A Tall Order for the Defense

USC Coach Pete Carroll spent all of training camp and the first half of the season trying to find cornerbacks who could match up with the tall, physical receivers in the Pacific 10 Conference.

The Trojans meet the model today when they go against Washington receiver Reggie Williams, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound sophomore who is on pace to become the Huskies’ all-time leading receiver.

Williams, a freshman All-American last year, has caught 38 passes for 655 yards and five touchdowns this season.

Last week against Arizona, Williams caught a short pass from quarterback Cody Pickett with slightly more than two minutes left and turned it into an 80-yard scoring play that gave Washington a 32-28 victory.

“He has the total package -- size, strength and speed -- and they do a great job featuring his strengths,” USC cornerback Darrell Rideaux said.

Most of the responsibility for covering Williams probably will fall on 6-foot junior Marcell Allmond, who is scheduled to make his first start at left cornerback.

“My biggest challenge is staying within my own game,” Allmond said. “I’m not going to worry about [Williams] because that’s when you start doing other stuff you’re not supposed to be doing.”

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USC wide receiver Kareem Kelly has caught passes in 41 consecutive games, one shy of the Pac-10 record set by Dennis Northcutt of Arizona from 1996 to ’99.

Kelly probably won’t start because of a sprained right ankle but will play against Washington.

Oregon’s Keenan Howry also enters today’s game against Arizona State with a chance to tie the record.

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USC leads the series against Washington with a 42-26-4 record. The Trojans, however, have won only three of the last 10 games between the teams and only once since 1995.

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A crowd of about 55,000 is expected for today’s game.

Washington has not played at the Coliseum since 1998 when USC defeated the Huskies, 33-10, in Trojan quarterback Carson Palmer’s first start.

The teams did not play in 1999 and 2000.