No. 11 UCLA Bruins (8-2, 5-2) vs. No. 24 USC Trojans (7-3, 6-2)
Kickoff: Saturday, Nov. 22, 5 p.m., Rose Bowl
TV: ABC (Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge, Holly Rowe)
Radio: AM 570 (Chris Roberts, Matt Stevens, Wayne Cook)
Coach: Will Steve Sarkisian again top seven regular-season wins as a head coach?
For several years at Washington, the knock on Sark was that he could never take a team over that hump. Sure, he’d knock off a few ranked teams here and there, but after a 2009 debut that featured upsets of No. 3 USC and No. 19 Cal, his Huskies finished 7-6 for three straight years. When he finally broke through with an 8-4 record last season, he soon took the Trojans’ top job.
Now back at the school where he spent the bulk of his career as an assistant, the 40-year-old is pushing up against that same hurdle. USC will pull more talent than Sarkisian could ever get at UW, but in his first season, the Trojans seem to have a habit of playing down to opponents. Their losses to Arizona State and Utah required them giving up a Hail Mary and a touchdown with eight seconds left. More recently, they took a 31-2 halftime lead against Cal, only to see the Bears score four of the game’s next five touchdowns.
Sitting at seven wins again, Sarkisian has games at UCLA and against Notre Dame to show that he can guide his talented — albeit thin — roster up to its full potential.
Key players:
QB Cody Kessler, Jr., 6-1, 210 — 238/339, 2,919 yards, 29 TD, 3 INT
– He hasn’t garnered the same acclaim as many of his Trojan predecessors, but Kessler is second in the Pac-12 in quarterback rating (169.0) behind Oregon’s Marcus Mariota.
RB Javorius “Buck” Allen, Jr., 6-1, 220 — 217 carries, 1,184 yards, 8 TD, 32 catches, 383 yards, 1 TD
– Big backs have troubled UCLA’s defense this season, and Allen leads the conference with 118.4 yards per game. However, he has not rushed for a touchdown since Oct. 18.
WR Nelson Agholor, Jr., 6-1, 190 — 82 catches, 1,079 yards, 10 TD, 196 punt return yards, 2 TD
– Agholor became the first USC receiver to ever have back-to-back 200-yard games. Asked to describe him, UCLA defensive back Ishmael Adams said: “Explosive, fast, fast and fast.”
DE Leonard Williams, Jr., 6-5, 300 — 62 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 6 sacks, 1 INT, 3 forced fumbles
– A likely first-round draft pick next spring, Williams is considered the top defensive pro prospect in the Pac-12, if not in all of college football.
S Su’a Cravens, So., 6-1, 225 — 52 tackles, 14 tackles for loss, 5 sacks, 8 pass breakups, 2 INT, 1 TD return
– Cravens’ 14 tackles for loss ties him for the national lead among defensive backs, and easily at the top of his position group in the Pac-12. Next-best in the conference is Arizona safety Jared Tevis, who has eight.
CB/WR Adoree’ Jackson, Fr., 5-11, 185 — 34 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 7 pass breakups, 500 kick return yards, 1 TD return
– Jackson also has six catches for 49 yards and a touchdown, and has lived up to his billing as a versatile five-star prospect.
Scouting report: USC’s pass defense has consistently withered late in games. Its defensive passer rating, broken down by quarters: 86.8 in the first, 114.8 in the second, 111.5 in the third, and 140.8 in the fourth. The first number is good for second in the FBS, while the second would rank 100th. (h/t @ReignofTroy) … Overall, however the Trojans are impressive when the other team has the ball. It is 21st nationally in yards allowed per pass attempt (6.1) and 46th in yards allowed per rush attempt (3.95). Those marks rank second and fifth in the Pac-12. … USC has the seventh-best red-zone defense in college football, holding opponents scoreless in nearly 29 percent of their chances. … Despite Buck Allen’s success, the Trojans are eighth in the Pac-12 with 4.04 yards per carry. Allen is averaging 5.46 yards per carry on the season, but just 3.87 in USC’s three losses.
Line: UCLA is a 3-point favorite.