Matt Barkley, USC Adjust; Utah Defense Stout, Offense Not Ready for Prime Time
By Kyle Kensing
October 4, 2012; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Southern California Trojans wide receiver Marqise Lee (9) cannot bring in the pass while defended by Utah Utes defensive back Reggie Topps (28) during the first half at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-US PRESSWIRE
Matt Barkley could have folded his tent when problems between he and center Khaled Holmes set up two quick Utah touchdowns Thursday night in Rice-Eccles Stadium, but USC accomplished where it had failed against Stanford. The Trojans made adjustments en route to a 38-28 win.
Lane Kiffin’s call for a long bomb from Barkley to Marqise Lee deep in USC territory during the fourth quarter completed a long, arduous rally.
Eighty-three yards. SB Nation GIF’d the the incredible pass, which Barkely seemingly threw a quarter-mile.
Utah’s defensive front — one of the best in the Pac-12 — went toe-to-toe with the Trojans. There was a level of maturity exhibited in the USC line’s answer to Star Lotulelei and Co. missing in the Week 3 loss.
And Barkley responded to adversity with veteran savvy befitting a fourth year starter, Heisman Trophy candidate and potential No. 1 NFL Draft pick. He surpassed 300 yards passing and scored three touchdowns. Running back Silas Redd deserves accolades of his own. Though not pounding the rock with the same regularity he had at Penn State, Redd made other adjustments Thursday night. He was key to the blocking schemes after that disastrous first quarter, effectively picking up blitzes to buy Barkley more time.
USC eventually discovered its running game through the passing attack — and the passing attack hummed along in a way many presumed it would before the season. Lee caught for 192 yards (this guy deserves Heisman consideration, people) and a touchdown, and Robert Woods tacked on a score to go with 69 yards.
Lee exposed the USC receiving corps’ talent edge against the Ute secondary. Though the Trojan pass catchers excelled, few secondaries in college football have the talent to go blow-for-blow with the USC offense. Utah’s defense was the sole reason the Utes were in the game before Barkley’s bomb.
The Utah defense proved for more than three quarters that last season’s conference low average of points given up was no fluke. Defensively, UU is every bit an upper echelon Pac-12 program. Offensively is another matter.
Utah has had to deal with notable injuries to quarterback Jordan Wynn, whose retirement last month left the ball in Jon Hays’ hands. Running back John White is also obviously hindered, failing to produce at the same rate he did a season ago. Even so, the UU offense is sputtering. New coordinator Brian Johnson went deep in the playbook to attack a thin USC defense. Gimmickry was more a matter of necessity though, because the Utes simply were unable to move the ball with any efficiency.
Even when Johnson’s trick play calls worked, penalties negated them. Utah’s line was simply a step slower, thus the pocket was routinely collapsing around Hays. Not an especially accurate passer as it is, Hays was rendered almost completely ineffective without time to operate. Short possessions kept the USC defense fresh, in turn wearing down the game Utah defense.
Expect this pattern to rear its head a few more times for UU this season.
OTHER THURSDAY NIGHT NOTES
Oct 4 2012; Miami, FL, USA; Florida International Golden Panthers head coach Mario Cristobal reacts in the fourth quarter of a game against the Arkansas State Red Wolves at FIU Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Mayer-US PRESSWIRE
Mario Cristobal surprised many when he opted to stay at FIU, despite an apparent offer from Rutgers after Greg Schiano’s departure. Cristobal coached a Golden Panther program just a few years removed from going winless to consecutive bowl games, thereby becoming one of the sport’s hottest, young names.
Tonight in Miami, another hot, young name led his team in and did work on FIU. Gus Malzahn’s Arkansas State RedWolves routed FIU 34-20, dropping the Golden Panthers to 1-4 on the season. The likelihood of a third straight bowl appearance is rapidly slipping away, with FIU now 0-2 in Sun Belt play after getting walloped by Louisiana-Lafayette last weekend.
The good news for Cristobal’s 2012 squad is that ULL and ASU were the Sun Belt’s top two teams a season ago. The bad news is other teams in the league have vastly improved. UL-Monroe, Western Kentucky and MTSU all look like bowl contenders, and Dan McCarney’s North Texas bunch could pose FIU problems.
Meanwhile, Rutgers is undefeated, ranked in the top 25, and looking very much like a contender for the Big East championship.
A losing season does nothing to diminish Cristobal’s past accomplishments, but it does lower his stock. Turner Gill faced a similar situation at Buffalo, returning after his MAC championship season. The ensuing mediocre campaign lowered his value on the coaching market, which in turn landed him at an opening less desirable than others he had been rumored in conjunction with the season prior.
Elsewhere in Florida, UCF deluged Conference USA East opponent East Carolina with points after falling behind 14-7 en route to a 40-20 win. The Golden Knights are ineligible for a postseason bid, but look to be the cream of the C-USA East crop.
Even so, this season should be the farewell procession for George O’Leary. UCF is squandering a talented roster under NCAA sanctions. O’Leary was exonerated of any wrongdoing, though the infractions that resulted in a show-cause penalty against former assistant David Kelly was the program’s second major violation in the last four years.
NCAA sanctions came after the university lost a $10 million wrongful death lawsuit to the family of former Golden Knight Ereck Plancher, who passed away in 2008.
UCF took a gamble hiring O’Leary. His falsified resume that prevented him from accepting the Notre Dame job might have made other coaches persona non grata. O’Leary had impressive seasons at UCF, but there isn’t a trade-off for the program’s transgression.
With the upcoming move to the Big East, UCF needs a young coach who can bring a new vision. Aside from bringing wins, Cristobal instilled a dignity at FIU that was exchanged when the Golden Panthers famously fought Miami in 2006. Cristobal may actually be the perfect fit for UCF.