Eugene, Ore. – OK, so maybe top-ranked Southern California has a few flaws after all. And yes, when Matt Leinart goes surfing, he does need a surfboard. Reggie Bush? Sure, he could fake out a cheetah, but those hands won’t help him walk on water, either. Not always, anyway.
For the first half Saturday, opponents trying to stop what could become college football’s greatest dynasty found a glimmer of hope. Then reality hit. USC overcame its usual slow conference start and still managed to hammer the nation’s 24th-ranked team in Oregon, 45-13, in front of the largest crowd in the history of the state.
So much for weaknesses. The Trojans, seeking an unprecedented third straight national championship, are for real, folks, and better than ever. Take your best shot, Cal and Arizona State and Notre Dame. And it better be a good one.
Oregon connected with a solid roundhouse right and led 13-0 midway through the second quarter. A delirious record crowd of 59,129 nearly blew the needles off the surrounding Douglas firs. Then all USC did was score 45 straight points for its Pacific 10-record 25th straight win.
“This was really a good game for our football team to deal with,” USC coach Pete Carroll said. “Oregon came out flying. They had the crowd. They had all the momentum. We kept getting in our own way. But it was a great challenge for us to hang on to our focus and to stay with it.”
After averaging 67 points and 627 yards entering Saturday, USC (3-0) faced setbacks for the first time. For nearly one half, USC looked ordinary:
Trojan bystander William Buchanon got in the way of an Oregon punt, and the Ducks (3-1) recovered for a 37-yard Paul Martinez field goal.
Super soph Dwayne Jarrett dropped a slightly off-line Leinart TD pass and cornerback Aaron Gipson intercepted, setting up Kellen Clemens’ 36-yard TD pass to Demetrius Williams for a 10-0 lead.
A botched pass route blew USC’s attempt at fourth-and-10, which led to a missed Oregon field goal, but Bush later dropped a sure first-down pass that led to a 48-yard Martinez field goal to make it 13-0.
Leinart was only 7-of-16 for 82 yards, and Oregon’s maligned defense found confidence.
“My hands were dry,” Leinart said. “It wasn’t a big deal, obviously. A few of those throws kind of slipped out of my hand. I didn’t get a feel of the ball.”
USC scored on its next two possessions to close to 13-10 at the half, and everyone knew what was coming next.
“We knew it was us that was holding us back,” said tailback LenDale White, the Chatfield High grad who had 111 yards and two touchdowns and wasn’t even the Trojans’ leading rusher – Bush had 122.
“We weren’t focused. We were getting a lot of penalties. We went in at halftime and told each other, ‘It’s us.”‘
In the second half, USC picked up where it left off bludgeoning Arkansas, 70-17. Against an Oregon defense that rarely blitzed, Leinart was 11-of-14 for 170 yards and two TDs to Jarrett. USC scored touchdowns on five straight possessions in rolling up 593 yards.
A USC defense deemed young, thin and vulnerable, with injuries to starting linebacker Dallas Sartz and cornerback Terry Thomas, held a potent Oregon offense to 65 rushing yards. While penalties wiped out two Ducks TDs, one with Oregon leading 13-0, it was a mere footnote on another night when the Trojan horse rolled on.
“Reggie wasn’t the big star in the game,” Carroll said. “Matt wasn’t the big star in the game. The defense just played their tails off. The offense just kicked butt in the second half, and special teams were there. I look at this as one of the better team wins we’ve had in a long time.”
Arizona State? You’re next. Get the roundhouse ready.
John Henderson can be reached at 303-820-1299 or jhenderson@denverpost.com.
