Fun for the Road

The sellout crowd at Folsom Field cheered wildly Saturday when Ralphie IV, Colorado’s 1,300-pound mascot, left her pen for a traditional pregame ramble across the length of the field and back.

Neither the fans, nor USC players who saw the end of the buffalo’s jaunt as they emerged from the locker room for kickoff, could have predicted that Ralphie would cover more ground than the Buffaloes’ offense.

USC, ranked 17th, dominated from start to finish en route to a 40-3 victory over No. 18 Colorado before 53,119.

The Trojans (2-0), playing for the first time since defeating Auburn on Sept. 2, limited the Buffaloes to 61 yards and four first downs.

“I don’t think they credited our defense too much in their game plan,” Trojan linebacker Melvin Simmons said. “I don’t think they thought we could play four quarters of dominating defensive football.”

The Buffaloes (1-2) also were unprepared for the emergence of a Trojan rushing attack that produced 181 of the Trojans’ 425 yards.

And who could blame them?

USC averaged 87.7 yards a game last season and ran for 84 yards against Auburn.

But Sultan McCullough showed his breakaway speed against the Buffaloes, scoring on a career-long 62-yard run and finishing with 110 yards in 15 carries. Malaefou MacKenzie gained 35 yards in 10 carries and freshman Hershel Dennis averaged 6.4 yards for five carries.

“The offensive line did a great job opening up holes for all of us,” said McCullough, who has rushed for 100 yards or more 10 times. “I just did my part.”

So did quarterback Carson Palmer.

With representatives from 11 NFL teams watching from the press box, Palmer completed 22 of 30 passes for 244 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions.

Palmer completed five of five passes during the Trojans’ first possession that ended with a 32-yard touchdown pass play to MacKenzie on fourth and seven with 9:56 left in the first quarter. He was four for five later in the quarter in an 80-yard drive that began with tailback Justin Fargas’ first carry of the season and ended with MacKenzie’s 14-yard touchdown run.

Freshman wide receiver Mike Williams caught a game-high seven passes for 90 yards, junior flanker Keary Colbert and senior wide receiver Kareem Kelly each caught four passes and tight end Gregg Guenther had three.

“The job our linemen and running backs did opened up the passing game,” said Palmer, who completed 25 of 30 passes for 275 yards against Colorado two years ago. “That balance is hard to beat.”

USC overcame the altitude, the crowd, several mistakes in its kicking game and everything attempted by a Colorado team that was without several injured players, including starting quarterback Craig Ochs, running back Marcus Houston and punt returner Jeremy Bloom.

Senior quarterback Robert Hodge, playing in place of Ochs, completed his first pass for 20 yards and missed on his final eight attempts. Running back Chris Brown, who gained 185 yards last week against San Diego State, rushed for only 44 in 14 carries.

“It was not a good day,” Colorado Coach Gary Barnett said. “We were totally inept.”

Meanwhile, USC looked as if it benefited from the bye week that allowed Coach Pete Carroll and his staff to develop some depth.

Freshman Winston Justice started at right tackle and solidified a line that did not give up a sack. Reserve safety Jason Leach intercepted a pass and reserve defensive back Forrest Mozart blocked a punt that freshman safety Mike Ross recovered for a touchdown.

The frequent substitutions kept Trojan players fresh and USC wore down the Buffaloes with superior team speed.

“I don’t think they had much of a chance to get into a rhythm today,” Carroll said.

Colorado’s only ray of hope came in the second quarter when the Buffaloes trailed, 14-0. Freshman safety J.J. Billingsley intercepted a pass by Palmer and returned it to the Colorado 47, where USC was flagged for a late hit.

Colorado’s elation lasted only a moment, however, because officials also cited the Buffaloes for a late hit on Palmer.

The offsetting penalties gave the ball back to USC. Three plays later, McCullough ran off left tackle and then broke to the sideline. He outran defensive backs Phil Jackson and Donald Strickland to the end zone for a 20-0 lead.

“As soon as he got to the crease, everybody on the sideline knew he was gone,” Carroll said.

After Pat Brougham’s 42-yard field goal in the third quarter, USC again took control with an 80-yard, 14-play drive that consumed 7 minutes 21 seconds and ended with Palmer’s one-yard sneak into the end zone.

Now, the Trojans turn their attention to Saturday’s game at Kansas State.

At the beginning of the season, Carroll said the first three games of the season were a tune-up for the beginning of Pacific 10 Conference play Sept. 28 against Oregon State.

The Trojans are off to a good start, but they are not about to get ahead of themselves.

“We want to be the No. 1 defense in the nation--this is a step,” linebacker Mike Pollard said. “Talking about our record right now doesn’t make sense because two wins doesn’t mean anything. We’ll talk about our record after the season if we’re 12-0.”

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KEYS TO THE GAME

Gary Klein’s keys to the game and how the Trojans matched up:

1. Weather the conditions: The altitude at Folsom Field--5,345 feet above sea level--did not affect the Trojans because their defense was rarely on the field. Colorado went three and out on five of its first six possessions and managed only four first downs in the game. USC rotated tailbacks, receivers and defensive linemen, keeping everyone fresh.

2. Establish a running game: Five tailbacks helped the Trojans run for 181 yards. Sultan McCullough led the way with 110 yards and scored on a career-long 62-yard run off the left side. The offensive line did an outstanding job opening holes. Freshman Winston Justice started at right tackle and redshirt junior Eric Torres started at right guard.

3. Reduce penalties: The Trojans, who were flagged eight times for 92 yards against Auburn, were penalized seven times for 50 yards against Colorado. They got lucky, though, when a personal foul penalty for a late hit after a Colorado interception was offset by a penalty against the Buffaloes for roughing the passer. USC kept the ball and went on to score a touchdown.