The schedule ramps up in a hurry for No. 10-ranked USC as it goes from the non-conference tune-up against Rice to a Pac-12 road trip to Stanford this weekend.

The Trojans moved into the top 10 of the AP poll after a 66-14 romp in their opener, but the true gauge for this team comes Saturday.

The same goes for Stanford, which was picked eighth in the Pac-12's preseason poll and opened the season with a 41-10 win over Colgate.

Quarterback Tanner McKee was an efficient 22-of-27 passing for 308 yards, 2 touchdowns and an interception, spreading the ball around evenly while Michael Wilson had 5 catches for 82 yards and 2 touchdowns and John Humphreys had 4 catches for 88 yards to lead the way.

Running back E.J. Smith -- son of Pro Football Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith -- carried the ball 11 times for 118 yards and 2 touchdowns and also caught 5 passes for 37 yards.

Let's take a closer look at the Cardinal ...

After a decade of success near the top of the Pac-12, Stanford has fallen upon tough times of late, failing to win more than 4 games in any of the past three seasons (including a 4-2 mark in the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign).

Once known for its dominance in the trenches, the quality of Stanford’s line play has diminished in recent years, making it difficult for the team to stay competitive. Last season was particularly sour for the Cardinal as it finished 3-9, losing the final seven contests of the year consecutively after a remarkable upset of No. 3 Oregon.

Nonetheless, the Cardinal still has plenty of talent on the roster, and no team with David Shaw as head coach should ever be counted out.

Though this team has yet to prove it can be truly competitive, it should have enough going for it to present a test for the Trojans as usual. USC's 42-28 loss to Stanford last season was the straw that broke the camel’s back for Clay Helton’s tenure as head coach -- we’ll see what Lincoln Riley’s squad makes of it in their first meeting.

2021 record: 3-9

Coach: David Shaw (12th season, 94-45

2021 statistical rankings

Scoring offense: 20.4 PPG (113th)

Total offense: 302.8 YPG (122nd)

Scoring defense: 32.4 PPG (106th)

Total defense: 451.2 YPG (113th)

What the Cardinal do well:

Despite the lapses across the roster, Stanford’s secondary remains an area of strength. With a number of experienced playmakers in the defensive backfield, the Cardinal play good coverage down the field and limit explosive plays through the air. Last season, the team fared quite well against the pass, allowing an average of only 215.6 passing yards per game. That’s particularly impressive when you consider Stanford’s woeful inability to pressure opposing quarterbacks last year.

Returning cornerback Kyu Blu Kelly is a legitimate NFL prospect, and safety Kendall Williamson proved to be one of the team's best tacklers last season, tying for second on the team with 67 to go with his 3.5 TFLs, 6 pass deflections and 1 forced fumble. The group also adds Oklahoma transfer safety Patrick Fields, who’s been an All-Big-12 honorable mention twice and had the best season of his career in 2021. They got off to a good start in week one against Colgate, holding the opposing offense to just 59 passing yards and an interception on 20 attempts.

On offense, the Cardinal struggled across the board last year, but quarterback Tanner McKee kept the passing game moving. Behind a sieve of an offensive line, he finished the year with 2,237 yards and 15 touchdowns, completing 65.4% of his passes and throwing 7 interceptions. With better play from his protection, McKee can place serious pressure on the defense with his arm. He opened the year well, throwing for 308 yards and 2 touchdowns while completing 81.4% of his passes, though he did add an interception. With an offensive line that does seem to have improved, Stanford’s passing attack is worth being wary of.