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Finished watching the game into the wee hours of this morning. I saw some things that I liked, but still have some concerns.
In no particular order...
Robert Woods broke Keyshawn Johnson's record of 32 receptions over the first three games of the season. Enjoy him now, because before you know it Robert Woods will gone. Teams are lining up to tee off on Woods because he is that effective. That is why it is so important that Barkley get the other WR's into the mix...Marquis Lee was great and I heard Carswell's name more than a few times last night.
Matt Barkley's 5-TD effort ties the record held by Rodney Peete, Carson Palmer, Matt Leinart and Mark Sanchez. Like I noted above, what is even more important is that he spread it around, everyone got a taste. Barkley is looking real good, but I want to see the same sort of production now in the second half of the season.
We all know about Robert Woods and Marquise Lee but it was nice to see TE's Grimble and Telfer make some catches and be productive with this offense. Rhett Ellison had a much better game than he did last week...the FB position is far too important in this offense to NOT have a solid FB.
The middle of the O-line is still a major concern. USC could not get the running game going until the middle of the third qtr. By then the Syracuse offense began to tire and they started eating up chunks of yards. Deon Goggins made his presence known throughout most of the game.
While the O-line struggled to get the push needed early to establish the run, Marc Tyler was still an important asset...especially is pass protection.
Speaking of the running game, Dillon Baxter saw some decent action and Curtis McNeal responded to Kennedy Polamalu's fire and brimstone speech at halftime. Unfortunately D.J. Morgan put the ball on the turf again...He will probably be banished to the bench for a while. Not sure I agree with that philosophy, players only get better with carries. That is not likely in Kiffin's world...
Here are some relevant links from last nights win:
Big win feels unfamiliar - ESPN Los Angeles
Trojans start to feel the rush - ESPN Los Angeles
USC enjoys a complete-game victory over Syracuse - latimes.com
So much for that second-half scoring drought.
Barkley guides USC rout of Syracuse - The Orange County Register
USC’s Woods keeps his head in right place - The Orange County Register
Video: Gary Klein talks about USC's victory over Syracuse - latimes.com
Gary Klein, The Times' USC reporter, discusses with CineSport's Brian Clark how the Trojans put together two good halves of football in a 38-17 victory over the Syracuse Orange.