Defense Gets Back Up to Speed

With two weeks remaining before the Las Vegas Bowl on Christmas Day, Coach Pete Carroll wanted to spice up the practice routine, so he put his team through more than 50 plays of full-speed hitting Sunday.

And the defense, which had taken a beating against the offense earlier in the week, used the opportunity to flex its muscle.

On the first play, cornerback Antuan Simmons leaped to knock a pass away from receiver Kareem Kelly. As the day wore on, lineman Omar Nazel recovered a fumble and linebacker Mike Pollard tipped a pass into the air, then intercepted the ball.

“We all talked about it before,” Simmons said. “We stepped it up because we know we haven’t been up to par this week.”

Several starters rested, including offensive lineman Norm Katnik and defensive tackle Shaun Cody, who was injured Saturday. Cody’s knee did not swell over night, but remained stiff. He and cornerback Kris Richard, who was ill this weekend, are expected to return when the Trojans resume practicing Friday.

Cornerback Chris Cash, recovering from a broken kneecap, will have an MRI early this week and said he hopes to start running this week.

Carroll said he was pleased with the intensity of the session.

“It’s more than just the physical side,” he said. “It’s getting them mentally ready.”

While the starters got a chance to stay sharp Sunday, a number of reserves rotated through the lineup. The coaches wanted to look at several young lineman. Fullback Chad Pierson played well, as did reserve quarterback Matt Leinart, who got a lot of snaps early and threw a touchdown pass to backup receiver Sandy Fletcher.

“This is a good chance for the younger guys,” Leinart said. “We can show [Carroll] what we’ve got going into next spring. We can find our place on the team.”