USC’s run game hit rock bottom two weeks ago in Texas. Or so you would hope that’s what that was.
The final line was 16 carries for a jarring minus-5 rushing yards. Excluding sacks, the Trojans still gained only 21 yards on 13 attempts, and it’s probably worth debating which stat is most embarrassing.
It’s doubtful that we see those numbers ever again -- that output is a first this century for USC football -- but it speaks to how low the floor is with this rushing attack.
This Saturday at Arizona, which boasts the nation’s 102nd-ranked run defense, we might see the Trojans’ ceiling. At the very least, we’ll learn whether they had a moment of clarity in last week’s victory versus Washington State and are willing to win by pounding the rock.
In the past five meetings with Arizona -- all USC victories -- the Trojans have averaged 274 rushing yards and rushed for no less than 229 yards each time. Through four games this season, USC is averaging 110 rushing yards and has surpassed the targeted 200 just once.
I made it a point this week to try and understand what exactly is going on.
“When we’re on the right people and communicating up front and getting on the right guys we’ve been doing pretty good all season,” offensive coordinator Tee Martin said. “But when that doesn’t happen, that’s not the case.”
