Week 3 in the Big Ten feels less like a repeat of last week’s wild ride and more like a chance for a few teams to settle in and answer some real questions. USC is about to see what life looks like against its first Big Ten opponent.
Washington wants the kind of offensive eruption it hasn’t shown yet. And somewhere in the mix, an upset is going to land.
One of the clearest pressure points comes in the matchup between USC’s defense and Rutgers’ ground game. Rutgers has one clear strength: it can run the football.
Antwan Raymond is the kind of back who can make a defense work for every inch, and he’ll be a serious test for the Trojans on Saturday. So far, USC has done a good job of shutting down the run, and if that continues, Rutgers could be forced into a much tougher offensive night.
That’s the swing spot here. If the Trojans bottle up Raymond, this one could get lopsided in a hurry.
I think the Trojans’ run defense will hold up, and they will force Raymond to rush for less than 60 yards.
Another game that should have plenty of movement is Northwestern against Colorado. Julian Lewis brings real juice at quarterback for Colorado, and his recent stretch was eye-catching: 4 touchdowns and 366 yards in the past week.
Northwestern, with Chip Kelly, has the kind of offense that can produce when things open up. Put those together, and this has the feel of a game where both teams trade punches and keep the scoreboard busy.
It should end up as the highest-scoring Big Ten game this weekend.
Michigan State is another team that could make things uncomfortable for a ranked opponent. Notre Dame handled Wisconsin eventually, but not before the Badgers made it a fight early.
Michigan State has a chance to do something similar, and maybe even more. The Irish have a habit of playing to the level of whoever is across from them, and that opens the door for the Spartans to hang around longer than expected.
Notre Dame should still separate in the fourth quarter, but this one would reinforce just how deep the Big Ten really is.
Washington, meanwhile, looks ready for the kind of offensive day it has been waiting on. The Huskies have been winning with defense, but the big-play offense from last season hasn’t shown up yet.
That changes this week, at least if things play out the way they should. Demond Williams and Washington are set up to put together a dominant performance against Eastern Washington, and that kind of outing would be a welcome confidence boost before Big Ten play begins.
And then there’s Nebraska, which could be walking into the kind of game that exposes some of the things it has been able to hide so far. North Dakota comes in at 3-0, and this feels like the week the Cornhuskers get tripped up. Nebraska may be in for a loss, and North Dakota looks like the right team to make it happen.
In Other News...
USC Escaped Rutgers But One Troubling Issue Still Lingers
USC survived a tense battle with Rutgers, pulling out a 42-35 win that was far less comfortable than the ranking suggested. The Trojans needed big days from redshirt sophomore Miller and redshirt-freshman Riley Wormley to keep the offense moving, with both players supplying key runs and touchdowns as Rutgers stayed within striking distance throughout the afternoon.
The result will count, but it also left a familiar concern hanging over the Trojans. USC leaned heavily on individual playmakers, and the offense still had stretches defined by penalties and uneven passing, the kind of issues that can make even a win feel like a warning sign. Rutgers kept forcing USC to answer, and the bigger question now is whether the Trojans can clean up the rough edges before a tougher spot in the schedule turns those flaws into something more costly. [Read more 🡒]
USC Stayed Unbeaten But One Problem Looms Before Oregon
Southern California escaped its Big Ten opener with a 42-35 win over Rutgers, a game that looked more comfortable on the scoreboard than it felt on the field. Jayden Maiava threw for 277 yards and two touchdowns, King Miller added 102 rushing yards and a score, and the Trojans did enough to stay unbeaten even as Rutgers Dylan Lonergan pushed back with 272 passing yards and three touchdowns.
The bigger concern now is what comes next. USC gets Oregon at home, and the Ducks will be a far different test than a Rutgers team that hurt itself with turnovers, including a 99-yard interception returned for a touchdown. The Trojans survived this one, but the margin for error gets a lot thinner from here. [Read more 🡒]
Rutgers Fans Wont Like How USC Kept That Drive Alive
USCs first road trip of the season had the kind of third-quarter sequence that tends to linger long after the final whistle. In the middle of a pivotal drive against Rutgers, an inadvertent whistle wiped out a completed third-down pass, forcing the down to be replayed and turning one clean conversion into a fresh round of pressure for the Trojans.
From there, the drive took a winding path, with USC failing on the replayed third down before going for it on fourth and eventually hitting a 32-yard completion to keep things moving. It was the sort of break-and-response sequence that can swing a road game, and the No. 12 Trojans made enough of those plays to leave New Jersey with a win and a 4-0 record. [Read more 🡒]