Notre Dame vs. USC: TV Info, Spread, Injury Updates, Game Time and More

Notre Dame and USC have one last chance to end things in a positive light.

It has been a trying season for both programs, to say the least. The Fighting Irish cannot help but shoot themselves in the foot each week and rest at 7-4 and losers of three straight.

The first year under the guidance of Steve Sarkisian has been and up-and-down affair that has the Trojans at the same mark and coming off a blowout at the hands of UCLA. 

Saturday, outside of being a notable rivalry, is a battle of pride and bowl positioning as two programs begin to turn an eye toward the future.

Grounded to Reality

The play for both teams as of late reflects the state of the programs from start to finish this year.

USC has suddenly been unable to rush the football despite the presence of tailback Javorius Allen. The junior has 1,244 yards and nine scores on the season but has broken the 100-yard mark just once in his last three outings and has one total touchdown.

That speaks well to how much the Trojans have struggled on the ground in that span, rushing for 127, 79 and 62 yards.

If there is going to be a turnaround, though, it will come against Notre Dame.

Brian Kelly's defense has careened off the side of a cliff along with the team's fortunes. Things looked great for just a second as the unit held Florida State to just 50 rushing yards in a 31-27 loss.

Fast forward one week, and there was Navy rushing for 336 yards as the Fighting Irish held on for a 10-point win. Arizona State rushed for 188 the week after in a rout. Northwestern won by three in overtime after that with 263 yards on the ground. Last week Louisville found room for 229.

USC finds itself in a situation to get back to that ground-based attack that gave defenses fits earlier in the season. Remember, it was not too long ago that the Trojans went to Stanford and downed an elite Cardinal defense by way of 156 yards and a score on the ground.

On the flip side, Notre Dame finds itself in a position to thump its chest one last time and prove it has not thrown in the towel.

Self-Inflicted Wounds

Nam Y. Huh/Associated Press

The above has been the name of the game for both programs this season.

USC is just not winning at the point of attack. In the embarrassing loss to the Bruins a week ago, quarterback Cody Kessler (3,133 yards, 30 touchdowns, four interceptions) took six sacks. Even he admits a handful of those were on him, not the line.

"Some of the sacks, I was trying to hold the ball a little longer, make things happen because we were down,” Kessler said, per Michael Lev of the Orange County Register. “My competitive spirit took over.”

Everett Golson and the Fighting Irish are no strangers to such problems. 

Rick Scuteri/Associated Press

For as great as Golson was to start the season, he has now thrown 13 interceptions this year with plenty of fumbles to boot. Nine of his picks have come over the course of the team's last five games, including a dumbfounding four in the loss at Arizona State.

The issues are certainly not enough to get Golson benched at this point, though.

“There’s a lot of room for development, and we hope that his experience that he got this year and going into USC and in a bowl game that we continue to see development,” Kelly said, per Douglas Farmer of 247Sports. “He could be one of the top quarterbacks in the country, no question.”

How great the Fighting Irish can truly be is hard to discern with so many issues as Golson and the team continue to develop.

When: Saturday, November 29, 3:30 p.m. ET

Where: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California

Television: Fox

Betting Lines (via Odds Shark):

• Over/Under: 62.5

• Spread: USC (-7)

Team Injury Reports

Player	Pos.	Date	Details	Status	Injury
Nicky Baratti	S	09/15/2014	will miss the remainder of the season	Out	shoulder
Daniel Cage	DT	11/26/2014	is probable for Saturday's game against USC	Probable	knee
DaVaris Daniels	WR	08/15/2014	will miss the entire season	Suspended	disciplinary
Sheldon Day	DT	11/26/2014	will miss Saturday's game against USC	Out	knee
Jarrett Grace	LB	09/03/2014	is out indefinitely	Out	knee
Mike Heuerman	TE	08/28/2014	is out indefinitely	Out	hernia
Jarron Jones	G	11/26/2014	will miss the remainder of the season	Out	foot
Will Mahone	WR	08/02/2014	was dismissed from the team	Out	disciplinary
Kendall Moore	LB	08/15/2014	is suspended indefinitely	Suspended	disciplinary
KeiVarae Russell	CB	08/15/2014	is suspended indefinitely	Suspended	disciplinary
Joe Schmidt	LB	11/03/2014	will miss the remainder of the season	Out	ankle
Drue Tranquill	S	11/26/2014	will miss the remainder of the season	Out	knee
Ishaq Williams	LB	08/18/2014	is suspended indefinitely	Suspended	disciplinary

Player	Pos.	Date	Details	Status	Injury
Jordan Austin	OL	08/15/2014	will miss the entire season	Out	hip
Kenny Bigelow	DT	07/09/2014	will miss the entire season	Out	knee
Victor Blackwell	WR	10/10/2014	has left the team	Out	personal
Anthony Brown	RB	08/28/2014	has left the team	Out	personal
Jalen Cope-Fitzpatrick	TE	08/07/2014	will miss the entire season	Out	academics
Lamar Dawson	LB	08/26/2014	is out indefinitely	Out	knee
Tre Madden	RB	11/23/2014	is questionable for Saturday's game against Notre Dame	Questionable	toe
D.J. Morgan	RB	09/16/2014	has left the team	Out	personal
Jabari Ruffin	LB	08/11/2014	will miss the entire season	Out	knee
Jordan Simmons	G	11/23/2014	is questionable for Saturday's game against Notre Dame	Questionable	knee
Chad Wheeler	T	10/27/2014	will miss the remainder of the season	Out	leg

Injury reports per The Sports Network, via USA Today.

Prediction

Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press

It is quite apparent that Notre Dame is a work in progress at this point. 

The Fighting Irish are at the lowest point of the season right now. Not much works offensively and the defense continues to see young players struggle to wrap up and make plays. 

In other words, Allen and the Trojans are going to have plenty of room to operate on the ground at home. 

One of Notre Dame's biggest faults this season has been its propensity to stumble out of the gates and never recover, which sounds about right after traveling across the country to face a strong offense. 

Prediction: Trojans 34, Fighting Irish 24

Statistics and info courtesy of ESPN unless otherwise specified.