USC vs. Notre Dame: One-Dimensional Trojans Will Be No Match for Red-Hot Irish

To the naked eye, the 4-2 Notre Dame Fighting Irish being 8.5-point favorites over the 5-1 USC Trojans may seem a bit excessive, but considering how well the Irish have played over the past month since starting 0-2, I think it makes perfect sense.

The Notre Dame team that lost to South Florida and Michigan while committing 10 total turnovers is completely different from the Irish who have gone 4-0 since in extremely impressive fashion. During their four-game winning streak, the Irish have been excellent in every facet of the game.

Not only have they won the turnover battle in consecutive games, but the defense has been extremely stout, the special teams have made big plays and the offense has been banging on all cylinders whether it be in the ground game or through the air.

While Notre Dame quarterback Tommy Rees' turnover issues were a major reason for Notre Dame's failures to start the season, few questioned his ability. Rees has made much sounder decisions in the four games since and holds a tidy 7:0 touchdowns-to-interceptions ratio over the past two contests.

To supplement Rees' stellar play, the Irish have run the ball incredibly well. Cierre Wood has been the workhorse with 650 yards through six games, but backup Jonas Gray has been unbelievably effective in small doses as well, with 395 yards and an 8.4 yards-per-carry average.

With all of that said, the visiting Trojans have still technically had a better season at 5-1. USC has beaten BCS programs exclusively this season, but all of them have been of the weaker variety. The only team that they have played that was ranked at any time this season was Arizona State.

That game certainly didn't go very well, as the Trojans were wiped out by 21 points. USC has been dealing with inferior competition all season long, but it will be in for a much bigger challenge against a Notre Dame team that may be playing as well as any team in the country.

USC's biggest weapon is clearly the passing game with junior quarterback Matt Barkley. In six games, Barkley has 1,782 yards and 16 touchdowns, and he has truly been the driving force for the Trojans.

While it is certainly great for USC to have such excellent play fro the quarterback position, he will eventually be exploited if the running game doesn't get going. Marc Tyler has been adequate with 368 yards through six games, but I doubt the Irish will have much of an issue taking him out of the game completely.

Also, while USC's defensive stats aren't eye-popping, they have certainly been buoyed by games against weak opponents. The Trojan defense struggled mightily against the 1-5 Arizona Wildcats a couple weeks back, as Arizona put up 41 points.

The Wildcats have an NFL-caliber quarterback in Nick Foles, but the Irish have a much more complete offense than Arizona, so the Trojans probably shudder to think what the Irish might be able to do to them on Saturday night.

It is understandable why some Irish fans may be apprehensive about this game, since Notre Dame has found some incredible ways to disappoint in recent years, but the Irish are simply a better all-around team than the Trojans, and, quite frankly, Notre Dame should obliterate the 8.5-point spread with ease.