Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/753492
www.BLUEANDGOLD.com NOV. 28, 2016 37 BY BRYAN DRISKELL USC RUNNING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME RUN DEFENSE It did not start off well, but the USC ground at- tack has been potent this season, with the Trojans ranking 38th nationally in yards per game (202) and 19th in yards per carry (5.4) through games of Nov. 12. USC rushed for just 64 yards in the 52-6 loss to Alabama in its season opener. Two games later, Stanford held USC to just 117 yards in a 27-10 victory over the Trojans. Following the loss to Stanford, the USC ground game took off, averaging 237.3 yards over the next seven contests. Senior Justin Davis began the season as USC's top runner, racking up 476 yards in his first six games, but an ankle injury suffered in a 21-17 victory over Colorado Oct. 8 cost him the next three games. With Davis out, sophomores Ronald Jones II and Aca'Cedric Ware took over. In the four games following Davis' injury, Jones racked up 564 yards on the ground while averaging 7.3 yards per carry. Ware rushed for 233 yards in the two games following Davis going down, but he suffered an ankle injury of his own and missed the next two contests. Despite its overall success, USC has rushed for just 14 touchdowns in its first 10 games, which was a key contributor to its 79.5 percent red zone conversion rate, which ranked the Trojans 95th in the country. Heading into the final two weeks of the regular season, Notre Dame had given up 183.0 yards per game on the ground, which ranked it 76th in the land. After a rough start, the Irish run defense improved dramatically in the month of October. Notre Dame gave up 201.0 yards per game in its first four outings, but held its next four opponents to just 119.3 yards per contest. Advantage: USC USC PASSING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME PASS DEFENSE USC's pass game has been outstanding since redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Darnold was inserted into the lineup. The Trojans ranked 34th nationally in passing offense through 11 weeks of the season, averaging 266.8 yards per game. In his first seven starts, Darnold averaged 289.3 yards per game while tossing 20 touchdowns and just five interceptions. Darnold's ability to stretch the field has improved USC's big-play capability. After averaging just 8.8 yards per completion in its first three games, USC has averaged 13.0 yards per completion since Darnold took over. Darnold's top target is junior wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, who led the Trojans with 51 catches, 682 receiving yards and eight scoring grabs through 10 games. Smith-Schuster averaged GAME PREVIEW: USC On PaPer Junior wideout JuJu Smith-Schuster, who had 51 receptions 682 yards and eight touchdowns through 10 games, is USC's go-to pass catcher. PHOTO BY JOHN TUELL/COURTESY USC