Balls and bombs: USC at Oregon

November 2, 2:44 PMUSC Trojans ExaminerNeal Leitereg

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Halloween night is usually an occasion filled with fun costumes, friendly laughter and, of course, delicious candy.

Unfortunately for the Trojans, there was nothing delicious, fun or friendly about the way things turned out Saturday night against the Oregon Ducks.

Looking back at the Trojans' lackluster game against the Ducks on Saturday, there were a few notable performances and there were also a number of plays that made you want to pull your hair out.

Let's take a look at some of the game balls and game bombs.

And the offensive game ball goes to...Damian Williams

Southern California's number one wide receiver, Damian Williams, showed no signs of being bothered by the sore glute muscle that kept him out of practice for much of the week. Williams' performance on Saturday was one of the few bright spots in the game for the Trojans, with nine catches for 82 yards receiving as well as a touchdown. While Williams was a big part of Southern California's limited offensive effort, he was not able to do a little of his 'punt return magic' as we have seen in the last few games. Those hoping to see Williams make an impact in the return game were sorely disappointed as the Ducks ended up punting the ball only once in Saturday night's contest.

Honorable mention...Joe McKnight (15 carries for 95 yards, 3 catches for 23 yards)

And the offensive game bomb goes to...anyone who committed a false start penalty.

Numerous offensive drives stalled because of penalties, an unfortunate predicament to be in especially against a Ducks team that was clicking on all cylinders. It seemed as though every time the Trojans got things going, their offensive possessions would either be negated or killed due to penalty. After the game, Southern California players were saying that the noise at Autzen was not a factor. I find that hard to believe.

Dishonorable mention...Allen Bradford (6 carries for 22 yards)

And the defensive game ball goes to...Malcolm Smith/Will Harris

There were not too many good things to take away from this game, but we have to give the defensive game ball to somebody. This week it goes to linebacker Malcolm Smith and safety Will Harris. Malcolm Smith forced a fumble that Harris was able to recover for the Trojans. The turnover resulted in a Southern California touchdown, thus earning them the nod this week. Harris finished the game with 10 tackles, 1TFL and, of course, the one fumble recovery. Smith, who ended up leaving the game early after suffering a sprained shoulder, finished with three tackles and, of course, the one forced fumble.

Honorable mention...Jurrell Casey (11 tackles)

And the defensive game bomb goes to...let's not even go there

It would be easy to throw the entire defense under the bus (maybe the entire team) at this point but we'll take the high road. The game itself was not pretty and it will definitely go down as a lesson learned by the Southern California players (and maybe, more importantly, the younger of the players). But ultimately, college football is incredibly unpredictable and games such as these, well, happen. Hey, look at the bright side; at least it was not a loss to Appalachian State.

And the coaching game ball goes to...Oregon's Chip Kelly

Kelly definitely outfoxed the Trojans Saturday night, keeping them off balance and on their toes for much of the evening. After the opening season loss to Boise State, Kelly has turned things around at Eugene and he has the Ducks peaking at the right time. What makes Kelly's performance this season even that much more impressive is the fact that this is not only his first season as the Ducks' head coach, but also his first year as a head coach period.

And the coaching game bomb goes to...Pete Carroll

I hate to do this to you Pete but unfortunately, as I said before, these things happen. Carroll failed to make the necessary adjustments at halftime to try and contain a Ducks’ offense that was racking up yards at will. While the Trojans kept things interesting up until halftime, they came out of the gates in the third period stagnant and remained that way for the rest of the evening. The defense was hemorrhaging yards and the offense could not buy a break. That type of combination makes it tough for any team to win.