The lights always burn bright when you play in Los Angeles. So far for the Trojans, that light has been particularly hot and searing as USC continues to struggle in the difficult adjustment period after a tumultuous 2015 season. Meanwhile, ASU has adjusted well to the new year as they seem to have found a safe and secure style to win football games on a week to week basis. Beating Cal last week, ASU sets their sights on yet another California team ready for a fight.
Kalen Ballage Continues Hot Start
While averaging around 6 yards per carry and 12 yards per reception, Kalen Ballage certainly has a lot going for him right now in regards to national recognition. Last week he was not able to play much due to an injury however. His leg was wrapped in ice and many thought his night was over. Later on in the second half he returned and ended up as ASU’s number 3 rusher and number 5 receiver once the night was done. The ability he has to break a game wide open with his moves in the open field make him an absolute must see right now in the Pac-12. While the health of his knee is cause for concern, the fact that he returned in the came game against Cal makes it seem like the injury was not as severe as once thought. If he is even at a fraction of his potential, the chances of Ballage having a big night are highly possible with how bad the USC defense has been against the run this year.
USC Looks For Stable Offense
The one thing you never want as a coach at USC is a quarterback controversy. Clay Helton has that exact problem right now in his rookie season as the face of USC football. Pulling the rug out from Max Browne to sub in Sam Darnold opened the door a slight bit for the passing game, as JuJu Smith-Schuster got a few big plays against Utah last week in a loss. After the change under center, Smith-Schuster ended up getting 98 yards and eight catches from Darnold alone. If the two can manufacture a small amount of trust and understanding, the two could end up being a big threat in the passing game. The main focus of USC football has always been the running back though. Thus far, the running game has not produced what it was projected to do. Ronald Jones almost became the first freshman to run for 1,000 yards in USC history. This year he has a total of 132 yards in four games played. Eventually some kind of balance has to be found for the Trojans. If they can’t find it, the Sun Devils may just avoid giving up another game of 40 or more points as they have in three of their four games.
Expanding the Passing Game For Sun Devils
Manny Wilkins has been able to control the ball and orchestrate the offense as a great field general thus far. For him, the main focus has been keeping the ball away from the opponents. By only giving up the 3 interceptions, he has done just that. That being said, the five lone touchdowns he has thrown makes it clear to teams now that if they want to beat ASU, they will have to make Wilkins do the work. The running game for ASU has been incredibly successful to start the year off with 16 touchdowns in four games. But the minute a team starts shutting down the running game, Wilkins is going to have to start finding soft spots in the zones or find the man-to-man matchup that serves his receivers well. The minute he transcends the status of being a field general and a full fledged quarterback is the moment that Wilkins may just be the guy to lead ASU to a Pac-12 conference title.
The matchup between ASU and USC will take place in Los Angeles, CA. Tune in to FOX at 5:30 PM to catch the game.