The USC Trojans
Head Coach: Steve Sarkisian, 2nd year
2014 Record: 9-4 overall, 6-3 Pac-12
Mar 3, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Southern California Trojans coach Steve Sarkisian at spring practice at Cromwell Field. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
After last season’s Holiday Bowl victory over the Nebraska Cornhuskers, head coach Steve Sarkisian said that the USC football 2014 season was a “total success”.
USC Trojan fans know that was not really the case but it did seem that the Trojans we’re going in the right direction. I guess after Lane Kiffin, all you can do is go up. But I digress.
The Trojans will always have fantastic players looking to keep USC in the national picture, but lately players have not been the problem. It seems that USC has had much left to be desired in the coaching department. Will this be the year that Sark can make USC elite once again or will we have to Trojans flounder at the most crucial times?
To be fair, the talent alone can carry the team, but when Sarkisian goes up against teams with good coaching staffs, him and his crew need to find a way to counter that.
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The Trojans are expected to not only win the South Division, but also the Pac-12. Some even have them in contention for the National Championship, but they have a few hurdles to overcome before that happens, namely, their final two games of the season.
Before their match-up with the UCLA football team, the Trojans head north to take on the Oregon Ducks, a team they are projected to meet in the Pac-12 Championship. If USC has a favorable record going into their last two games and can beat the Ducks and Bruins, then they should be able to win the South. But it is not as easy as it sounds, especially since USC has not been able to beat both UCLA and Oregon since 2011.
Next: The USC Offense vs UCLA Defense