USC Football: Matt Barkley Won't Do Enough to Lift Scandal-Ridden Trojans

It's not that USC's period of frustration will last forever. But it won't end this year.

Now, they are a traditional power, and that draws recruits in down years. Additionally, any coach who can recruit in Los Angeles alone can recruit a team capable of at least contending for a National Championship.

I've actually been a fan of Lane Kiffin's for a while. It's unlikely that he'll be as successful as Pete Carroll was in Los Angeles, but I doubt Kiffin will be a complete bust.

Right now, USC sits at 2-0, but have been somewhat lucky. At home, they have had a hard time beating Minnesota and Utah. It's not going to get any easier from here on out.

The Trojans have road games against Arizona State, Cal, Notre Dame, Colorado and Oregon remaining on the schedule. No, USC won't lose all of those games, but winning more than two of them would be a pretty solid accomplishment.

Plus, they still have to deal with Arizona, Stanford, Washington and UCLA. Is it really hard to imagine a five loss season coming from the Trojans? It's not for me.

Schools that are under probation don't tend to do well. Yes, USC is still talented, but so are the teams that they are playing. Give me two talented teams with one facing distractions and the other not, and I'll take the team not under scandal and probation, any time.

Matt Barkley is a genuine Heisman candidate. He's off to a strong start this year. Actually, that should continue. Now, he won't continue to complete 70 percent of his passes with a 4 to 1 touchdown to interception ratio. That would make him a virtual lock for the Heisman. 

Barkley's sophomore season was better than his freshman season was. For that to continue this year, he will need to complete more than 63 percent of his passes with 2,791 yards, 26 touchdowns, and fewer than 12 picks.

Do I see that happening? Yes, I do.              

But right now, USC is ineligible to compete for the Pac-12 South title, the Pac-12 title and the National Title. Actually, they are ineligible for any bowl game.

Still, can they be a powerhouse regular season team?

Anything can happen, but the schedule looks far too difficult for them to overcome all of the other issues. Barkley will have a great season, but it won’t be enough.