Braveheart wrote:Was at work, so i didn't get a chance to watch the game? I'm assuming the O-line looked like gutter trash (based on the box score). I have a question for those who watched. Did Stanford really look good and beat USC, did USC self implode, or a mixture of both?
Stanford looked better than expected. USC O-Line had a terrible game, there were people getting into the backfield nearly every play. Barkley had a tough time dealing with the pressure and couldn't get comfortable which is understandable. USC run game couldn't get going either due to the O-line. Stanford D looked great though and were definitely well prepared and flying around out there. Stanford QB looked pretty terrible in the first half but played better in the 2nd half.
Stanford was really running consistently like they always do getting those 3-4 yard gains and staying out of long yardage situations. I would say the USC D played a pretty solid game overall but they just couldn't overcome the shortcomings of the O-Line.
Braveheart wrote:Was at work, so i didn't get a chance to watch the game? I'm assuming the O-line looked like gutter trash (based on the box score). I have a question for those who watched. Did Stanford really look good and beat USC, did USC self implode, or a mixture of both?
Stanford looked better than expected. USC O-Line had a terrible game, there were people getting into the backfield nearly every play. Barkley had a tough time dealing with the pressure and couldn't get comfortable which is understandable. USC run game couldn't get going either due to the O-line. Stanford D looked great though and were definitely well prepared and flying around out there. Stanford QB looked pretty terrible in the first half but played better in the 2nd half.
Stanford was really running consistently like they always do getting those 3-4 yard gains and staying out of long yardage situations. I would say the USC D played a pretty solid game overall but they just couldn't overcome the shortcomings of the O-Line.
Braveheart wrote:Was at work, so i didn't get a chance to watch the game? I'm assuming the O-line looked like gutter trash (based on the box score). I have a question for those who watched. Did Stanford really look good and beat USC, did USC self implode, or a mixture of both?
Stanford looked better than I expected. Solid QB play. Physical on both sides of the ball. Taylor is very good. Defense stingy.
USC looked like a poorly coached team with a lot of talented players. They expected to out-talent everyone all season by setting up fade routes to a couple blue chip wide-outs. When they had unexpected issues on the o-line they had no plan B. I think USC could have won that game with the players they have if they had coaches that knew how to adjust on the fly to new circumstances.
Here's an idea for Kiffin: bootlegs and slants. They kept Barkley in the pocket on slow-developing plays all night, despite obvious and repeated pressure up the middle.
Don't know if had been said yet but the best thing this game did was give Oregon a good template on how to rattle Barkley! He is not the unflappable machine that he has been made out to be. On the other hand if he has a little time. He is almost impossible to stop. Especially with those two receivers.
brich75 wrote:Don't know if had been said yet but the best thing this game did was give Oregon a good template on how to rattle Barkley! He is not the unflappable machine that he has been made out to be. On the other hand if he has a little time. He is almost impossible to stop. Especially with those two receivers.
Getting pressure on a green center is fine and all but if they have Holmes back, I think getting pressure will be much tougher.
UO runs a 3-4, so they should be able to probably employ similar blitzes. Getting pressure on the QB to limit an offense is no unearthed secret though. That's the goal of every D against any type of offensive scheme.
I've been out of town for 4 days, so I'm catching up on forum posts, but...
holy crap, this was an amazing game. Taylor was a monster on the ground, and the Stanford defense played exceptional. USC played well defensively, but no running game was their downfall.
