Scott, since when do you give a ratz @ss about Sagarin's Predictor ranking?

YOU RANKED VIRGINIA TECH #6 IN YOUR A.P. VOTE!!! Virginia Tech is No. 44 in Sagarin's Predictor ranking. Let me say that again.... #44!!!

It just goes to prove once again that you only use stats if they help you be a queen about things.

considering how good USC's defense looks, I find that hard to believe.

Know why the computer said that? Because you can't program common sense into a computer.

Well, our defense should be as close as it has been all season to healthy. Oregon basically ran all over Washington which is one thing they shhouldn't be able to do against USC (top-5 against run). Hopefully, the DL will be able to pressure Dixon enough to disrupt the pass which is the only thing I am worried about (less now than Colvin is out). Oregon is tough to play at, USC will probably not put up many points so I think the defense will have to score and keep the Ducks from putting up a lot of points. Im guessing its going to be anywhere from 24-17 with Oregon winning. Sorry but Im a realist, I don't think USC has the O to win.

Not the same Oregon team that scored only 24 points at Home against that vaunted Cal defense. Muhahahaha. We all know how good Cal's defense is. hell Cal is great on offense and defense. muhahaha.

With Paysinger, Johnson, and Colvin, all out with injuries, this Oregon offense may be limited against the Trojans.
SC can now match-up Terrell Thomas with Jaison Williams and focus on stopping the ground game of Dennis Dixon and Jonathon Stewart. Since SC's run defense is the strength of the team, I like our chances to do that. We just need Rey-Rey to put one of his big Patrick Turner-type hits on Dixon and we'll be home free with the younger Leaf brother manning the helm. I just worry about Dixon breaking containment and getting into our secondary a la VY.
I know I don't have to say it, but Pete Carroll coached teams don't tend to do as well against mobile quarterbacks.
Fight on!

The Sagarin ratings also say USC would beat Notre Dame by only 12 points in South Bend.

How'd that prediction turn out???

Dennis Dixon is not Vince Young. Young was a solid 235 and had heart. Dixon is a twig and has no heart Hit him hard once and he crawls up in his shell and sucks for the rest of the game? Remember last years game against USC when he got benched because he was stinking up the place?

Sureshot still has a great point - USC has a terrible history against running QBs - KSU and WSU in 2002 (Roberson and Gellar respectively), Texas in 2005 (he must not be named). For some reason, USC just doesn't seem to do the whole "spy" thing on mobile QBs. Why not just have Rivers spy, he has great speed and instincts and can still make plays when Dixon doesn't run? Scott, can you give us any info on who will be playing the role of Dixon in practice this week????

04Trojan, USC has also done fine with Brad Banks, Brian Randall, Dennis Dixon, Isaiah Stanback, Joe Ayoob (he was supposed to be mobile)and most recently, Jake Locker. We've never really had a problem with Dixon's mobility. Just go back to last year's game where LoJack had three sacks.

Granted, Dixon has improved significantly as a QB since last year, still I don't see him being any more of a factor than he was the last two times we faced him.

The key will be to shut down the run, which hasn't been much of a problem this year, and everything else will fall into place. Jonathan Stewart is a great back, maybe the best in the conference, but losing Jeremiah Johnson hurts their ground game.

RashTrojan, You are correct to say that Oregon will miss JJ's contributions, but we still have J-Stew and it looks like the young fellas are going to be special too. And sureshot32, I'm not sure the much improved Oregon O-line will let SC touch Dixon.

I'll agree that Oregons oline is improved but you guys haven't really played a good defensive front so far. You guys pulled away from UW because they lack depht and a good run defense which made it easy for Oregon to run the clock down and also score points. Locker had 4 td passes on Oregon's D and they ran the ball pretty good also.

My main point is that the losses we have suffered in the recent past have almost always come at the hands of a mobile QB who kills USC with his feet. Pat Cowan was able to make big plays with his feet last year when UCLA beat USC.

I don't think USC will get great pressure, they haven't dont well at that most of the season. I don't care about sacks, but I would like to see passes knocked down, forced passes out of bounds, etc. You get those through pressure. If Dixon sits back in the pocket, he can pick the team apart or just find some open space and run. He is also playing way above the level he was at last year so I don't even think you can compare this year to last. I think USC stops Stewart for the most part, but Oregon will still have over 150 yds rushing and if they do much better than that, USC is in trouble.

Fair enough. No question that the USC D will be Oregons biggest test to date. Somethings gotta give! Can you believe that you guys have to play at Autzen again? The place will be rocking for the big game. That could be a factor in the outcome if Sanchez gets the go. Has he been tested under hostile conditions?

Scott, Sagarin is the only guy that consistently has more ridiculous rankings than you do in your AP ballot. Sagarin has Kansas at No.2, UCLA at No. 15, and USC at No. 24.

Does anyone really think that LSU will be playing Kansas for the BCS Championship this year?

If Cal can win at Autzen, so too will USC. Oregon may have won this game if it was played a few weeks ago. Now, USC is resurging and Oregon is hurt. It is time for the annual Ducks fold job (excluding that one year when they were screwed out of the NC game).

FIGHT ON!!

Mike, Don't expect UO to fold this year. This team has heart and I expect that they will need it to win this week. I see USC loosing a close one and still moving up in the pools.

You know what they say: "Nothing is more dangerous than a wounded Duck!" Ok, maybe they don't say that but don't expect to see a lame Duck either.

Hey Duckman:

Don't get me wrong. I expect Oregon to put up a fight, and would not be shocked to see the Ducks win. However, you must admit that in the past few years, Oregon has started strong, only to fade in the latter half of the season. The Ducks could not beat Cal at home (and Cal has lost two since then), so they are vulnerable, especially with the recent rash of injuries.

USC wins 27-20.

No question Mike. It could go either way but I think it will be the game of the week. Lets pray for no more injuries.

Duckmann-

Props to you for making insightful comments on an "enemy" board and representing UO well.

What is the thought of the avg. Duck fan on this game? USC is down and an easy home win or do they expect a war?

Oregon can't play defense...period. The Ducks will not be able to score enough points against our D to keep up.

What is the record this year of the Sagarin predictions? Probably pretty crappy.

Ball control by SC to keep Oregon's O off the field sounds good - Sanchez has the ability to do that.

someone DARED mention "he who must not be named" on this board? (or as I like to call him "The Cheater".)

Props to Duckman !
you have shown class and a good spirit of competitiveness in your blog entries. Bill, 13-9, 100 ncaa titles can learn much from you ( but hey they are b-RUIN fans so I know that is asking alot) anyhow I look forward to a great match on saturday between the Ducks and our beloved Trojans. May the best team win .....Fight On !!!

Thanks for the good will. You may here some bravado from some fans and a few ridiculous blowout predictions, but make no mistake; no true fan or player is taking this game lightly. We know it will be a war and Oregon will have to play better than they have all year on both sides of the ball. I think they are up to it. Should be a great game. Hope to see ya’ll on Saturday.

Many of you are forgetting that Sagarin had USC rated
#1 or #2 at the start of the season.

He has consistently rated USC at #1 for several years past. It is only this year that our relatively weak schedule has cost us so much. Idaho and Nebraska have been terrible and the loss to Stanford was the most costly thing in "Computerland". It will be had to move up to the BCS Championship game this year without help.

So, we'd better hope we can win the conference and get to the Rose Bowl.