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Getting a Head Start

By Paragon SC

Looks like the QB competition is already underway at USC as Mark Sanchez starts to focus on next season.

"I'm not waiting, this is my last day as a backup," Sanchez said.

Sanchez will battle Arkansas transfer Mitch Mustain for the starting spot. Freshman Aaron Corp is a longshot candidate to replace John David Booty.

Mustain started eight games for Arkansas in 2006, but Sanchez enjoys frontrunner status because he is currently more familiar with the offense and started three games for the Trojans this past season.

"Nothing substitutes for experience," Sanchez said. "That gives me more than a leg up. I have no doubt I can play for this school."

Sanchez completed 69 of 114 passes for 695 yards with seven touchdowns and five interceptions. He led the Trojans to wins over Arizona and Notre Dame and lost to Oregon.

I think it's great that he is chompin' at the bit to get the competition going. He's confident I'll give him that but I don't agree with his comment about experience. Sanchez has been in the system now for 3 years and while he only started 3 games this season and had a small amount of garbage time the past couple of seasons, his statement about experience doesn't seem to jive with his results.

In his criticism of Pete Carroll a month after the Stanford game HP made an excellent observation. (Emphasis Mine)

Carroll has done a great job at recruiting five No. 1 recruiting classes in a row and now he would have us think that he has nothing to work with ("it's not about talent, it's about experience"--never mind that John Wooden said the opposite, or that he refuses to apply the same rule to his coaching staff choices). He says that having to play his backup quarterback (who, by the way, is in his third year in the system and was the Parade Player of the Year) is the reason for USC's offensive struggles. How many teams out there would die to have a Mark Sanchez taking snaps for them right now?

I think that HP makes some legit complaints about coach Carroll but that is a discussion for another time. I would also agree with HP that there a lot of teams out there that would take Sanchez at face value but Mitch Mustain has real game experience as well against some tougher competition so to me Mustain's 7-0 as a starter in the SEC cancels out Sanchez's 3 years in the system and his less than impressive three starts in 2007.

To me they are even going into spring ball. I know my comments will not be popular here but lets get it on on the field. Enough talk lets see some action!

I will support whomever is named starter and I will judge them form their play on the field but I am not completely comfortable with some of Sanchez's comments in this article; we all know that this will be a battle but keep it on the field and out of the press. It just seems a little self-serving to me and it smells a little like of a sense of entitlement.

I want what's best for this team I could care less who it is I just want positive results.

</Rant>

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