USC Football: Disturbing Trends Reemerge Amidst Optimism For The Future

In an article earlier this week, I opined that a victory against the Minnesota Golden Gophers would not tell fans of USC much about their inconsistent team.

And to some extent, that is true.

The Trojans more difficult than it appeared victory over the game (at least early) Gophers wasn't a good barometer of how good or bad USC truly is.

That isn't to say that information can't be gleaned from this game however.

And what it revealed mixed some good with more than an equal amount of bad.

Despite the lopsided score, this was a game that was in doubt halfway through the third quarter.

And in keeping it close over an out manned Minnesota team, the Trojans returned to some disturbing patterns, a few of which carried over from last year.

For example, when the game was still close, USC's defense managed to give up at least four third and long conversions.

This isn't to say that giving up long third down conversions is a phenomenon found only this year.

No, that has been going for years for the Trojans, dating back to the salad days of Pete Carroll.

Of course, those things don't matter as much when your dominating your opponents with ridiculous ease.

However, nothing is easy for USC these days.

And giving up first downs to opponents on long third downs promise to make things difficult as the Trojans move forward this year.

Speaking of moving forward, quarterback Matt Barkley took two steps backward.

Throwing his first two picks of the year, Barkley brought back ugly memories of the freshman version who was as likely to throw to a member of the other team as a friendly face in the end zone.

Barkley needs to get better in this department and fast.

Another unfortunate trend for the Trojans is the continued lack of a pass rush.

While the Gophers didn't throw much, when it mattered, they had plenty of time to do so if they desired.

Finally, on the disappointing side of the ledger is the Trojans complete inability to stop an opponent on the final drive of the game.

Following a last minute score by Virginia the week before, the Trojans managed to give up a meaningless score to the Gophers to make the final tally a bit more respectable for them.

Now, many might say that complaining about this demonstrates an incredible amount of pettiness on this writers part.

Except that at some point in this season, the Trojans might actually need to stop an opponent to save a game.

And when they do, the Trojans will have no success to draw upon to tell them how to do it.

So did the Trojans do anything right?

Begrudgingly, yes, they did.

Finally, the Trojans running game reappeared about halfway through the third quarter when the Trojans began to assert themselves.

Which was good timing because Barkley was getting really comfortable throwing to guys in maroon and gold at that point in the game.

Amassing 216 yards, the Trojans running game, led by Allen Bradford's 129 yards, finally asserted themselves at a time when they really needed it.

Also, the Trojans managed to keep their penalty yards under the century mark, although not by much (72 yards for this game).

And, overall, the Trojans managed to play a decent defensive game, holding the Gophers to 305 total yards.

So there was some good to be found in this road win for USC.

But did it really tell us anything about who and what the Trojans are in 2010?

Yes, it told us they still have a lot of work to do.

And it screamed that they better get it done fast.