UCLA Week (Hate Week Part 2)...

DC Trojan posted Neuheisel's comments in the post below...

The funny thing about those comments is that while pretty much every USC fan laughs and scoffs at Neuheisel's proclamation, many Bruins fans are shaking their heads as well.

Again, UCLA is in the picture to have a shot for the Pac-12 for no other reason than USC not being eligible for post season play.

Now, as I have said every year after the 2006 debacle...USC cannot take this game lightly. Lane Kiffin has to ensure that this team does not suffer a letdown....especially with UCLA seeing a glimmer of hope to try and make something out of this season. Neuheisel is literally playing for his coaching life with this one.

Lose and he is likely gone.

Win and UCLA fans could be looking at a repeat of Karl Dorrell getting another year.

In 2006 USC had a chance to play in the BCS title game if they beat USC. We all remember the result...

Many UCLA faithful want Neuheisel gone. I highly doubt any UCLA fan will openly root against Neuheisel, but they all know that if Slick Rick pulls off the win, Dan Guerrero may keep Neuheisel around.

The ramifications could give Neuheisel some breathing room to go out a sell his snake oil to any number of recruits...especially with USC taking their first scholarship hit in 2012.

Lane Kiffin hasn't given me any reason to think that he won't have this team prepared...but I don't want the same things I said about the Ducks not taking USC seriously to happen to USC.

LEAVE. NO. DOUBT.

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So, lets take a quick look at the Gutties...

Who starts at QB will be the first question. Richard Brehaut (broken leg) practiced last week, but is still questionable for Saturday, that means that Prince will get the start. Of course, Neuheisel is pumping Prince up after his performance against Colorado...but as we have all seen CU isn't all that.

Mobile QB's have always given 'SC fits. Prince can run and he has shown he can throw the ball so 'SC needs to play disciplined.

Neuheisel is preaching aggressiveness to Prince...

"Our offense is one that's predicated on being able to control the line of scrimmage and being able to run the football," said Neuheisel. "When people stack up against it, we have to either get the quarterback involved in the running game or we have to get the ball down the field and over the top of them as safeties get more involved in the running defense."

Neuheisel called Saturday's 45-6 win over Colorado the prototype for his offense, as they shredded Colorado for 328 yards on the ground and 225 more in the air. Then again, there is a reason why Colorado 2-10 this season and 1-7 in conference, and are a far cry from USC (9-2, 6-2).

Uh huh,just like the article said...The Colorado defense is not USC's defense...

I will leave it at that.

At running back, Jonathan Franklin has some speed and can be a bit of a bruiser at times. Franklin had a pretty good game last week.

Johnathan Franklin had 162 yards rushing against Colorado, giving him 857 yards this season. He needs 143 to become the first UCLA player to have consecutive 1,000-yard seasons since DeShaun Foster in 2000 and 2001.

Franklin, a junior, had 1,127 yards last season, giving him 2,550 in his career....

The defense needs to get into the backfield and disrupt Prince and Franklin.

Monte may have found a way to defend Oregon's high powered offense for a good chunk of that game. Does Monte have a plan against Pistol Rick?

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Aside from Neuheisel's asinine proclamations about gap closing. It would appear that Neuheisel may be losing this team.

Adam Maya offers up his observations...

After its biggest victory of the season (in terms of margin of victory), UCLA’s locker room was very, very quiet. That said everything. I can’t tell you how surprised I was to find half the players already dressed and gone by the time we’d wrapped up with Neuheisel. They’re typically there longer even when they get blown out, which is always much shorter than if they win, much less win in resounding fashion. As I noted in my notebook, it was a big party in the Rose Bowl locker room two years ago after the Bruins clinched a bowl berth and won their sixth game of the season the week before playing USC. This year’s team seems to have a totally different mindset.

Maybe it’s because the Pac-12 South title is still undecided, or the players are a bit jaded after all the ups and downs of this season, or from all the ups an downs the majority of them have experienced the past few seasons in Westwood. Whatever the case, they were clearly in no mood to celebrate after crushing Colorado. Cornerback Andrew Abbott said he had the same observation upon entering the locker room and that no one had specifically encouraged the players to keep calm or leave quickly. They just knew they still had work to do.

Hard to know the reasons for their quick exit...but I can see why trucking lowly Colorado would not be a reason to celebrate.

Some players may be focused on USC, others may be seeing light at the end of the tunnel and others may simply be tired of of the whole mess this year has turned out to be.

Either way USC needs to expect a fired up UCLA team...this is the last chance for some to actually do something.

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Some links and video...

‘Special kids' help USC rise to No. 10 - The Orange County Register

First Look: Rivalry Week - ESPN Los Angeles

Matt Barkley, USC - ESPN Los Angeles (Radio Interview)

Can Kiffin coach? Maybe the answer is yes - Pac-12 Blog - ESPN

Coach Speak: Week 12 - ESPN Los Angeles

Kiffin Call: Oregon - USC Trojans

Photo Galleries: USC vs. Oregon - USC Trojans