USC Football: Trojan Receivers Might Be the Best in the Country

The USC Trojans return a ton of starters on both sides of the ball, but the nine starters on the offensive side of the ball are what everybody will be focused on the most. After all, offense is the sexiest part of the game and draws the most attention nowadays.

USC was one of the best offensive teams in the country last season, averaging nearly 36 points per contest and over 290 passing yards a game. With quarterback Matt Barkley returning and a loaded receiving corp, this may be the most talented group of receivers heading into the regular season.

Let's take a look and see just how good this USC receiver class really is.  

Robert Woods

Career stats: 176 receptions, 2,084 receiving yards and 21 receiving touchdowns

Robert Woods is one of the most effective wide receivers today in college football. Last season, he caught 111 passes for over 1,200 yards and 15 touchdowns. In the game against Arizona, he had 255 receiving yards and two touchdowns on 15 receptions.

Despite defenses doing their best to try and slow him down or take him out of the game, he is still extremely effective. He has great size at 6'1" and 180 pounds, runs excellent routes and has a great pair of hands. The route-running is what really sets him apart from most other receivers at the collegiate level.

If Woods has another season like he had last season, there's no reason why he shouldn't receive an invite to New York for a possible Heisman Trophy.

Marqise Lee

Career stats: 73 receptions, 1,143 receiving yards and 11 receiving touchdowns

Marqise Lee put those numbers up as a true freshman and should be set for a fantastic follow-up in his sophomore year. Lee is about the same size as Woods at 6'1", 190 pounds, but he has great leaping ability and is more of a physical receiver. He also has above-average speed that allows him to make big plays once he's caught the football. 

Last season he had receptions of 59, 57, 45, 43 and 39 yards.

It's amazing how somebody who was recruited as a safety in high school has a pair of great hands like Lee has.

George Farmer

Career stats: Four receptions, 42 receiving yards and zero touchdowns

Farmer didn't have nearly the freshman season everybody hoped for, but that doesn't change the fact that his potential is through the roof. The former 5-star recruit is 6'2", 200 pounds and runs like the wind. He can get down the field in a hurry and make plays for this Trojan team.

Although he did come out of high school with injury issues and a case of dropped balls, head coach Lane Kiffin said he's doing much better this season in practice.

"

As far as the MVP of the day probably was George Farmer. Really to see him healthy out here and the way that he caught the ball today and his confidence is very different than last time we were with him so obviously that was great to see.

"

If Farmer can keep up the great practices, things could be even scarier for teams in the Pac-12.

Conclusion

You could make an argument for teams such as West Virginia, Georgia, Clemson or even Arkansas despite losing several of their key receivers during the offseason. But very few receiving corps are as talented as the one USC has.

You have the star receiver in Woods, who almost never lets the team down and makes the big catch after big catch. Farmer is the speedster who is able to stretch the field and make things easier for everybody else. And Lee is capable of being the No. 1 receiver on any other team with his skill set and big-play abilities.

We also didn't even talk about redshirt freshman Victor Blackwell, who is another speedster receiver with decent size at 6'1", 185 pounds. He runs the 40 in the 4.4 range, is great at picking up yards after the catch and has excellent hands. He should also be able to skip the learning curve a bit considering he and Barkley were teammates in high school.

You can argue that these players are as good as they are because they have a quarterback like Barkley throwing the ball. But nearly all of these receivers were 4- or 5-star recruits coming out of high school. Their skill sets are amazing, and each of them does something different to help contribute to the team.

The Trojans have a lot of things going for them heading into the 2012 season; their group of wide receivers is one of the spots that really sticks out.