Scouting the Trojans

First year freshman Matt Barkley completed 76% of his passes for 233 yards in his first collegiate game last week. He was the first USC true freshman to start an opener as QB. In high school Barkley was a prep All-American and in 2007, as a junior, he was national prep player of the year. The main tailbacks are Joe McKnight who had 145 yards and two touchdowns last week and Staton Johnson, who had two touchdowns last week. McKnight is the main go-to running back with Staton as the red-zone running back. There are three additional capable running backs available to play. Also on offense are wide receiver Damian Williams, fullback Stanley Havili, and tight end Anthony McCoy. Williams transferred from Arkansas, along with QB Mitch Mustain who is available to backup Barkley. The O-line returns all the starters, along with a couple reserves. The main offensive linemen are guard Jeff Byers and center Kristofer O'Dowd. Byers is a two year starter, who is in his sixth year with NCAA approval due to injuries. O'Dowd made an impact immediately as a freshman, selected Pac-10 first team in 2007. He missed spring practice this year after having shoulder surgery.

The defense lost eight starters, all to the NFL. The leader on defense is Taylor Mays at safety. The other returning starters are safety-cornerback Josh Pinkard and tackle Christian Tupou. Leading the linebackers is Chris Galippo. Also at linebacker is Shane Horton, a transfer from UNLV. The D-line has completely been made-over. The linebackers are all new starters. The secondary is missing two starters, but safety Taylor Mays is a two time All-American.