Most fans' life is a shambles but they know everything in the area of football (or do they?).

Are fans at odds with the play calling or simply a perceived difference in results? Who among those complaining about Lane Kiffin can actually articulate accurately the difference in play calling versus Norm Chow?

Why?

Yeah who doesn’t trust the experimental throw on first down and after it fails miserably to run on second down when everybody knows you are going to!!!! What’s not to trust?

LBC Rob

Dosn't suprise me... if the only pass I could complete was a 4 yard out. I wouldn't want the OC calling something different either.

M.S. -

You're forgeting the throwing of the ball into the back of the lineman's head. While not a completion, it's one of JD's favorites...

The problem with the offense is that it's QB centric. It depends on Booty making the correct reads. Chow was the master QB maker. Sarkiffian haven't had the same success. In addition, I think it unlikely that the will.

In addition, I agree with those that find SC's team to be predictable. It shows in the tight coverage that didn't exist during the Chow years. Chow's play calling had the opponents confused (as well as some fans).

jason

PS: there are reasons not to always pass on first down and run on second, even if the other team doesn't expect it.

JUST RUN THE THING!!!!!

The ragging on Sark-Kiffin and Booty is good for a laugh.

Booty hasn't been perfect but he is flat out the best QB in the Pac-10. For the detractors, tell me who is better? You could make a case for Longshore but that is it. Booty is head and shoulders above everyone besides Longshore. Most yards passing, 2nd in pass eff., best TD-int. ratio. And don't give me that stuff about "with all our talent, he should be dominating..." USC's talent surrounding Booty on offense is not that superior to the other good teams in the conf. The WRs are spectacular when healthy, but we have average RBs and a good-but-not-great O-line. Cal clearly has better talent around Longshore on offense.

The play calling has been solid. Don't confuse crappy execution with bad play-calling. Turnovers and negative plays are going to screw up your ability to call a good game.

Kiff. is always well prepared and calls a solid and smooth game - note how rarely there are delays getting the play in or confusion with personnel groupings. Trust me folks, it's not that easy to just stay out of your own way and get the plays run.

He's also kind of created kind of a paradigm shift with use of 4th down and running a lot on 3rd and longs. That's ballsy and goes against tendancies and I like it.

My quibble with Kiff. is that he is by the book and probably a little too structured at this point in his career. It keeps the offense solid and minimizes big screw-ups but I'd like to see him get really unconventional once in a while. Nowing how and where to do this was the real genius of Chow. However, he is solid and definitely better than about 75% of the guys out there.

However, it's kind of fun to read some of these really deep discussions about how he sucks.

I guess the thing is, there seems to be at least some other people, besides us "internet geeks" who question some of the USC calls this year. I have seen it talked about online and on ESPN.

But I don't think it is a total disaster either. I mean, incompetent OC don't get 406 yards for the QB vs. OSU.

I think people are just looking at the incredible talents like JDB and DJ and E. Moody and looking at the stats and we don't have many yards or points per game and wonder what is going on. I realize there are new guys, it's a new year, etc., but there has to be some accountability. With the level of talent on the roster, it's just common sense that if we are struggling with a team like Washington there is at least a small problem.

LBC Rob said it best. What do you expect Booty to say?

I think we should pick 10 fans who have been watching CF near 50 years and have them call the play before the snap and grade accuracy. If fans can do this to Kiffen so can opposing coaches.

Of course, I admit I am prejudice. I think Chow was driven away and Kiffen ploted it. I also can't forgive his mistakes in RB. The cost was just too high

Dont' get too down on JDB...He has the tools.

Here is what I see...everyone throw your comments in:

I think the coaching staff was very hesitant and conservative at the beggining of the season, knowing that we had alot of new guys, but if we played it safe, we might win all the games, and continue the "matt-reggie" legacy and get back into the BCS game.

Well now that is gone after OSU, and we have seen the playbook opened up a little. Hopefully they will keep doing that and we will beat that crap out of stupid teams like Notre Dame and Cal and Michigan in the Rose Bowl and grab a share of the national title.

OK now I live in Michigan so cut me a little slack..haha

Hey M.S. above...does that stand for Mark Sanchez?

Because....that is true of our starting QB...LMAO!

Quack Attack 30+ SC 25

consistently running the ball on 3rd and long even though it never works? Yeah... Kiffin is a genious

Booty's going to run the plays he's told to run. And regardless of how he feels, he's not going to turn into Terrell Owens and complain to the public.

Hey Jeff, it's spelled genius not "genious". Nice post though, really.

Does anyone else think this blog seem like a parody at times?

For those of you who are blaming execution of plays and not playcalling, just remember that it is the coaches/coordinator's responsibility to make the players practice those plays before the games. So, if the execution is not there in the games, it may mean the coaches/coordinators are not doing a good job in practice.

Sarkiffin are not good coordinators. They are average. Just look back to last year. They took an experienced "great" team and made them beatable by the awful playcalling. Trust me, I was at all the home games and the NC game and you just knew Sarkiffin were trying to promote Reggie Bush and/or Matt Leinart instead of calling plays to beat the crap out of every team.

So there.

So much trust in the playcalling that Kahlil during the Arizona state game had to "animatedly impored coaches to keep running the ball during the Trojans' game-winning, fourth-quarter drive against Arizona State." (from L.A. Times on 11/9/06) Sounds like the offensive line knows more about playcslling than the former Fresno State QB.