Situation Switched For Usc
Before the season, Saturday’s Southern California-Arizona State game was supposed to be a big one for the Trojans. Now it’s the other way around.
With two losses, USC (4-2) is out of the national title picture and barely on the Rose Bowl screen. The Sun Devils are undefeated, ranked fourth and in position to play in a Rose Bowl with championship implications.
“We have all the makings of a special team here,” Arizona State coach Bruce Snyder said. “We won’t really know, though, until November and December. But at this point, the team has all the earmarks of being special.”
The Sun Devils, led by all-purpose quarterback Jake Plummer, rallied from a 28-7 deficit to beat UCLA 42-34 last week, while USC held off Arizona 14-7. Arizona State, beaten 31-0 last season by USC, is playing its sixth home game.
Plummer could make it tough on the Trojans, who counter with Brad Otton (106 of 187 for 1,443 yards and eight TDs) and a scads of running backs, including LaVale Woods, Rodney Sermons, Delon Washington and Shawn Walters.
Plummer, emerging as a Heisman Trophy contender, is 101 of 176 for 1,451 yards, 16 TDs and three interceptions. At 6-foot-2, 190 pounds, Plummer basically does whatever is needed. He drops back, throws on the run, forgets the pass and just runs. Now he catches passes, as well.
“He could return kickoffs and punts, the way he gets out of traffic,” said teammate J.R. Redmond, who threw the TD pass to Plummer last week.
Southern California (plus 7) at No. 4 Arizona State. … ARIZONA STATE 31-21.
No. 16 Auburn (plus 22) at No. 1 Florida: Expect another shootout with Gators owning bigger guns. … FLORIDA 45-17.
No. 2 Ohio State (minus 25-1/2) at Purdue: Buckeyes’ 45.2-point average too much for Boilermakers to overcome. … OHIO STATE 45-13.
No. 5 Nebraska (minus 22) at Texas Tech: Leading rusher (Byron Hanspard) vs. Huskers’ third-ranked run defense (61.6 yards). … NEBRASKA 45-10.
Mississippi (plus 13) at No. 7 Alabama: Ole Miss has one win in 16 visits to Tuscaloosa. … ALABAMA 28-10.
Air Force (plus 21) at No. 8 Notre Dame: Irish ground Beau Morgan and Falcons’ 354.2-yard rushing game. … NOTRE DAME 41-17.
No. 9 Colorado (minus 7-1/2) at Kansas: Jayhawks have June Henley; Buffaloes have Koy Detmer. … COLORADO 45-31.
Iowa (plus 10) at No. 10 Penn State: Lions’ Joe Paterno (69) and Hawkeyes’ Hayden Fry (67) are two oldest active I-A coaches. … PENN STATE 35-17.
East Carolina (plus 17) at No. 12 Miami: Hurricanes tend to have problems with Pirates - not this time. … MIAMI 41-13.
Indiana (plus 23) at No. 13 Michigan: Wolverines in nasty mood after week off to recover from Northwestern loss. … MICHIGAN 38-7.
No. 14 Northwestern (plus 4) at Wisconsin: Third game against ranked team is a charm for Badgers. . … WISCONSIN 27-24.
No. 15 West Virginia (minus 21) at Temple: WVU allows 6.8 points per game, Temple 33.2 points. … WEST VIRGINIA 34-7.
Kentucky (plus 25-1/2) at No. 17 LSU: Tigers find perfect team to help them bounce back. … LSU 48-14.
No. 18 Brigham Young (minus 10) at Tulsa: Hurricane could spell trouble for Cougars and Steve Sarkisian. … BRIGHAM YOUNG 24-10.
No. 19 California (plus 3-1/2) at Washington State: Point spread says Cal’s record is suspect. … WASHINGTON STATE 31-21.
North Carolina State (plus 18-1/2) at No. 20 Virginia: Last three meetings decided by five points or less. … VIRGINIA 33-10.
No. 21 Kansas State (even) at Texas A&M: Brian Kavanagh may get to pass more than usual against Aggies’ suspect defense. … TEXAS A&M 24-21.
No. 22 Georgia Tech (minus 6) at Clemson: Not a good year for the Tigers. … GEORGIA TECH 28-17.
Fresno State (plus 14) at No. 23 Wyoming: QB Josh Wallwork (2,507 yards) leads Cowboys offense (532.6 yards per game). … WYOMING 44-21.
Texas Christian (plus 16) at No. 24 Utah: First meeting between teams. … UTAH 35-20.
UCLA (plus 6-1/2) at No. 25 Washington: Huskies find enough defense to rebound from loss to Irish. … WASHINGTON 35-31.
Last week: 16-1 (straight); 6-11 (spread). Season: 99-17 (straight); 58-53-2 (spread)