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✦ TOP STORYLINES: NOTRE DAME VS. USC BY LOU SOMOGYI BEND, BUT DON'T BREAK The USC receiving combination of ju- nior Robert Woods and sophomore Marq- ise Lee might be, on paper, the best Notre Dame has ever faced. This would include the 2004-05 USC duo of Dwayne Jarrett and Steve Smith, Oregon State's combination of Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh in the 2001 Fiesta Bowl, and the Miami one-two punch of Michael Irvin and Brian Blades way back in 1987, among many others. In last year's 31-17 victory at Notre Dame, Woods caught two touchdown passes among his dozen receptions en route to consensus All-America honors. His 111 receptions (15 for touchdowns) in 2011 broke the single-season USC and Pac-12 record set by No. 1 NFL pick Key- shawn Johnson in 1995. This year, Woods pulled down 10 scor- ing passes through 11 games but has be- come merely the complementary option on his own team. It's akin to first-round pick Michael Floyd combining forces with 2009 Irish Biletnikoff Award winner Golden Tate. Also a track star, Lee has emerged as the nation's most dynamic wideout and a top-five Heisman Trophy candidate after breaking in as a freshman last season with 73 catches and finishing 15th nationally in receiving yardage. He caught only two 18-yard tosses at Notre Dame last year, but might reach that in the first quarter this season against the vaunted Fighting Irish defense. The overwhelming favorite to win this year's Biletnikoff Award, Lee is well on pace to set every single-season receiv- ing standard at USC. Lee has snared 107 passes for 1,605 yards (15.0 yards per catch) and 14 touchdowns. In the 39-36 loss at Arizona Oct. 26, he grabbed 16 passes for 345 yards and a couple of scores. Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly said limiting the yards after catch will be pivotal when facing someone of Lee's skill level. In his press conference the day after the 38-0 victory over Wake Forest, Kelly listed the most crucial elements to beating USC: Tackle, tackle, tackle … and tackle. "Incredible acceleration after the catch," Kelly said of Lee. "If you look at what he does after the catch, that's where it gets really scary … their offensive staff does a great job of setting up formations to get him one-on-one matchups. They're always prodding your defense to get him matched up where they get some great one-on-one looks. "… He's not catching a hitch route and having three guys hammer him. They're putting him in great position to catch the football and get big-chunk plays." During the preseason, this was consid- ered the ultimate mismatch in the Notre Dame-USC contest: the Trojans' play- making tandem at wideout versus Notre Dame's nascent starting corners in former wideout Bennett Jackson, a junior, and KeiVarae Russell, a true freshman who supposedly was enrolling as a running back. Jackson and Russell have performed beyond anyone's expectations on the na- tion's No. 1 scoring defense. Lee and Woods probably can combine Sophomore Marqise Lee has established himself as perhaps the top wide receiver in the nation, hauling in 107 receptions for 1,605 yards and 14 scores in the Trojans' first 11 games. ✦ PAGE 8 PHOTO COURTESY USC for at least 15 to 20 catches against the Fighting Irish for well more than 200 yards, and it wouldn't be a surprise if the numbers even get into the range of 25 catches for 300 yards. The Oklahoma tan- dem of Jalen Saunders (15 catches for 181 yards) and Kenny Still (seven catches for 86 yards), snared 22 passes for 267 yards against Notre Dame Oct. 27. However, the Sooners managed to cross