USC understands this week's challenge
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There have been times this season when Southern California has been labeled sluggish and unimpressive.
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The USC football team has navigated this season atop the polls, surviving one scare against Cal and another at Oregon State and otherwise leaving no doubt it deserves its No.
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UCLA held Heisman Trophy contender Matt Leinart in check, but Reggie Bush had two long touchdown runs, Ryan Killeen kicked five field goals and No. 1 USC held off UCLA 29-24 Saturday to virtually lock up a trip to the Orange Bowl for the Bowl Championship Series title game.
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The Trojans have a wealth of weapons on offense, and when they are operating on all cylinders, they&#39;re awfully difficult to beat.
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This being USC-Notre Dame week, and the Trojans being favored by a pew&#39;s worth of points, and the Irish in need of some tear-streaked inspiration, there&#39;s only one person to call.
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LOS ANGELES -- Once USC shed its &quot;Christmas Blues&quot;, the Trojans handled short-handed Southern with ease last night. USC overcame a sluggish opening 10 minutes to beat Southern 91-58 for its fifth victory in its past six games.
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LOS ANGELES -- Picked apart all afternoon by uncannily accurate California quarterback Aaron Rodgers, the USC defense chose the game&#39;s biggest moment to make the game&#39;s biggest stand.
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USC has waited a year for this. The top-ranked Trojans get a chance to avenge their only defeat since October 2002 when they face No. 7 California today before a sellout crowd of 92,000.
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Tackle Lorenzo Alexander left the USC game with an injured elbow. X-rays and an MRI exam didn&#39;t reveal any major damage. He was taking part in limited drills Monday, and coach Jeff Tedford said he expected him to be fine by Saturday.
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This time, Aaron Rodgers is determined to finish what he starts against top-ranked USC.
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The UCLA football team had all that it asked for: possession of the ball in the fourth quarter with an opportunity to beat No. 1 USC.
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While USC remained comfortably atop the Bowl Championship Series standings released Monday, the bigger news involved movement in Northern California.
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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- The oddity of the event was not lost on Reggie Bush. His teammate, University of Southern California quarterback Matt Leinart, three days before had won the Heisman Trophy, which goes to the best college football player in the United States. Yet at the USC team dinner, during which awards were handed out for a perfect season ...
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Forget about No. 1 rankings. Another number will be tested this week when USC plays Colorado State. It&#39;s a triple digit that bothered USC coach Pete Carroll each time he heard it last season.
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Oklahoma-USC. The two best programs of this century. Two national powers in the past, now revived in the present. No. 1 USC with nation&#39;s second-longest winning streak.
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Reggie Bush is the player who makes the difference for USC. Marshawn Lynch waits his turn at Cal. These two young athletes are linked by rare talent and Saturday&#39;s showdown at the Los Angeles Coliseum.
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Aaron Rodgers completes an NCAA-record 23 passes to open the game. Cal outgains USC 424 yards to 205. But Rodgers&#39; final three passes fall incomplete in the end zone, and the defending national champs pull out another victory.