No Offense, but USC Trojan Offense Is Not That Bad

It’s currently en vogue to bash the USC Trojan offense for a lack of scoring and production over the past month. A couple of sub-20-point offensive games against quality defensive opponents in Arizona and California have Trojan fans and the media loudly asking the question, “What’s wrong with the Trojan offense?”

There is no shortage of theories. From the use of too many running backs to predictable play calling from offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian, everyone seems to be pointing fingers at different causes.

Make no mistake, the Trojan offense is not in a good rhythm at the moment. But there’s a case to be made that the offensive production from this USC squad is really not that bad.

In fact, statistically, the Trojan offense is pretty good. After nine games, the Trojan offense ranks number one in the Pac-10 in total offense, grinding out 454 yards per game (12th in the country). The Trojans also average 37 points per game (15th in the country).

Now you may say that blowout wins over Washington and Washington State skew those numbers...but remove those games, and SC is still averaging over 30 points per game. Every team ranked above the Trojans also has “patsies” on their schedule that skew their offensive output as well.

I think it's important to remember that this Trojan offense is operating with a first-year starter at quarterback in Mark Sanchez, first-year starters at four of the five offensive line positions (Jeff Byers is the only full-time returning starter), and a first-year starter at tight end, so perhaps the choppiness of the offense during this stretch of games should not have been unexpected.

Even with this young group, Sanchez is completing nearly 65 percent of his passes with 24 touchdowns and only seven interceptions to a group of receivers that has performed very well by any measure.

The young offensive line has cleared the way for a running game that averages 200 yards on six-plus yards per carry by its top three running backs (Gable, Johnson, and McKnight) and only gives up about one sack per game on average.

The Trojan offense is also converting on 45 percent of its third down attempts...not too shabby.

So why isn’t the Trojan offense running like a well-oiled machine at this point in the season?  Well, I think the real culprit can be found in the little things...the details. SC’s ineffective offensive possessions in large part have been short circuited by mistakes in execution and untimely penalties.

The Arizona game, in particular, revealed a Trojan offense that’s still growing with the decision-making of Mark Sanchez.

Fans like to point to play calling by the coaches when a play does not work. But they must understand that Sanchez has three or four options to go to in any one play...and that’s AFTER the snap of the ball. His pre-snap read of the defensive alignment BEFORE the snap of the ball is also important in determining whether the initial play call will work.

Sanchez is still progressing in this area and learning to take what defenses give him.

At the same time, the other offensive players are battling the small mistakes that lead to penalties (holding and illegal procedure infractions) in key situations that wipe out positive plays and advantageous down and distance situations.

The good news is that these issues can be solved by the coaching staff and players. This Trojan offense is close to consistency...but not quite there yet. They’ve got four more games (including the bowl game) to find that elusive rhythm to play like we’re used to seeing Trojan offenses play.

It starts this Saturday in Palo Alto versus Stanford.