By Contributing Fanspeak writer Geoff Nelowet

The Southern California Trojans have won seven straight Pac-10 titles. They hope – and are expected – to continue that streak, but they will have to come from behind this season, which is something they are unaccustomed to. They are also unaccustomed to having a starting freshman quarterback in Matt Barkley, but this season is an adjustment process in which the Trojans will be learning on the fly. Playing Oregon in Eugene is arguably the Trojans’ toughest task of the season, and should they win this game, and win out the rest of the season, they will have earned a Pac-10 title in very impressive fashion.

The Ducks boast a potent offense at 45.7 points per game and 484.7 yards, and this is bad news for USC because over the last few weeks, their defense has been shaky at best. The Trojans have given up 482 and 367 yards the past two weeks to offenses that are arguably inferior to the Ducks’ attack. USC narrowly defeated Notre Dame and Oregon State, so their hands will undoubtedly be full against tenth-ranked, 6-1 Oregon.

Oregon’s lone loss came at Boise State in the first week of the season. Oregon has won six straight – and they have won impressively. On September 26^th, they took down then-ranked No. 6 California 42-3. The week prior, they beat then-ranked No. 18 Utah. In short, USC needs to bring their best performance to take down this flourishing Oregon unit.

Dual-threat quarterback Jeremiah Masoli leads the Ducks this season. He has accounted for 12 touchdowns this season – seven were on the ground. Since the Boise State game, LaMichael James has taken over at running back for the infamously suspended Legarrette Blount. He has rushed for over 700 yards and six touchdowns in his freshman campaign.

Barkley has shown he can lead the Trojans into a hostile environment and come out with a victory. He has done it twice now at Notre Dame a week ago, and at Ohio State early in the season. He will do it again against Oregon, but he will only play a partial role. The Trojan defense will correct its past errors, and they will contain the Oregon attack. Final score: USC 34 Oregon 24

By Guest Blogger Geoff Nelowet:

(6) USC at (25) Notre Dame

Notre Dame has lost its last seven meetings with Southern Cal, and they have been outscored 284-95. Notre Dame has failed to score a touchdown in their last two meetings. Over the last seven years, this “rivalry” has been a one-way onslaught by the Trojans. Year after year, USC is a serious national title contender, whereas Notre Dame struggles to earn a winning record. This year may be different, though, as the Irish are a much better team than in years past, and they have one of the best quarterbacks in the country in Jimmie Clausen. The problem is that USC has one of the best defenses in the country, and they average more sacks per game than any division I program.

Aside from experience at quarterback, USC is a better team than Notre Dame from top to bottom. USC is led by stud freshman Matt Barkley. Barkley has already led the Trojans to a road victory over Ohio State this season, and he looked poised doing it. Barkley gained valuable experience playing in a raucous environment at the Horseshoe, and he did it playing against a top-tier Buckeye team. USC is primed to take down Notre Dame, as they’ve done with ease over the last seven seasons.

The Irish won’t go easily, though, as Clausen should be able to make a few plays. It will be Clausen’s toughest day of the season against a relentless USC defense. Clausen has put up Heisman-caliber numbers this season, but he has yet to go up against a complete defense like USC’s. Clausen’s best weapon, Golden Tate, has yet to go up against a secondary with Taylor Mays roaming the field. 

USC will take care of business in South Bend because they are a more physical team. Jimmie Clausen’s Heisman campaign will end after this game mainly because he does not have the supporting cast to consistently move the ball on the Trojans defense. Barkley will guide the Trojan offense, and they will do enough to win. Final score: USC 27 Notre Dame 20.

(3) Texas vs. (20) Oklahoma

The 5-0 Texas Longhorns will go up against the 3-2 Oklahoma Sooners at the Cotton Bowl this Saturday. 2008 Heisman trophy winner Sam Bradford will be leading the two-loss Sooners, who have much less to play for, against a Texas team that is vying for a national title birth. The Longhorns will be lead by their Heisman hopeful in quarterback Colt McCoy. The Longhorns won last season’s contest in an offensive shootout by the score of 45-35.

The Sooners look to avenge last season’s loss, and with Bradford returning to the starting lineup, they have a decent shot. Oklahoma lost Bradford to injury in the first week of the season, and they suffered losses to Miami and BYU without him. OU was ranked in the top-five in the preseason, and they are a far better team than their record indicates. They were a favorite to play in the national title game before Bradford went down.

With Oklahoma taking two losses, Texas has dethroned Oklahoma as top team in the big 12. After handily winning last season’s meeting, and being undefeated this season, Texas will play with a huge amount of confidence. Texas is also a better all around team than they were a year ago. Their defense is ranked fourth in the nation, when their defense was once a major weak spot.

Oklahoma, though, should not be underestimated. They still have the best quarterback in the country, and maybe the best running game in the country with DeMarco Murray and Chris Brown running the show. The Sooners also have a talented defense that will undoubtedly hold the Longhorns to less than 45 points. This weekend’s match up will be lower scoring affair with both defenses improving from a year ago.

Oklahoma is due to win this game. They have suffered two tough losses this season, and with the addition of Bradford back into the lineup, they will be playing with the confidence they had before he went down. Bradford will lead his team similarly to the way McCoy did his last season, and the Sooners will grind out a tough win at a neutral location. Final score: Oklahoma 30 Texas 21

Yankee Bowl?: The New York Yankees announced the formation of the “Yankee Bowl” yesterday. Which will pit the 4th place finisher of the Big East against the 7th place team in the Big 12, or potentially Notre Dame if they don’t have a better bowl offer. The game will be played at Yankee Stadium starting in Dec. 2010. If approved by the NCAA (which lets be honest isn’t going to turn down the New York market or the Yankees) the “_____” Yankee Bowl (can’t wait to see who will be the corporate sponsor here), will represent the 35 post season bowl game in college football. I love the idea for two main reasons. One it brings to mind the nostalgia of a time when football and baseball shared stadiums, and it will be interesting to see how they reconfigure Yankee Stadium for the game. The other reason I like the idea, is I’m in the group of people that don’t mind all the bowl games in December/January. Look I want to see the BCS scrapped and replaced with a playoff system as much as the next guy, but that doesn’t mean you have to get rid of all the various bowls to do it. Its a topic for a longer post, but taking the top 8, 12, or 16 teams and separating them out in a playoff to determine the National Champion, should have no impact on all the other bowl games out there. Already these bowl games have no impact on the National Championship and are for league and team pride, which I see nothing wrong with. We still have the NIT and other postseason basketball tournaments that have no impact on the NCAA tournament. I like having a number of bowl games to watch around the holidays, why because I enjoy watching football. Also these bowl games are crucial to a number of programs survival. Plenty of teams really don’t have National Title hopes, but they do have a chance to get a moderate bowl, and that money allows them to recruit better, build a program, and maybe one day be an elite program.

Injuries piling up: Baylor sophomore QB Robert Griffin is now out for the year with a knee injury. Griffin is a dual-threat quarterback that made the Bears a team with upset potential against the big boys in the Big-12. Senior cornerback Walter Thurmond will miss the rest of Oregon’s season with a knee injury as well. Thurmond was the Ducks best defensive player, and one of the best defensive backs in the nation. He was a dangerous return man as well, already returning one punt this season for a touchdown. The Ducks will need some help in the defensive backfield with Washington and USC coming up on the schedule. Speaking of USC their freshman defensive end (sack machine) Nick Perry, who leads the Pac-10 in sacks will likely miss Saturday’s game against the California Golden Bears. Its a huge game for USC on Saturday, if Perry can’t go they will need to find someone else to generate pressure in the Golden Bears backfield. USC’s senior running back Stafon Johnson is communicating after surgery yesterday to repair this throat after a serious weightlifting accident on Monday. Johnson’s playing days at USC are done, but the fact that he is alive and well, and should make a full recovery after the injury that he had, is a great blessing for him, his family and all of USC football.

Heisman Quarterbacks, Coming Back: The last two Heisman winners, Tim Tebow and Sam Bradford should be making their return to the gridiron soon enough. Bradford who has been out since week one, could play in this week’s match up against Miami. He will almost assuredly be back the following week when the Sooners begin their conference schedule against Baylor. Personally I’d give the redshirt freshman Landry Jones a chance to see what he can do against Miami, and have Bradford there in case things go sour quickly. Don’t rush your star QB back when you still have your whole season ahead of you. As for Tebow, he won’t miss any games since Florida is off this week. But it sounds like it was a pretty serious concussion if he is still dealing with headaches and prohibited from watching game film. The Gators face a major challenge in two weeks against LSU, and will need Tebow at 100% to stay undefeated.