After the Week 7 bye, USC heads back onto the road with a familiar challenge waiting in Madison: noise, physicality and a Wisconsin team that wants to lean on the run game. For redshirt freshman safety Alex Graham, that means the Trojans’ secondary has to do more than cover on the back end.
“They're a super physical team, so just us coming down, making tackles, taking on blocks, keeping our leverages. Just playing ball at the end of the day. Having fun with it,” Graham said on how the secondary can help the front seven with stopping the run.
Wisconsin’s offense has made the ground game a clear part of its identity. The Badgers run the ball 53.43 percent of the time, which ranks No. 57 nationally, and they average 32.8 rushes per game, good for No.
- Their rushing numbers sit at 4.1 yards per carry, No. 76, and 136 yards per game, No.
The workload is spread across a few different names. Dual threat quarterback Colton Joseph leads the team with 69 carries for 333 yards and four touchdowns.
Senior back Abu Sama III, listed at 5-11 and 214 pounds, has 224 yards on 34 touches. Junior running back Darrion Dupree, also 5-11 but 218 pounds, has added 215 yards on 49 carries and two scores.
For Graham, the emphasis is simple.
“At the end of the day, remember you have to do your one job, your 111. Do your job. Continue to play as a team and stay together.”
The other part of this trip is the environment. USC has already spent time leaning on the crowd noise simulator at the Bloom Football Performance Center, and that preparation has been a regular part of practice since it was installed. The Trojans used it heavily during Penn State week to get ready for the White Out, and it’s back in the mix this week for Camp Randall Stadium.
“I think, like, definitely, ever since one of the first practices. Really, when they first installed it, we've been using them. Yeah, kind of used to it now,” Graham said about the crowd noise simulator.
The soundtrack at Bloom has included House of Pain’s “Jump Around,” Wisconsin’s fourth quarter anthem, and Graham sounds like he’s enjoying every second of it.
“It's been amazing. You know just to hear that - I actually like the song, so it turns me up.
I really be jumping on the sideline when I'm in a game,” Graham said about Wisconsin’s fourth quarter song. “I jump around literally, but you know, I enjoy hearing that.
I think it's going to be a fun one this week.”
He added, “I don't think so,” when asked if he would get tired of hearing it by the end of the week. “I really like that song.”
USC’s focus remains on the next game and nothing more.
“It’s the next one,” Graham said about the importance of the Wisconsin game. “Like I said, take it week by week.
It's a team in front of us [that’s] trying to mess our record up. But you know, two good teams ready to play.”
That approach matters with the Trojans entering the back half of their schedule. They handled the first major test by beating Penn State at home, and now they head to Madison before No.
3 Ohio State comes to town in Week 9 on Oct. 31.
Even with that stretch looming, Graham says the bye week was about recovery and staying locked into the routine.
“Just keeping my body right. Making sure I'm recovering the right way … watching film and you're preparing for the next game,” Graham said about how he spent the bye week.
“Yeah, of course. More recovery, like you said, got more time.
It's really the same schedule, though, with us still practicing everything. But overall, just keep the routine and routine, you know.
Don't change it up. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.”
Graham has already had to battle through one setback this season. He was injured in the first half of the Rutgers game in Week 3, sat out the Oregon game and then returned against Washington in Week 5, where he finished with three total tackles.
Through the first half of the season, Graham has 15 tackles, including eight on defense, along with three tackles for loss, two sacks and a quarterback hurry.
In Other News...
Wisconsin May Have A Defensive Problem Right Before USC
Javan Robinsons status is one of the more notable injury-watch items hanging over Wisconsin as it gets ready for USC. Robinson is listed as questionable, and while the Badgers have not disclosed any specifics about what he is dealing with, his role on defense makes the uncertainty matter heading into a matchup where every healthy piece is going to count.
Wisconsin is still waiting on more injury-report updates before kickoff, and that leaves a real layer of tension around how the defense might look. If Robinson cannot go, it would be a meaningful blow to a unit that needs its best answers available against USCs offense, and the Badgers may not know exactly what they have until much closer to game time. [Read more 🡒]
Wisconsin Already Faces A Tough 2027 Quarterback Decision
The Badgers are already in the thick of planning for the 2027 quarterback market, and Colton Joseph has emerged as one of the names worth watching. Wisconsin is reportedly negotiating with Joseph for that season after a mixed year, a reminder of how quickly the transfer landscape is forcing programs to make decisions well ahead of time.
Louisville, Nebraska and West Virginia are dealing with similar conversations as they sort through their own transfer quarterbacks after successful seasons, which only adds to the pressure. With the 2027 market expected to be busy and full of uncertainty, Wisconsins interest in Joseph is part of a much bigger race to line up the right answer before the window starts to close. [Read more 🡒]
Wisconsin Gets USC At A Complicated Time In Madison
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Jayden Maiava has been one of the more impressive pieces of USCs season, and Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell made sure to acknowledge what the quarterback brings to the table ahead of the meeting. For the Badgers, it is another chance to test themselves against a ranked opponent at a time when the Trojans are trying to keep their momentum intact despite the strain of the schedule and the health concerns on the roster. [Read more 🡒]