Stanford Football: 5 reasons the Cardinal defeats USC

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - AUGUST 27: Stanford Cardinal celebrate winning the College Football Sydney Cup match between Stanford University (Stanford Cardinal) and Rice University (Rice Owls) at Allianz Stadium on August 27, 2017 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images) /

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(Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

5. USC is bound to disappoint in 2017

Notre Dame, Tennessee, Texas, etc. Those programs along with USC’s football program tends to be the ones that get constant hype every year. It’s always tempting to look at the Trojans as a real contender because of how good they recruit on a consistent basis.

There was a four-game stretch that really cost the Cardinal last year. Losses to the Washington Huskies, Washington State Cougars, and Colorado Buffaloes cost Stanford any chance they had at winning the PAC-12.

They did finish with 10 wins and look ready for a run back to the PAC-12 Championship Game in 2017. Yet, it does not seem to work out much anymore when USC is the favorite to win the conference. They came out sluggish in Week 1.

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It could just take some for head coach Clay Helton to get USC moving in the right direction. Stanford head coach David Shaw will have his team ready. The Cardinal will get their third straight victory over USC and hand the Trojans their first loss of the season.

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