USC’s Matt Barkley starts slowly

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There was a palpable buzz in the Coliseum at the start of today’s season opener against San Jose State, fans curious to witness the dawn of the Matt Barkley era.

A picture of Barkley -- the first true freshman quarterback to start an opener in school history -- on the giant video board before kickoff drew big cheers. The clamor grew even louder when he took the field with the offense on the Trojans’ first possession.

Those cheers quieted when Barkley’s first throw, a quick pass to the left, went for minus-two yards. He then overthrew a receiver downfield.

Things didn’t go much better on the second series. With USC facing third and five at its own 16-yard line, the coaches let Barkley look downfield, but he held the ball a second too long and was sacked.

Meanwhile, San Jose State quarterback Kyle Reed was getting off to a fast start, completing five of eight passes for 44 yards to lead his team to an early 3-0 lead.

Barkley did complete one downfield pass to tight end Anthony McCoy late in the first quarter, but McCoy promptly fumbled. When USC later called a pitch play on third-and-long, grumbles could be heard from the stands.

-- David Wharton