Trojans Marshall Forces

Keith Gilbertson half-jokingly labeled the situation unfair.

Bill Doba called the potential problems monstrous.

Mike Riley found only one word to describe it -- horrible.

The coaches of USC’s next three Pacific 10 Conference opponents were asked this week to assess difficulties created for defenses when Trojan running back Reggie Bush lines up as a receiver.

“I don’t care what formation they’re in, you better know where No. 5 is, OK? End of story,” said Gilbertson, whose struggling Washington team meets top-ranked USC on Saturday at the Coliseum.

USC took a hit when flanker Steve Smith, the Trojans’ leading receiver, suffered a broken leg two weeks ago against California. His absence, however, may have resulted in the Trojan offense becoming even more dangerous.

Shortly after the Cal game, USC offensive coordinator Norm Chow delved into the notes he scribbled last spring during a fact-finding mission to St. Louis, where he studied the Rams’ use of Marshall Faulk.

With Smith out, Chow further Faulkanized the already versatile Bush for last week’s game against Arizona State.

Bush caught a touchdown pass out of the backfield, threw a touchdown pass off a reverse and came within a shoe-width of returning a punt for a touchdown in a 45-7 victory that extended the Trojans’ winning streak to 15 games.

But Bush, 6 feet and 200 pounds, quietly made his biggest impact on plays when he did not run or catch the football.

With Arizona State focused on Bush, freshman receiver Dwayne Jarrett took advantage of one-on-one coverage and caught three touchdown passes, including one from Bush. USC coaches said tight end Dominique Byrd and running back LenDale White also benefited.

“I told him, ‘You were the most valuable guy on the field for what you’re creating by your presence,’ ” Coach Pete Carroll said this week.

Bush, who leads the Trojans with eight touchdowns, said he had no problem with his role on offense. He is happy to carry the ball, catch it, or play the decoy.

“I feel like I’m a threat on the field,” he said. “When I’m in there, it opens up a lot more for other people.”

Bush lined up at various backfield spots, in the slot and split wide to the right or left against Arizona State. Chow expects the variations to multiply as the Trojans enter the second half of a season that could end with an appearance in the Orange Bowl, this year’s bowl championship series title game.

“You have to account for him, that’s the whole problem,” Chow said. “You have to account for him in every spot. And [defenses] don’t know what we will do.”

Arizona State Coach Dirk Koetter anticipated that USC would move Bush around even more than usual because of Smith’s absence. But the Sun Devils could not stop Bush from scoring on a 10-yard pass reception.

“We actually knew they were going to run that play in the red zone,” Koetter said. “We’d worked on it all week and we still couldn’t cover it right.”

Cal Coach Jeff Tedford said Bush demands special attention, which can result in one-on-one coverage for others. By moving Bush around, especially at receiver, USC creates unavoidable confusion even if he does not get the ball.

“There’s no question it causes some problems communication-wise for the defense,” Tedford said.

Jarrett laughed when asked how opponents react when Chow moves Bush wide.

“The defense goes into a little bit of a frenzy,” said Jarrett, who turned a pass from Bush into a 52-yard scoring play against Arizona State. “When Reggie lines up out there, safeties slide over a little bit more and the cornerback is backpedaling already before the ball is even hiked.”

Doba, the coach at Washington State, says there are not a lot of good options for a defense when Bush lines up at receiver.

“You don’t want to put a linebacker on him, so now you have to move the safety down,” he said. “You’re going to end up with the linebacker somewhere else, or else you’ve got to get a nickel package.

“Then you’re more susceptible to the run and [White] is not too bad running that football.”

Riley, the coach at Oregon State, is bracing for USC’s arrival in Corvallis on Nov. 6. As the former head coach of the San Diego Chargers and secondary coach for the New Orleans Saints, he knows the damage a Faulk clone is capable of.

“I can remember we played the Rams one time and they threw the ball like the first 18 plays straight in the game,” Riley said. “Marshall was running wheel routes and seam routes and he’s all over the place.”

Gilbertson will not be surprised if he sees Bush in a similar role Saturday.

Bush burned the Huskies on touchdown pass plays of 60 and 37 yards last season in the Trojans’ 43-23 victory at Seattle.

Given “a guy who’s 6 feet and about 220 and can run about 10.4 in the 100 meters and is a great athlete, you could probably play some match-up on him,” Gilbertson said. “If you don’t have that guy, you’ve got problems.”