Another close shave

Anyone betting on USC these days is slowly going broke.

Out at Buffalo Wild Wings tonight, I was there to see USC v ASU, Florida v. Auburn, Michigan v. Penn State.

More to the point, I was looking to see 1) an easy win by the Trojans before the true meat of the season; 2) a win by Auburn over Florida in the rock-paper-scissors world that is the SEC; 3) how long Penn State could ride the wave of the crowd and stay in it against Michigan.

Well, two out of three. No, make it two and three. The Trojans cruised out to a 21-0 lead and I was already thinking ahead: bye, then Oregon. Down the road, Cal. Then high noon against the Irish, Thanksgiving Saturday.

I was waiting for SC to score again. Up 28-0, it becomes an early evening, home to root for Auburn.

Then, a Sun Devil touchdown.

Halftime.

Then, a Booty fumble. ASU touchdown. 21-14.

Then, a few posessions later, the worst-executed play since the Paul Hackett era, a Booty pass straight at the numeral 8 of Sun Devil Keno Walter-White. 21-21.

But a late touchdown for the Trojans. 28-21.

Such a close win will probably guarantee USC stays number three, as Michigan becomes the fourth team to ascend to number two. And this is justified. Will this be the first time a #3 team finds itself behind three different #2 teams in three consecutive weeks?

Some thoughts:

1. Here is the tipping point of the season, a point whereby we find that USC is either a) a very good team working out the bugs before the meat of the schedule, or b) a team whose luck runs out. Any win against Oregon and Cal will be a plus, full stop. Any loss at home exposes a team living off the 2002-2005 rep.

2. We have sort of known as much, but we are four seasons spoiled at QB, and it is time for us to grow up. In 2002, Carson Palmer shook off four-plus years of injury and disappointment to finally mature over nine incredible games. Matt Leinart was sui generis, the greatest college quarterback ever, and his like will not happen by again. No, Booty is not “better than Leinart.” Nor, at this point, better than Rob Johnson. It became clear in the the fourth quarter that the only way USC would lose the game would be if Booty lost it for them. No way would ASU drive the length of the field against USC’s defense; no way would ASU’s D-line stop Washington and Moody. So Carroll did the only thing he could, the one thing nearly guaranteed to work: he went smash-mouth (translation: kept the ball out of Booty’s hands–fancy that!), and the game was over.

3. On a neutral field, either Ohio State or Michigan would be 10-point favorites against USC, minimum.

Now, as for ASU. To my most faithful correspondents, SundevilJoe, RobbieBoy and DesertRose: God knows I'm a Sun Devil fan 364 days a year. And I know how much everyone corresponds to Darryl Rodgers' dictum, "W's are W's, and L's are L's." No such thing as moral victories. But ASU has always been best when it was opportunistic: Mike Haynes, John Jefferson, Al Harris, Vernon Maxwell, Pat Tillman, and now Keno Walter-White. Their performance here is their best in a loss since the 2002 Holiday Bowl. USC is the team of the decade, and you guys had it scared to death. Build on it!