After an unexpected and unwanted week off, the USC football team is back in action Sunday afternoon vs. Washington State (4:30 p.m. PT on FS1), looking to move one step closer to the Pac-12 championship game.
The Trojans (3-0) control their path to the conference title game as long as they keep winning and keep pace with unbeaten Colorado.
One step at a time, though. Washington State (1-1) has only been able to get two games played so far this season, so there is a small sample size from which to judge, but new coach Nick Rolovich has kept the Cougars proficient on the offensive side where they're averaging 33.5 points and 438.5 yards per game behind freshman quarterback Jayden de Laura and a steady rushing attack.
The problem for the Cougars -- and perhaps a prime opportunity for USC -- is that they're giving up 516 yards a game, which is fourth-worst in the FBS. Again, small sample size, but lots of big plays -- WSU is giving up 320.5 passing yards and 35.5 points per game.
For a USC offense that has yet to look like its peak version from last year, it's easy to connect the dots there and think this could be a breakout week for the Trojans.
If ...
The caveat here is what players are active and missing after the team's COVID setbacks from last week. Coach Clay Helton remained coy through the week as to how many of the 11 isolation/quarantined players would be able to return to action, including giving no hints as to how many of USC's starting offensive linemen -- reported by Bay Area News Group's Jon Wilner to be the primary affected group -- would be available.
That will all get answered in pregame Sunday as the Trojans take the field for warmups.
In the meantime, the TrojanSports.com staff weighs in with its perspective and predictions for the game.
Where do you land between curious and concerned as to USC's offensive line situation this week?
Ryan Young: "It has to be a concern -- a major concern. While we don't know exactly how many of the 11 players impacted were offensive linemen, or how many of that 11 will be active Sunday, we can piece together some of the math. Clay Helton said USC got its first player back on Wednesday with more expected to follow. We know the L.A. County guidelines require a 10-day isolation for a positive test and a 14-day quarantine for those flagged through the contact tracing protocol. We also know, per Helton, that the clock was able to start on some of that retroactive to the game at Utah. The first positive COVID-19 result came Monday, Nov. 23, with an announcement that Wednesday that a second player had tested positive and five others quarantined due to contact tracing. That Thursday, a third player showed symptoms and ultimately tested positive, two other players were quarantined and a fourth player tested positive Friday. Depending on how the math works -- and all we can do is take our best shot at it here -- it's possible all four of the positives (or at least three) could be cleared by kickoff, and the initial five contact tracers (if their clocks indeed started the night of the Utah game) could also return. So it could be as few as two players still inactive -- again, this is guesswork and rough math. But it depends who those two (or whatever the number) are, as USC is especially vulnerable at offensive tackle. Let's assume that the Trojans are close to full strength, there is still the issue of loss of practice time for a unit that needs to be in sync on the field. So even in the best-case scenario, I think there is ample reason for concern here."
Tajwar Khandaker: "A little curious and a lot more concerned. This is an offensive line unit that’s clearly taken a step back from last year, and whatever improvement through experience and continuity might have been hoped for otherwise is certainly stunted by the COVID situation. Many of these players will be coming off of nearly two weeks without practicing, and that lack of preparation and physical readiness is bound to manifest on the field. The possible lingering physical symptoms of infection are another very real possibility worth monitoring. For a position group that’s already been shaky, and where getting sustained reps is so key to cohesive success, this is reason to worry."
