Not Having a Holiday Is Trojans’ Biggest Problem

Three fumbles should have been enough. When Notre Dame quarterback Carlyle Holiday lost the football in the second, third and fourth quarters of Saturday’s game against USC, that should have effectively doomed his team’s chances.

But in an afternoon filled with mistakes and missed opportunities on both sides, the difference was that Holiday compensated for his errors by making big plays. His statistics--98 yards rushing, nine of 12 passing for 133 yards--don’t do justice to his impact in a 27-16 victory.

They don’t describe him dashing 43 yards from the shotgun formation in the first quarter, putting his team in position for a field goal in a first half largely dominated by USC. They don’t explain the four times he completed third-down passes to keep the offense moving.

And they don’t account for what happened in the third quarter when he accelerated around right end, faking a Trojan cornerback off his feet and bouncing into the end zone for a 35-yard touchdown that put Notre Dame ahead to stay.

In other words, the sophomore was the type of player lacking from a USC team that has battled opponents close but, time after time this season, failed to break the run, complete the long pass or force the turnover that wins a game in the fourth quarter.

“Sometimes you do it on defense, sometimes you do it on offense,” Coach Pete Carroll said after watching game film Sunday. “We just haven’t come up with it.”

Despite his turnovers, Holiday seems to possess the special quality that coaches and players always talk about. His knack for making something happen is what helped him win the starting job when Matt LoVecchio faltered earlier this season.

Athletic ability plays a role. Holiday was a four-sport letterman in high school in San Antonio and has high jumped six feet, six inches. Field sense is important too.

“He’s slippery and he has the ability not to get hit,” USC middle linebacker Mike Pollard said. “That’s a good quality to have.”

The Trojans thought they were developing a big-play combination between quarterback Carson Palmer and receiver Kareem Kelly, who connected on long passes against Washington and Arizona State in recent weeks. But Kelly dropped several catchable balls in South Bend and, once USC fell behind, Palmer was left to scramble from a heavy rush and threw two interceptions.

“We’re leaning heavily on him,” Carroll said of his quarterback.

With USC unable to generate much of any offense after the first few minutes of the third quarter, Holiday guided his team to victory. Carroll talked about the spark he provided at critical moments. Safety Antuan Simmons noticed.

“They made their plays,” he said. “We didn’t.”