FanHouse Jacquizz Rodgers

Southern California, with one loss already this season, has allowed a combined 63 points the past two weeks in single-digit margin victories against unranked opponents. The Trojans are ranked No. 4 in this week's AP poll and are No. 5 in the BCS rankings. In the ranking that matters (the BCS poll) USC, whose loss came to a team with a sub-.500 record (Washington), is rated ahead of three undefeated teams and nine one-loss schools. Three of those one-loss programs (No. 9 LSU, No. 10 Oregon and No. 12 Penn State) fell to teams that are currently undefeated (respectively, Florida, Boise State and Iowa).

Am I missing something?

Pac-10 teams begin their second week of play on Saturday, highlighted by No. 3 USC's trip to Columbus to play Ohio State. It means nothing but consensus leans heavily towards the Trojans despite it being a cover of darkness road game before what Eleven Warriors calls 105,000 of college football's best hooligans, despite starting a true freshman quarterback in Matt Barkley and despite Ohio State having the tiebreaker of all tiebreakers in Terrelle Pryor.

Yeah, USC's loaded. The rest of the conference lineup Saturday is a mixed bag filled with one big road trip to SEC country, a couple middling names and a handful of regional cupcakes. Mmm, cupcakes. Wait, no, bad Pac-10. Time to bag some fresh game out of say, Knoxville? Hmmm, maybe not.

Three weeks ago, I wrote that the Big Three of Tim Tebow, Colt McCoy, and Sam Bradford would end up being the big two, and that the 2009 Heisman race would feature several players that were just on the periphery of the Heisman hunt in the preseason. One week in, that's already happened. Following an unfortunate shoulder sprain, Sam Bradford is out of the running. That leaves Tebow and McCoy as the leaders in the clubhouse, but guarantees that a couple of guys no one is talking about will snag invites to New York for the Heisman ceremony.

Last week I wrote a piece explaining that Eric Berry was Tennessee's redemption for Charles Woodson's unjustified Heisman Trophy in 1997. I was pleased to see that every Michigan fan that responded agreed that Woodson's victory was illegitimate. It's so nice when we can all come together and agree on things.

Let's now look at something for this season: Can anyone other than Tim Tebow, Sam Bradford, or Colt McCoy win the Heisman? I think the answer is yes.

LOS ANGELES -- USC was picked to win the Pac-10 football title for the seventh consecutive year by the media, and yet the coaches from all nine competitors -- including Arizona's Mike Stoops (right) and even USC coach Pete Carroll -- touched on the uncertainty of the Trojans this season.

USC received 28 of the 32 votes with California receiving three while third-place Oregon collected one vote. The Trojans will be breaking in a new quarterback and several new defenders since 11 players were taken in the NFL Draft. Perhaps this is the year another school emerges and takes the crown out of Los Angeles, but they approached Thursday precariously and with respect. There were no declarations that USC is going down or the reign is over -- not even from UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel.

College Football Spring Storylines 2009 looks at the key developments and big news from spring ball.

Since 2002, the Pac-10 has been derisively called USC and the nine dwarves. Its more than a little unfair, but that's the prevailing wisdom. Although the conference is consistently among the deepest and most competitive around, USC's monopolized that top spot. Any chance of that changing this year begins with decisions those programs make this spring.

Jacquizz Rodgers, the 5'6" freshman running back for Oregon State has proven way too fast to catch, and too small to see for the Southern Cal defense in the first half as the Beavers lead USC 21-0. At halftime, Rogers shows 113 yards on 22 carries and a touchdown. The rest of the Oregon State offense isn't too far behind him with 217 total yards of offense.

On top of the Beavers playing so far above their head, USC can't seem to get out of their own way on offense. And they aren't being helped too much by Steve Sarkisian's insistence on using gimmick plays like direct snaps to the running back on third an long situations. I've heard that Mark Sanchez guy at quarterback is kind of good. But you wouldn't know it when USC takes the ball out of his hands in passing situations.

With just 96 yards of offense in the first half, it's obvious that Southern Cal didn't come to play tonight. Oregon State has out everythinged USC to this point. Will the Trojans be able to overcome a 21 point deficit in the second half or will we see another comeback fall just short like 2006?

As is the norm, there are big names who have moved on down the road in the Pac 10. From bowl-winning QB's to standout running backs, the list is a long one. But clearly one of the most exciting things about an upcoming season of college football is always the element of the unknown. What young players are waiting in the wings? What hotshot recruit with all the whispers that he is going to be special will finally be unleashed for public consumption? But as is usually the case, the young replacements come in to take the spots of some pretty established players who leave a large body of work behind them. With that, we look at the five biggest Pac 10 shoes that must be filled and the candidates to replace them.

JOHN DAVID BOOTY, QB, USC

The QB position for USC is always a glamor spot, and a perfect place to start. John David Booty came into the 2007 season as everyone's Heisman favorite, and for good reason. Booty was coming off a 2006 breakthrough performance, throwing for over 3300 yards and 29 TD's. But while USC went 11-2, won a share of the conference title, and Booty capped off his senior season with a fine performance in a Rose Bowl blowout of Illinois, still, things didn't quite work out. He threw for nearly 1,000 fewer yards in 2007 than he had the prior year. A broken finger on his throwing hand had a lot to do with it, and he even missed three games due to the injured digit. But that said, Booty was more about stats. He was a leader and a winner, and could be more difficult to replace than originally thought. This year we find out if Mark Sanchez is the answer. Or will we? Sanchez, as was reported last week, suffered a dislocated knee cap during non-contact drills. While still not 100% officially ruled out for the season opener at Virginia, the latest report has his status very much up in the air. Meanwhile, Arkansas transfer Mitch Mustain and redshirt frosh Aaron Corp will run the offense in a job that suddenly appears wide open. It could be worse though. Mustain didn't go completely bananas at Arkansas, throwing for a modest 894 yards in eight starts as a true frosh year in 2006. But he did go a perfect 8-0 as a starter, so, he's got that going for him. Which is good.