Trojans Are Planning to Tough It Out

The locker room had emptied after last week’s loss and Brent McCaffrey was alone, stuffing a pair of shoes into his bag, musing about where to turn next.

“Just because we have talent doesn’t mean jack,” the USC tackle said. “We’ve got to be physical.”

In this basic version of the game--as espoused by the senior member of the offensive line--alignments and play-calling fade away and turnovers become less significant.

“It’s simple,” McCaffrey said. “When you have an attitude that you want to beat [up] . . . the other guy, you’re going to find a way to win.”

The notion of football as hand-to-hand combat becomes all the more crucial when USC faces ninth-ranked Oregon at the Coliseum today.

The Trojans need to be tough along the line because their quarterback, Carson Palmer, and his receivers are banged up. They also know their recent games against Oregon have been close and hard-hitting, especially last season’s, which the Ducks won in triple overtime, 33-30.

“It was more of a survival game,” Oregon Coach Mike Bellotti recalled. “I think it cost both teams. . . . We lost four starters and I know SC lost a couple.”

The Ducks lost their next two games before rebounding for a winning season and a victory in the Sun Bowl. The Trojans lost Palmer because of a broken collarbone and went into a tailspin soon after.

“There is a lot of payback in this game,” Trojan linebacker Zeke Moreno said. “If we had won that game, we could have kept the emotion going.”

This time around, Oregon is sitting atop the conference standings and USC is the underdog, unranked and eager for a turnaround after consecutive losses.

The Trojans go into the game with a sore-shouldered Palmer and a leading receiver, Kareem Kelly, who has barely practiced in two weeks. Both are expected to play but USC would like to take the pressure off them by establishing a ground game.

The problem is, the offensive line is also somewhat hobbled and Oregon plays tough against the run. USC expects the Ducks to keep a gang of defenders near the line.

“They can bring nine guys into the box, it doesn’t matter,” Kelly said. “Our goal is to run the ball.”

USC Coach Paul Hackett would not go quite that far, saying, “We’re not going to be foolish.”

The Trojans will gladly pass if Oregon overplays the run, though the quarterback--be it Palmer or, in a pinch, reserve Mike Van Raaphorst--may choose a three-step drop to avoid the rush.

“Our quick-pass game has to be sharp,” Palmer said.

When Oregon has the ball, the Ducks will probably rely on tailback Maurice Morris.

As the all-time junior college rushing leader, Morris was the object of a recruiting battle between Oregon and USC. Since arriving in Eugene this fall, he has run for 125 yards a game.

“Maurice has been the answer,” Bellotti said. “He is the type of back that can get stronger as the game goes on.”

And the Ducks aren’t quite as effective when they throw, quarterback Joey Harrington completing 47% of his passes.

So the USC defense has emphasized stopping the run, something it could not do against the likes of Colorado’s Marcus Houston and Oregon State’s Ken Simonton. The Trojans must also curtail a recent tendency to surrender big plays.

After watching his team get burned for touchdowns of 75 and 80 yards last week, Hackett wondered aloud about continuing to play a blitzing, pressure defense. The players, however, have not wavered.

“That’s why we came here, to play aggressive defense,” safety Ifeanyi Ohalete said. “We don’t want to be one of those passive defenses that sits in cover-three and lets [the opponent] throw hitches and short slant routes all game.”

It all gets back to McCaffrey’s bruiser mentality, football at its roots, an issue that Hackett addressed when he said he wants his team to adopt “a violent tempo.”

“That’s when we’re at our best,” he said.

On the other side of the line, Oregon has a similar inkling that today’s game will be decided by the players who, quite simply, play hardest.

The Trojans “are very scary because, obviously, their backs are to the wall,” Bellotti said. “I have to have my kids play with the same kind of intensity.”

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No. 9 Oregon at USC,12:30 p.m., Ch. 7