Seven Reasons why The Trojans will contend for the National Championship in 2009

It appears that some haters are down playing USC's chances for the kind of season we have come to expect from the men of Troy.

They say that the Trojans have lost too much talent, especially on defense. Word on the street is that when Mark Sanchez left, so did the potential for a great offense.

The talk is that no college team can lose eleven players drafted by the NFL and expect to be good enough to challenge for the National Championship.

Well, I disagree and here are seven reasons why.

Defensive Line

Okay, lets start with someone who doesn't even play football. Jethro Franklin is back with the Trojans as defensive line coach after three years in the NFL, the last two with the Houston Texans (anyone else notice how good Mario Williams was last year?)

Franklin is being credited with the transformation of end Everson Griffin, who was the monster this spring that he was projected to be when he was a mega recruit from Arizona. Lining up at the other end most likely will be sophomore Armond Armstead, who has been moved from tackle because....ummm....he was too athletic.

In the middle, Franklin can choose from Christian Tupou or Jurrell Casey, who was voted the 2008 scout team player of the year (pretty big stuff at USC). Due in the fall is Hebron Fangupo, a junior college transfer who is listed at 6'2", 330 and who the coaches rave about.

Top reserves will be Averill Spicer (if he can stay healthy), Devon Kennard (another top recruit coming back from a knee injury), and Malik Jackson.

USC's defensive line will be good, real good. But don't take my word for it. Sporting News has this unit ranked number three in nation.

Defensive Secondary

This one is a no brainer. Led by Taylor Mays, the 6'2", 235 pound, sub 4.3 athletically freakish safety, the USC defensive secondary is scary good.

With Kevin Thomas and Shareece Wright as the starting corners, USC will humble any quarterback who has the temerity to challenge them (are you paying attention Jimmy Clausen?)

The other safety is Josh Pinkard, who has done it all at USC for the last five years (counting injury years). Pinkard is a devastating hitter, with a nose for the football.

Yeah, he is coming back again from another injury but was the second fastest Trojan in the spring, just behind Mays.

Top reserves will be Will Harris and T.J. Bryant and those two will be joined by a slew of four and five star recruits who will find their way on to the field sooner rather than later.

This unit is ranked as the best in the nation by Sporting News amongst others.

Linebackers

Yeah, I know that the Trojans lost Rey Maualuga, Brian Cushing, Clay Matthews and Kaluka Maiava, all to the NFL and all within the first four rounds. No doubt about it, USC will miss those guys. Who wouldn't?

Still, don't shed any tears for the Trojans. USC has perhaps the fastest set of linebackers Pete Carroll has had since he has been there.

Michael Morgan is 6'4", 220 pounds and blazing fast. He will line up at strong side linebacker and will clean up anything that gets by the defensive line.

Chris Galippo will take over for Rey Maualuga and at 6'2", 250 pounds, will stuff the middle. Galippo was the top linebacker recruit in 2007 and is a beast.

Malcolm Smith, (Steve's younger brother), is 6'2", 225 lbs, and, to quote another columnist, in terms of athleticism, "is on another planet." He will wreak terror from the weak side linebacking position.

Backing this group up is Luthur Brown (again, if he can stay healthy) and Uona Kaveinga. These guys would be starting almost anywhere else.

Wide Receivers

If Aaron Corp (Barkley? Mustain?) can establish himself early and force defenses not to stack against the USC running game, the receivers will be the reason why.

Damian Williams, the preseason all-American transfer from Arkansas is the real deal. Fast and a precise route runner, Williams catches everything that comes his way and has absolutely no fear of going over the middle.

Ronald Williams, the wideout on the opposite side of Williams, is blazing fast and is the Trojans' homerun hitter. Rojo, as he is called, will stretch the defense and keep the safeties, who may be tempted to stack the box against the run, honest.

David Ausberry, all 6’4”, 235 pounds of him, is this years version of Mike Williams (the college Mike Williams, not the pro). Ausberry has been raved about for the last two years but inconsistency has kept him off the field. This year all that changes.

Meanwhile, Brice Butler had a great spring and will see plenty of time. Jordan Cameron gives his quarterback a big, athletic target.

Brandon Carswell has soft hands and runs great routes and Travon Patterson is one of the fastest players at Troy.

The tight ends are going to be crucial for the Trojans and this unit is stacked. Anthony McCoy will get the nod going into the fall.

At 6’5”, 250 lbs, McCoy blends athleticism with brute blocking power. Blake Ayles, the number one tight end recruit two years ago, and Rhett Ellison (son of former Trojan LB, Riki Grey) are both extremely talented and will see a lot of playing time.

One major publication has the wide receiver/tight end unit ranked third in the nation.

‘Nuff said.

Offensive Line

This unit is strong. Real strong.

Most major publications have USC’s offensive line ranked either one or two in the nation. Here is why:

Kristofer O’Dowd is the best center in the nation. At 6’5”, 300 lbs, O’Dowd blends quickness with brute strength.

O’Dowd regularly takes on the opposing defenses nose tackle solo, freeing up the guards to create lanes along the line of scrimmage.

Jeff Byers returns for a sixth season. As if the Trojans need any help on the offensive line, the NCAA granted Byers, a three year starter, another year of eligibility after he petitioned for an extra year following injuries that robbed him of playing time.

Byers, like O’Dowd, have been listed on many All American preseason lists.

Alex Parsons will start opposite Byers at guard. At 6’4”, 300 lbs, Parsons is not only massive but, like Byers, is versatile enough to slide over and play center should O’Dowd need a blow.

Tyron Smith is USC’s next superstar lineman. The 6’6, 285 lb true sophomore is a scary blend of strong and quick.

Smith is athletic enough to play tight end but instead will spend his Saturdays blowing up defenses. Charles Brown, 6’6”, 295 lbs, will join O’Dowd and Byers as first day NFL draft picks after the season is over.

Brown is talented, experienced and mean. A frightful combination.

Nick Howell (Son of former Trojan great Pat Howell), ex-starter Butch Lewis and Zack Heberer round out the top reserves and believe me, these guys could start almost anywhere else too. They will see a lot of time.

Running Backs

USC has a veritable stable of blue chip running backs. It is one thing to have a quantity of running backs, it is quite another to have the quality of running backs that the Trojans are blessed with.

USC has so many good backs that Emmanuel Moody, projected to get a ton of playing time at Florida, saw the writing on the wall a couple of years ago and bailed, muttering something about concern for playing time. That was probably a good move Emmanuel.

The tough thing about reviewing USC’ stable of running backs is that there is no clear cut starter. Stafon Johnson, who spent his first year in Pete Carroll’s doghouse, probably will see the most playing time at the beginning of the game but, as usual, there will be a rotation throughout each game.

Johnson, 5’11” and 210 lbs, blends speed and power into a package that is always good for positive yardage. Perhaps most importantly in Pete Carroll’s eyes, he holds on to the football.

C.J. Gable will be one of the first in the rotation. Gable is supremely talented but prone to fumbling. If he can hold on to the ball, he is too good not to get more playing time

Joe McKnight is the closest thing the Trojans have had to Reggie Bush since Bush left under a cloud of suspicion. McKnight has kept many a defensive coordinator awake at night trying to figure our how to game plan for him.

McKnight will get his share of carries but he will also play flanker where a five yard pass into the flat has potential for a touchdown run every time. He is that talented.

Problem is, he is that injury prone too. If McKnight can stay on the field, he has the talent to vie for the Heisman.

Allen Bradford, a beast of a runner and the closest thing to this year’s version of Lendale White, will get a lot of carries inside the twenty if his injured hip cooperates. Marc Tyler, son of Wendell, has come back strong from his broken leg of two years ago and will push for playing time.

Curtis McNeal, a water bug in the mold of Darren Sproles, wowed the coaches during the spring.

Meanwhile, Stanley Havili is quite possibly the best fullback in the country. A bruising blocker with soft hands, Havili has stepped up maturity wise after being suspended for the Rose Bowl last year.

Adam Goodman and D.J. Shoemate will back Havili up. Keep an eye on Shoemate, he is a star in the making.

Pete Carroll

It is a tribute to Pete Carroll and USC that even with all that lost talent, most people still expect USC to contend for a national championship.

Of course, there are questions; especially at quarterback. Can Aaron Corp establish himself early? Or will Matt Barkley be the first freshman quarterback in the Pete Carroll era?

Can Mitch Mustain overcome the competition and most importantly, his academic issues? These are but a few questions that USC must answer.

While I, for one, do not put a whole lot of stock into pre-season polls, it is interesting to note that of the six pre-season polls I reviewed, the lowest that the Trojans are ranked is sixth (Mark Schlabach, ESPN).

Meanwhile, three others have USC ranked fourth (Lindys, Athlon and The Sporting News), one has them ranked third (Phil Steele) and The Bleacher Report has the Men of Troy ranked second.

Florida, rightfully, should be considered the premier college football program based on their two championships in the last three years. But sandwiched between those two titles was the 2007 team that went 9-4.

The 2006 Florida team that destroyed Ohio State 41-14, lost nine players to the NFL draft following that season, which culminated in the aforementioned 9-4 record.

I doubt too many people, even the doomsayers, think USC will lose four games in 2009.

Instead, for all the reasons given in these prior slides, expect USC to once again challenge for the title and when they do, it will be a testimony to Pete Carroll who refuses to allow USC to suffer a down year, no matter how many players he stocks the NFL with.