NFL
By George Lopez
The USC Trojans return to the LA Coliseum this Saturday to take on their cross-town rival UCLA Bruins in the annual battle for Los Angeles. The Trojans will look to make it two straight wins over UCLA as they try to bounce back from a disappointing 42-27 loss to Oregon that all but eliminated them from consideration in the CFP. The Bruins are looking to snap a 4-game losing streak. The Bruins come into the game with a 3-8 record and are looking to end the Trojans’ regular season on a low point.
Going into the game against Oregon, the Trojans looked to continue to run a balanced offensive attack head coach Lincoln Riley has used throughout the season. Oregon was able to take away the Trojans’ vaunted running game, holding them to 52 rushing yards on 28 carries. Coach Riley went more to his
passing game led by quarterback Jayden Maiava. In the game, Maiava did pass for 306 yards with 3 touchdowns but threw an uncharacteristic 2 interceptions. The Trojans are facing a Bruins defense that has allowed 191 passing yards per game. Look for Coach Riley to go to his passing game early to test the Bruins’ secondary.
Oregon did a good job limiting the impact of WR Makai Lemon in the game. Though Lemon did have 7 receptions and 2 touchdowns, he was held to only 34 receiving yards. With Oregon paying a lot of attention to Lemon, Maiava was able to go to Ja’Kobi Lane, who had 108 yards on 6 receptions, and Tanook Hines, who added 141 yards on 6 receptions. Maiava will look to stretch the Bruins defense on deep throws to Lemon.
Trojans RB King Miller was limited to 30 yards on 15 carries against Oregon. The Trojans’ offensive line was not able to get a push on the Ducks’ defensive front. This week, the Trojans are facing a Bruins defense that has allowed an average of 196 rushing yards per game. Coach Riley will look to attack the Bruins’ run defense. Miller will be expected to get a bulk of the carries in the Trojans’ run game, but expect Bryan Jackson to see time in the Trojans’ backfield.
The Bruins’ season has been in turmoil, starting with the firing of their head coach DeShaun Foster following an 0-3 start to the season. The team has struggled to find consistency on both sides of the ball. Offensively, the Bruins have averaged 18 points per game while allowing an average of 33 points per game. Quarterback Nico Iamaleava leads the Bruins offense. The Tennessee transfer averages 173 passing yards per game. Iamaleava will spread the ball around, completing passes to 15 different receivers on the season. His top target has been Kwazi Gilmer, who has 40 receptions on the season. Gilmer will be a focus for Trojans defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn. While looking to limit Gilmer, the Trojans defense must be aware of Mikey Matthews, Rico Flores Jr., and Titus Mokiao-Atimalala.
The Bruins come into the game averaging 142 rushing yards and will look to the Trojans’ run defense that allowed 179 yards against Oregon. Iamaleava leads the Bruins with 490 rushing yards. The Trojans will look to take away the outside escape lanes from Iamaleava. The edge rushers will need to be disciplined in maintaining outside containment when the Bruins call run-option plays. On the designed quarterback runs the Bruins are expected to call, the Trojans’ defensive front cannot allow themselves to be turned, which will open up running lanes. When going to their running backs, Jalen Berger and Jaivian Thomas are expected to get a bulk of the carries. The Trojans defense will need to do a better job of getting off their blocks in order to slow down the Bruins’ running game.
In the battle for Los Angeles, the Trojans and Bruins have given their fans memorable games. The Bruins’ season has been disappointing for their fans, but their season would end on a high note with a victory over USC. The Trojans are looking to move past the disappointment of their loss to Oregon and end their regular season with a win. In the end, look for the Trojans to make it 2 straight wins over their cross-town rivals in convincing fashion.
Trojans 41
Bruins 13
