USC freshman wide receiver, Marquise Lee, had his best game of the season against the Oregon Ducks, catching eight passes for 187 yards and a touchdown.

Photo from LA Times

Oregon Duck’s running back, LaMichael James, outruns three USC Trojan defenders in last year’s match up at the Coliseum.

Photo by LA Times

The state of Oregon has not been kind to the USC Trojan’s football team the last five years. In fact, the Trojans are win-less in that span with three loses to the Oregon State Beavers and two to the Oregon Ducks. Not only that, but it’s been decades since the Trojans have taken down an Oregon Duck team ranked in the top ten. With Oklahoma State’s recent loss, the Ducks are now in prime position to make another appearance in the BCS Championship game—should they beat USC and win out. For the Trojans, with a Pac-12 Championship and Bowl game out of the picture, the game in Eugene will be as close to the post season as USC will get. Beyond the motivation that comes from the game’s implications, this match up has become one of the best rivalries in the Pac-12. Here’s a look at how these teams stack up against each other heading into tonight’s game.

Oregon Ducks (9-1, 7-0 Pac-12)

USC Trojans (8-2, 5-2 Pac-12)

Offense: Oregon

We all know about the Oregon Duck’s offense. It’s become their trademark. The Ducks rank third in points per game at just under 47 and have had only one game all season in which they’ve put up less than 30 (LSU). Normally, a team that puts that many points on the board relies on the passing game, but the Ducks are primarily a running team. Heisman trophy candidate, LaMichael James, Kenjon Barner and De’Anthony Thomas are the driving forces behind Oregon’s explosive rushing attack that ranks fifth in the country in yards per game. 

Unlike many great collegiate rushing teams, though, the Ducks can also throw the ball. Darron Thomas is no Andrew Luck (or Matt Barkley) but he’s been able to avoid mistakes this season and has been particularly effective at taking care of the ball, throwing 22 touchdowns with only five interceptions so far on the year. 

Offense: USC

The USC Trojan offense heads into this year’s game against Oregon, much improved from last year’s match up. Matt Barkley has lead the charge alongside his young, talented receivers, Robert Woods and Marquise Lee. Through ten games this season, Barkley has passed for 29 touchdowns against only six interceptions on 67% completion percentage for almost 2800 yards. Almost half of those touchdowns and yards can be attributed to Robert Woods, who has had anything but a sophomore slump, grabbing 92 passes for over 1100 yards and 11 touchdowns. Not to be outdone by his former teammate, Marquise Lee has come up strong as of late, catching 52 balls for over 700 yards and 8 touchdowns as a true freshman.

Though the passing game has been USC’s bread and butter this season, what really has allowed the Trojan offense to be so successful as of late is the emergence of a reliable running game, largely due to the production from Curtis McNeal. McNeal, who didn’t start until the Notre Dame game a few weeks ago has given the Trojan offense both a consistent run threat as well as a big play threat, which has significantly opened up the USC offense. With Robert Woods banged up, the running game will be especially crucial tonight. 

Slight Advantage: Oregon

Defense: Oregon

As much as the Ducks have made a name for themselves as an offensive juggernaut, they’ve also become known for their lackluster defense. Not this year. Oregon’s defense is much improved this year and ranks 32nd in points allowed, which, when you consider the amount of time the defense spends on the field, is very respectable. 

Despite the losses of Casey Matthews, Spencer Paysinger, Kenny Rowe and Cliff Harris among others, the Oregon defense has managed to remain one of the stingier defenses in the Pac-12. The Duck’s have a ton of speed on defense, particularly in the front seven, allowing them to get the quarterback often and create turnovers—as seen in the Stanford game. Oregon will need to stop a very balanced USC offensive attack, which could prove to be their biggest challenge of the season.

Defense: USC

The USC Trojan defense is an enigma. They show moments of greatness that are usually either preceded or followed by moments of horror. As of late the Trojan defense has been playing much better, containing Andrew Luck and Stanford for three and a half quarters—before falling apart at the end of regulation and through three overtimes—and holding a pretty good Washington team to one touchdown until the final seconds of the game. 

Nikell Robey and TJ McDonald lead the defensive backfield and the young freshmen Hayes Pullard, Lamar Dawson and Dion Bailey add great speed to the linebacking corp. The defensive line, though, is the anchor of the Trojan defense. Da’John Harris, Nick Perry, Devon Kennard and Wes Horton have been able to consistently put pressure on opposing quarterbacks and stop the between the tackles run game. Oregon’s speed and perimeter rush attack will be (by far) the greatest challenge the Trojan defense has or will face. In order to have a chance at stopping it, USC’s linebackers will need to be able to contain the three headed monster at running back and the D-line will need to put pressure on Thomas anytime he drops back to pass.

Advantage: Oregon

Special Teams: Advantage USC

Prediction: 

On paper, there’s no doubt that Oregon should win this game, but USC has nothing to lose in this game and they’re due for a win in Oregon. I’ll take the upset

USC-45, Oregon-42

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