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USC Football: 3 bold predictions as Trojans face Texas in Week 3

By Shelbie Warr

PALO ALTO, CA - SEPTEMBER 08: Head coach Clay Helton of the USC Trojans talks with his team while there's a time out against the Stanford Cardinal during an NCAA football game at Stanford Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Palo Alto, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
PALO ALTO, CA - SEPTEMBER 08: Head coach Clay Helton of the USC Trojans talks with his team while there's a time out against the Stanford Cardinal during an NCAA football game at Stanford Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Palo Alto, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /
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AUSTIN, TX – SEPTEMBER 08: Sam Ehlinger #11 of the Texas Longhorns congratulates Keaontay Ingram #26 after a touchdown in the first half against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images)
AUSTIN, TX – SEPTEMBER 08: Sam Ehlinger #11 of the Texas Longhorns congratulates Keaontay Ingram #26 after a touchdown in the first half against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) /

2. Offensive line play will be paramount to success

This is not the battle of two elite quarterbacks, let’s go ahead and get that point out into the universe now. Quarterback Sam Ehlinger is a hit or miss type guy for the Longhorns. When he is on, he can carry this team to quite a few wins. When he’s off, well, it isn’t pretty for those in Burnt Orange and White.

For Ehlinger to be successful, first he will need to be protected. If he doesn’t have time to survey the field and make plays — good luck finding any success. The Trojan defense is strong and has put forth some stellar performances in recent weeks.

On the other side of the field, USC quarterback JT Daniels showed last week that a bad fourth quarter can doom a team. Even though he had put his team in a position to win, a fourth quarter that showed off his inexperience wasn’t exactly what the doctor ordered when trying to upset a team like Stanford. He will also need the protection against a very athletic Longhorn defense. Texas isn’t great at putting pressure on the quarterback, but they do have the ability to.

Simply put, the line that is best able to protect their quarterback will emerge victorious in Austin on Saturday night.

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