They Saw Fog as a Challenge

Only a week removed from a pregame hailstorm at Washington State, USC knew it was in for a challenging night against Oregon State from the time the Trojans arrived at fog-shrouded Reser Stadium in Corvallis, Ore.

“Rolling in on the bus, we’re just like, man, you couldn’t see from 10 feet away from you,” quarterback Matt Leinart said after the top-ranked Trojans avoided an upset by defeating the Beavers, 28-20, Saturday night. “But a little adversity two weeks in a row won’t stop us.”

USC, which remained atop the polls Sunday, is expected to be No. 1 in today’s bowl championship series standings and can clinch a berth in the Rose Bowl with a victory over Arizona on Saturday at the Coliseum.

“We feel comfortable in Southern California,” said linebacker Matt Grootegoed, who had a team-best nine tackles -- four for losses -- and recovered a fumble. “No fog, no hail, no sleet, we know what kind of weather we’re going to get.”

The Rose Bowl, however, would be nothing more than a consolation prize for the Trojans, who have won 18 consecutive games and are aiming for the Orange Bowl, this season’s BCS title game.

They took a major step toward that goal by holding off an Oregon State team that looked as if it might repeat the feats of the school’s 1967 and 2000 teams that knocked off the Trojans.

“They were primed for an upset,” Coach Pete Carroll said Sunday. “You could feel it. That’s what was in the air. You could sense it.”

Carroll said some of USC’s early struggles resulted because assistant coaches in the press box could not see Oregon State personnel coming on and off the field from the far sideline.

“It took us a while to get into the rhythm of the game and figure out how they were doing things,” Carroll said. “It just threw us into kind of a wobble for a while.”

Junior tight end Dominique Byrd provided two big plays as the Trojans erased a 13-0 deficit.

In the second quarter, Byrd shed a defender and made a one-handed, 18-yard touchdown catch.

“The guy was holding my arm behind my back,” said Byrd, who had seven receptions, including a 25-yard scoring play. “I just threw an arm up there and came up with the ball.”

Reggie Bush returned a punt for a touchdown for the second week in a row, but Carroll acknowledged that he was concerned about Bush’s fumbles. Bush has mishandled four kicks in the last four games. Running back LenDale White also lost a fumble Saturday.

Carroll said he did not want to discourage Bush from trying to make plays.

“I don’t want to keep him from doing that, I just want to make sure he takes care of the ball on his way there,” Carroll said.

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Cornerback Kevin Arbet, who suffered a sprained knee, will be examined this week. Eric Wright could start in Arbet’s place....Flanker Chris McFoy aggravated his left knee sprain, Carroll said.