The ban has been lifted, and USC is breathing fresh air in the college football world in 2012. After serving a two-year postseason ban the Trojans are already receiving hype as a BCS championship contender next season.
Dennis Dodd of CBSSports.com already has the Trojans second in his preseason top 25. So does Mark Schlabach of ESPN.com. Both have LSU as the top-ranked team in 2012. It is easy to see why so many have high hopes for the Trojans in 2012.
Lane Kiffin's roster will return nine starters on offense, including All-American players quarterback Matt Barkley and wide receiver Robert Woods. The offensive line returns all but one starter as well, and sophomore Marqise Lee is already looking to be one of the top wide receivers in the nation. Mix that with a defense that returns seven starters, including the entire secondary and two starting linebackers, including Pac 12 Freshman of the Year on defense Dion Bailey, and it becomes even easier to start buying in to the hype building for USC in 2012.
After all, this is a team that has already proven they can go toe-to-toe with the likes of Oregon (defeated the Pac 12 and Rose Bowl champion Ducks in Eugene, 38-35) and Stanford (lost at home in triple overtime, 56-48) and they made their point in blasting the Pac-12 South representative in the Pac 12 championship game, UCLA, 50-0 in their season finale. The Bruins, already locked in to the conference championship game were demolished by the Trojans, who made sure everyone knew just who was the best team in the Pac 12 South. USC, of course, was playing their final game in their postseason ban, making them ineligible for a rematch with Oregon in the Pac 12 championship game the following week.
After losing a late September game at Arizona State, 43-22, the Trojans came back and won all but one of their remaining games, a triple overtime setback against Andrew Luck and Stanford. In that stretch they defeated Pac 12 opponents by 21, 25, 23 and 50 points in addition to hanging on for a three-point victory at Oregon. They also defeated Notre Dame 31-17 in South Bend, Indiana along the way.
In 2012 the USC BCS return tour will begin at home, against new Mountain West Conference member Hawaii on September 1. The following week the Trojans travel to MetLife Stadium in New Jersey to take on the Syracuse Orange. USC playing in the New York market means a tremendous amount of media exposure, especially to the eastern markets and media. Not that we are not already paying enough attention to USC, but it is a key game for USC's championship goals. After that is a road game to Stanford. If USC can get through September without a loss (home game vs. Cal after Stanford game), then the Trojans should be in prime position.
USC will have to avoid an upset at Utah and Washington to start October but all eyes will be set on the big November 3 game at home against Oregon. It could very well be a Pac 12 championship preview. USC will also host Notre Dame in the regular season finale, before a possible date in the Pac 12 championship game on November 30. USC could be hosting that championship game as well, which would mean USC would not have to leave Los Angeles at all in November (road game at UCLA in the Rose Bowl). That could be a huge advantage in a potential BCS push.
Coaching Staff Notes
USC named Scottie Hazleton as their new linebackers coach after serving as the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach with North Dakota State. Marvin Sanders was also named defensive backs coach after serving as Florida Atlantic's defensive coordinator.
USC is still looking to name a wide receivers coach. Players have been hoping that Keary Colbert, a former Trojans receiver and a graduate assistant in 2010. Colbert played for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2011 and is a free agent.
USC opens spring practice on March 6 and will hold their annual spring game on March 14.
Kevin McGuire is a national college football writer for Examiner.com and the host of the No 2-Minute Warning podcast. He can be reached at cfbexaminer@gmail.com.
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