USC opens Pac-10 schedule against Cougars
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Past results don't give Washington State much hope entering its Pac-10 opener against Southern California.
Neither does the present.
The Cougars and Trojans kick off conference play Saturday night, with No. 1 USC beginning its quest for at least a share of its sixth straight league championship and trying to win for the 35th straight time at home.
The Trojans (2-0) are 54-8-4 in the series including 36-4-2 at the Los Angeles Coliseum, where a crowd of over 90,000 is expected. USC is favored by 25 points.
"We have gotten a little bit better each week and this week, we are going to have to get a whole lot better," WSU coach Bill Doba said. "As I told our kids, it's not always the best team that wins. It's the team that plays the best.
"I also told our kids that this is an excellent opportunity to play the No. 1 team in the nation. It doesn't happen very often, and then our local media reminded me that this happened three of the last four years."
The Cougars (2-1) are 1-7 in games against No. 1 teams including a 42-12 loss to USC at home in 2004 and a 55-13 setback at the Coliseum two years ago. The lone win was a 34-30 triumph over UCLA at the Rose Bowl 19 years ago.
As successful as the Trojans have been in this series, the Cougars gave them all they could handle last year before losing 28-22. The game ended with Taylor Mays intercepting Alex Brink's desperation pass at the USC 4-yard line.
"We had a very difficult game up in Pullman last year with these guys," USC coach Pete Carroll said. "We understand that. We expect this to be very challenging, as is every game in the conference.
"This is a tough, tough road every single week. And Washington State, they're going to show you they're a really good team."
Brink is the latest in a long line of outstanding WSU quarterbacks, joining Jack Thompson, Mark Rypien, Timm Rosenbach, Drew Bledsoe, Ryan Leaf, Jason Gesser and Matt Kegel.
Rosenbach, who led the Cougars to their upset victory over UCLA in 1988, is the WSU quarterbacks coach.
"We're facing a really good-looking offensive football team, led by Alex Brink," Carroll said. "We're seeing a guy that knows how to run this offense, and it's a very good schematic offense that takes advantage of the field and spreading you out, all of the things they know how to do. And he's hot as a pistol right now."
Brink has completed 81 of 110 passes for 947 yards and 10 touchdowns with two interceptions in three games -- a 42-21 loss at No. 9 Wisconsin, a 45-17 win over San Diego State and a 45-28 triumph over Idaho.
"He has been excellent for us," Doba said. "He has total command of our offense. I promise you he knows a lot more about our offense than I do. He and coach Rosenbach are on the same page."
USC also has an outstanding quarterback in John David Booty, considered one of the leading Heisman Trophy candidates entering the season.
John David Booty has put up far less impressive numbers than Brink, completing 40 of 62 passes for 350 yards and five touchdowns with one interception in a 38-10 victory over Idaho and a 49-31 triumph at Nebraska. But the Trojans have rushed for 527 yards in their two games while the Cougars gained 480 yards on the ground in their three.
"John David is doing a great job," Carroll said. "We need to get the ball caught when we get our opportunities. I'm disappointed we've dropped the ball too much."
With Brandon Gibson and Michael Bumpus leading the way, the Cougars have a lot more experience at wide receiver than the Trojans, and it's showed early in the season. Gibson and Bumpus caught 109 passes between them last year and have combined for 42 receptions so far this season.
USC had one of the country's top wide receiver tandems a year ago in Steve Smith and Dwayne Jarrett. They're NFL rookies now, leaving the Trojans with Patrick Turner and redshirt freshman David Ausberry as the starting wideouts.
USC's returning wide receivers had 33 catches last season -- 29 by Turner.
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