Corp to play if Barkley cannot shoulder the load

Aaron Corp (A/P Photo)

After taking a shot to his right shoulder in the game against Ohio State, Matt Barkley has been unable to participate in passing drills the past two days of practice. Barkley has already said that he will be ready to go against the Huskies this Saturday; however, Pete Carroll will be monitoring the true freshman and will ultimately make the final decision.

Barkley was able to overcome the hard shot to his shoulder, suffered in the third quarter in the game against the Buckeyes, and rally his team to a late victory over Ohio State. While the game itself was not pretty, it is Barkley's poise on the field during the game that has received considerable notice. Barkley finished the game 15-31 with 195-yards passing.

If Barkley is not able to suit up against the Huskies, sophomore Aaron Corp is ready and willing to assume the starting position. Named the starter coming into fall camp, Corp lost the number one job to Barkley after Aaron broke his fibula. Corp appears to be back to speed, if his spot play against San Jose State is any indication. In his limited appearance against the Spartans, Corp looked sharp, connecting on all four of his passes for 45 yards, including a touchdown pass to D.J. Shoemate.

Video provided by CaliforniasGold

Even if Barkley is barely feeling the effects of the bruised shoulder, it would be in the best interests of Matt, Coach Carroll and the entire program if Barkley is held out against Washington. The true freshman has shown enough tenacity on the field to make a believer out of USC fans, and it would be an inadvisable decision to put Barkley at risk.

While the Huskies are showing signs of improvement under new coach Steve Sarkisian, especially after finally snapping their winless streak this past Saturday, Washington still has tremendous lengths to go to bring its program back among the contenders in the Pac-10 race. No knock on Jake Locker and the rest of the Husky bunch, but this is a rebuilding year in Washington, not a competing year.

That being said, why risk Matt Barkley's well-being in a game that either Aaron Corp or Mitch Mustain should easily secure a win on their own. Barkley's play has been great and the more we watch the true freshman develop and perform, the more we can almost taste that BCS Championship. This makes it so much more important that Barkley not play in this Saturday’s game because, if something were to happen to him or his shoulder against Washington, it would be detrimental to his development and to the development of the USC football program as a whole.

Stay tuned for more information as the story develops.

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