TrojanNYC.com

Video: Matt Barkley on ESPN's Scott Van Pelt Show

Good interview.

USC Commitment: Centennial QB Cody Kessler Commits to USC

Another big pick-up by the coaching staff.  Cody is one of the top ranked pro-style QBs in the nation this year.  He was also considered the top performer at the recent Elite 11 QB camp in Berkeley.

I mentioned in a previous post, that bringing on Cody seems to signal that the coaching staff is looking to stockpile QB talent to make up for the lack of slam dunk elite QB recruits in recent years.  As good as Cody is, plus Max Wittek and Jesse Scroggins for that matter, none of them are on the level of Mark Sanchez or Matt Barkley coming out of HS.  Better to bring in a lot of guys and have them build each other up through competition.

The more I watch Cody, the more intriguing he is as a prospect.  He doesn't have prototypical NFL height (he's only 6'1/6'2) and his mechanics are a bit sloppy but he's built solid, has good mobility, and throws with excellent accuracy (biggest selling point of his game).  One of the marks of a good QB is the ability to adjust velocity without sacrificing accuracy on throws and Cody does this well.  He's also good on the move.  His biggest flaw at this point is that he comes from a shotgun offense, so he'll have to adjust to taking snaps from under center.

In terms of a comparison, he reminds me of former Cal QB Aaron Rodgers.  Cody has similar mechanics to Aaron in college (he's since cleaned up in the pros), they're similar in size, work well in the short-to-mid passing game, and can buy some time with their feet while throwing on the run.

Again, great pick-up by the staff.  Cody has a real solid shot at being the successor to Matt Barkley.  Should be fun to watch his development.

USC Commitment: Victor Blackwell Commits to USC

Well scratch that previous post, I guess that delayed offer didn't have an effect on Victor's desire to be a Trojan because he committed soon after he received his official offer.

Victor is a solid WR pick-up.  He's not going to wow you with elite quickness or athleticism but he's a perfect #2/3 guy in that he's smart, tough, and willing to be the dependable slot receiver.

From a fit standpoint, you can't draw it up any better: 1) he's played with Matt Barkley and currently plays with Max Wittek (current commit), 2) he comes from a system (Mater Dei) modeled after SC, 3) he compliments George Farmer, who is the primary WR target in this year's class, and 4) he only helps in the recruitment of DeAnthony Thomas (his god-brother).

A WR class of Victor Blackwell and George Farmer would be excellent - absolutely no complaints.  Hopefully the coaching staff can seal the deal with Farmer and close this position early.

Recruiting: USC Offers Centennial QB Cody Kessler & Mater Dei WR Victor Blackwell

The Kessler offer is an interesting one because it signals, at least to me, that the staff is trying to overlap quarterbacks to create competition in either 2012 or 2013 when Matty B. leaves. I mean when was the last time SC took 3 QBs (4 if you count preferred walk-on Anthony Neyer) in a span of 2 years? Add another QB next year (definitely possible) and that's almost as many as Pete recruited in his entire stay at SC.

Personally I think it's the right move, even though transfers are inevitable. The staff realizes they don't have a sure-fire QB to the caliber of Mark Sanchez or Matt Barkley so their only chance in creating one is through the type of competition generated by having 3 or 4 players compete for the same spot.

As for the Blackwell offer, the timing of it is strange. It's not like this offer is coming off a camp evaluation, so it makes you wonder if there was more at play. Regardless, it seems like VB has taken the staff's delay in offering to heart. Right now I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up at SC or heads elsewhere - complete toss-up.

ESPN Video: Todd McShay Breaks Down USC-Notre Dame QBs

Baby McShay breaking down the QB battle this weekend.

Photo of the Day: SC Players Visit Stafon

From left to right: Matt Barkley, Alex Parsons, Stafon Johnson, and Jeff Byers. Photo from the official blog.

Video USC: Matt Barkley Talks About Cal Victory

Despite missing a few open passes, I thought Matt played a great game.  You can see the potential of this offense as he starts to develop.  A couple of his throws in the game, one to Stanley Havili on the sideline and another to Damian Williams on a comeback route in the 2nd half, really showed how wide Matt can open the field with his arm.  People talk about his lone interception as a bad play, but he was actually hit on the play as he threw, which explains why the ball was lofted in the air.

With Ronald Johnson coming back this week, the offense has a ton of room to grow.  RoJo, even if he's not catching the ball, should immediately stretch the field with his speed which should help players like Aus and the TEs to work the middle of the field.

TNYC: Thoughts on Washington State Win

Here are some random thoughts on the win:

- It was a win, but a frustrating one.  The 1st quarter started smoothly with a quick 3-and-out from Wazzu followed by a quick TD from SC, but then 3 holding penalties, 1 offsides, 1 personal foul, and 1 roughing the kicker happened.  Let's not even talk about the 3rd quarter...

- Nice to see Brice Butler get his 1st career TD.  There was a overhead shot during the broadcast and you could see Brice start from the slot, move inside on the safety and then get nice separation off the break on the corner route; the defender really had no chance on the play.  You can watch Brice talk about the play here.

- Matt Barkley's throw to Damian Williams on the 3rd TD was a thing of beauty and the play of the day.  The anticipation and quick-decision showed why he is so highly-regarded.  If you look at the play, Matt drops back looking left, checks off, makes a split-second decision to throw to Damian, and then delivers a perfect touch pass (while getting hit) over the Wazzu linebackers' heads and between the safeties.

Credit also goes to Coach Bates/Morton for calling a great play.  In post-game interviews, the coaches/players talked about seeing large gaps in the middle of the field while studying game tapes last week.  If you watch the play closely, the formation is trips right and 1 receiver to the left; off the snap every receiver runs a streak up field, but the key to the play is the SC tackles let the ends run by them and Joe McKnight, rather than block, jumps forward to mimic a screen play which causes Wazzu's linebackers to bite and take a step forward allowing Damian to run right by them and split the safeties. Great play all-around.

- Want to talk about a player doing work?  Nick Perry has 6 sacks already playing limited minutes.  He is currently the Pac-10 leader in the category.  Nick just has that sixth sense for getting to the quarterback; he set a Michigan state record with 36 sacks in 2007 as a HS senior.

- Some prospects that showed up for Saturday's game:  Sharrif Floyd (official visit), Ronald Powell, Robert Woods, George Farmer, Marquis Lee, George Uko, Dietrich Riley, Dion Bailey, Joshua Shaw, Antwaun Woods, Demetrius Wright, and more.  The list of visitors could literally make up one side of a HS All-American game.

- Some big injuries from the game: Hebron Fangupo (broken fibula) and Marshall Jones (cracked vertebra) are out for the season.  Jordan Campbell also sprained his ankle and Garrett Green suffered a concussion.

- Have to give props to my man Allen Bradford for running pissed off all game. His stiff-arm on the run in the 2nd quarter was vicious.  Allen NEEDS MORE CARRIES.

Onto Cal, which should be an interesting game.  My head says this game should match up well for SC since we usually win against teams that rely heavily on the run, but considering how undisciplined and inconsistent our offense has looked, it's hard for me to feel confident.  Despite Cal's beatdown last week, this game still deserves a lot of hype, since it essentially makes or breaks both teams' seasons.  It should be a tough one.

Matt Barkley to Start on Saturday Against Washington State

From LATimes.com:

A week after failing to announce a starting quarterback, and then watching Aaron Corp struggle in a loss at Washington, Carroll said Wednesday that freshman Matt Barkley would return to the lineup Saturday night against Washington State.

"He's going to give us the best chance to win right now," Carroll said after practice.

What a difference a day can make; Matt went from having limited throwing motion and no velocity on his passes on Tuesday/Wednesday to "bombing throws" in Thursday's practice.  The game-plan for Saturday will likely be centered on the run, so I doubt the coaches will ask Matt to make any throws beyond 20-30 yards.  It'll be a nice tune-up before the Cal game next Saturday.

TNYC: Thoughts on the Washington Loss

This loss was tough to swallow.  When Kevin Thomas tried to go for the big hit rather than wrap up Chris Polk on the 2nd and long on U-Dub's final drive setting up a 3rd and 15 rather than 3rd and 20, I felt slightly sick in my stomach; I knew something bad was about to happen and it was confirmed on the next play when Jake Locker rolled out to his right and threw a bullet down the sideline for a 21 yard completion and a Husky 1st down.  In my mind, the game was over at that point.

Having let the loss soak in a bit and thinking through the rest of the season, I feel a lot better about Saturday's loss.  Here are some positive things to think about:

1.  Washington likely won't contend for Pac-10 title:  I might end up eating my words, but I just don't think the Huskies are consistent enough to make a serious push for the Pac-10 title (yet). The odds are definitely stacked against them.  Since the Pac-10 champion is decided on a round-robin system, even with the loss, SC is still in the driver's seat to win the Pac-10 title.

2.  An early loss will serve as a nice reality check and take some pressure off:  The players will get a nice refresher course on fundamentals and disciplined play and that should translate to a big win against Washington State at home on Saturday which sets up nicely for Cal the following week.  With SC's loss to UW, Cal will most likely be favored, which puts SC in a rare underdog position. Going back to 2007, the last time Cal had a ton of pressure and hype behind them, stepping away from the limelight might not be such a bad thing.

3.  Minimal overlap between UW and SC recruiting:  U-Dub's win will be a major selling point to recruits, but fortunately SC and UW don't have too many head-to-head battles for key recruits. I do have a gut feeling that we'll lose Demetrius Wright after this loss, but outside of that, there's no real concern of a recruiting fall-out.

Having read the latest reports and seen Barkley's post-game interview, even though it's not official, I'd be willing to bet a whole lot of money that he'll be back for Washington State.  If the coaches can get the "It's all about the ball" mentality back in the players' heads and open up the playbook a bit, we should be fine.