First kickoff is set for 8 p.m.