Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/94820
✦ NEWS & NOTES BY LOU SOMOGYI 'LUCK OF THE IRISH?' The last time Notre Dame visited the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, USC sophomore quarterback Matt Barkley was sidelined with a high ankle sprain incurred a week earlier in a loss to Oregon State. The Fighting Irish defense took advan- tage against his replacement Mitch Mus- tain — a former National High School Player of the Year — during a 20-16 vic- tory that ended Notre Dame's eight-game losing streak to USC. This time, a shoulder sprain suffered by the senior Barkley in last week's 38-28 loss to UCLA will sideline him. "Luck of the Irish, I guess, for Brian Kelly," USC head coach Lane Kiffin said at his weekly press conference. "Twice in a row he'll be coming into the Coliseum with Matt not playing in the game. That's not easy to handle." USC will hand the keys to redshirt fresh- man Max Wittek, who already has done his best pre-Super Bowl III impersonation of Joe Namath when interviewed on 710 ESPN Radio in Los Angeles about play- ing Notre Dame's No. 1-ranked scoring defense (10.1 points allowed per game). "We're going to win this ballgame," Wittek said. According to Kelly, the Irish game plan will be unaltered against the first-time starter. "At this point, for us to go into one game and say, 'All right we're going to do dif- ferent things to confuse Max' is really crazy," the head coach said of the 11-0 Irish. "This guy has watched football all year. He's going to be watching film. He knows our defense. We're going to do what we do because that's gotten us to this point." Wittek has three mop-up duty appear- ances this season in which he completed 8 The Trojans will be without senior quarterback Matt Barkley this week — but still boast a large arsenal of offen- sive weapons, including junior wide receiver Robert Woods (66 catches for 721 yards and 10 touchdowns). PHOTO COURTESY USC of 9 pass attempts (just 1,553 shy of Bar- kley) for 95 yards with one touchdown. He checks in at 6-4, 235 pounds and played high school football at Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), following in the foot- steps of Barkley; 2003-05 USC starter and Heisman Trophy winner Matt Lein- art; NCAA record-setting quarterback Colt Brennan, who started at Hawai'i from 2005-07; and Notre Dame's 1964 Heisman Trophy winner John Huarte. He played at Mater Dei at the suggestion of his QB tutor, Steve Clarkson. Bottom line, according to Kelly, is USC's assembly line of producing NFL quarterbacks — Carson Palmer, Leinart, Matt Cassel, John David Booty, Mark Sanchez and Barkley this past decade alone — remains in place with a coveted prospect such as Wittek. "He's got a live arm," Kelly said. "He'll certainly fit into their offensive scheme. He's a perfect fit for what they do." Wittek has the arm strength to reach any of his receivers — whom Kelly called the best collective unit in the country — anywhere on the field. The biggest deep threat for the Trojans this year is sopho- more Marqise Lee, who leads the nation in receiving yards (1,605) and in big plays. He has made seven catches of more than 50 yards so far this season and will be a challenge for Notre Dame's sure-tackling secondary. "If they have a lot of space, they're go- ing to make you pay," Kelly said. "We felt that against Oklahoma we had to limit some of the catches and the extended runs. We'll have to do a great job tackling, and that will be paramount to our success against USC." Three of Notre Dame's top five tacklers this season are defensive backs. Senior Zeke Motta (56 tackles) is a distant second behind linebacker Manti Te'o. Corner- backs Bennett Jackson (55) and KeiVarae ✦ PAGE 12 Russell (47) are third and fifth, respec- tively. Their ability to keep USC's speedy receivers wrapped up and force Wittek to nickel and dime his way down the field will be a deciding factor in how well USC is able to move the ball Saturday. THIRD-YEAR MAGIC In 1966, third-year Notre Dame head coach Ara Parseghian clinched his first na- tional title with a 51-0 trouncing of No. 10 USC at the Los Angeles Memorial Coli- seum. The Fighting Irish finished 9-0-1. In 1988, third-year Notre Dame head coach Lou Holtz directed the Fighting Irish toward his first national title with a convincing 27-10 win at No. 2 USC to finish the regular season 11-0. Lo and behold, it's the third season for Brian Kelly, who has Notre Dame ranked No. 1 with an 11-0 record. A victory at USC clinches a bid to the Jan. 7 BCS na- tional championship game in Miami. The 89-year-old Parseghian and 75-year-old Holtz remain in touch with Kelly, which the current boss cherishes. "I get my weekly card from Ara," Kelly revealed. "Each week he handwrites a note to me. The great thing is he's so unassuming." Parseghian has an open invitation each week from Kelly to be his guest for a home game, but Parseghian politely main- tains the best seat in the house is watching from his home. Whereas the relationship with Parseghian is more fan-based, Kelly admits he will pick Holtz's brain and con- siders his feedback "extremely valuable." "I talk to him about some specific things that I would like his opinion on," Kelly said. "He knows Notre Dame, and Ara does as well. Those are great assets." Kelly also gave kudos to 1978 Notre Dame graduate Charlie Weis, his prede- cessor from 2005-09. The first-year head