ESPN College Football

Many of the college football awards have announced semifinalists over the past couple of weeks. We've told you about some, missed a couple of others.

Here's a primer to help you catch up.

BEDNARIK AWARD
DB Mark Barron, Alabama
LB Arthur Brown, Kansas State
LB Vontaze Burfict, Arizona State
DB Morris Claiborne, LSU
LB Lavonte David, Nebraska
LB Dont’a Hightower, Alabama
DL Melvin Ingram, South Carolina
LB Luke Kuechly, Boston College
DB Tyrann Mathieu, LSU
DL Whitney Mercilus, Illinois
LB Sean Spence, Miami
DL Devon Still, Penn State
LB Manti Te’o, Notre Dame
LB Chase Thomas, Stanford
LB Courtney Upshaw, Alabama
DL Jerel Worthy, Michigan State

BILETNIKOFF AWARD
Keenan Allen, California
Justin Blackmon, Oklahoma State
Ryan Broyles, Oklahoma
Patrick Edwards, Houston
Michael Floyd, Notre Dame
A.J. Jenkins, Illinois
Sammy Watkins, Clemson
Jordan White, Western Michigan
Robert Woods, USC
Kendall Wright, Baylor

BUTKUS AWARD
Zach Brown, North Carolina
Vontaze Burfict, Arizona State
Audie Cole, N.C. State
Lavonte David, Nebraska
Dont’a Hightower, Alabama
Jarvis Jones, Georgia
Luke Kuechly, Boston College
Travis Lewis, Oklahoma
Keenan Robinson, Texas
Sean Spence, Miami
Manti Te’o, Notre Dame
Courtney Upshaw, Alabama

RAY GUY AWARD
Ryan Allen, Louisiana Tech
Ian Campbell, UTEP
Steven Clark, Auburn
Bobby Cowan, Idaho
Scott Kovanda, Ball State
Richie Leone, Houston
Pat O’Donnell, Cincinnati
Jackson Rice, Oregon
Brian Schmiedebusch, Bowling Green
Brad Wing, LSU

ROTARY LOMBARDI AWARD
DE Vinny Curry, Marshall
G David DeCastro, Stanford
LB Dont’a Hightower, Alabama
DE Melvin Ingram, South Carolina
OL Barrett Jones, Alabama
OT Matt Kalil, USC
LB Luke Kuechly, Boston College
OT Jonathan Martin, Stanford
DL Whitney Mercilus, Illinois
LB Manti Te’o, Notre Dame
LB Courtney Upshaw, Alabama
DT Jerel Worthy, Michigan State

JOHN MACKEY AWARD
Dwayne Allen, Clemson
Orson Charles, Georgia
Drake Dunsmore, Northwestern
Tyler Eifert, Notre Dame
Coby Fleener, Stanford
Ladarius Green, Louisiana
Jacob Pederson, Wisconsin

MAXWELL AWARD
QB Matt Barkley, USC
WR Justin Blackmon, Oklahoma State
QB Tajh Boyd, Clemson
WR Ryan Broyles, Oklahoma
QB Robert Griffin III, Baylor
RB LaMichael James, Oregon
QB Landry Jones, Oklahoma
QB Case Keenum, Houston
QB Andrew Luck, Stanford
QB Kellen Moore, Boise State
RB Chris Polk, Washington
RB Trent Richardson, Alabama
QB Brandon Weeden, Oklahoma State
QB Russell Wilson, Wisconsin
RB David Wilson, Virginia Tech
WR Robert Woods, USC

DAVEY O’BRIEN AWARD
Matt Barkley, USC
Tajh Boyd, Clemson
Kirk Cousins, Michigan State
Seth Doege, Texas Tech
Robert Griffin III, Baylor
Landry Jones, Oklahoma
Case Keenum, Houston
Andrew Luck, Stanford
Kellen Moore, Boise State
Keith Price, Washington
Denard Robinson, Michigan
Ryan Tannehill, Texas A&M
Darron Thomas, Oregon
Brandon Weeden, Oklahoma State
Russell Wilson, Wisconsin
Tyler Wilson, Arkanasas

JIM THORPE AWARD
DB Antonio Allen, South Carolina
CB David Amerson, N.C. State
CB Jonathan Banks, Mississippi State
SS Mark Barron, Alabama
CB Brandon Boykin, Georgia
CB Brodrick Brown, Oklahoma State
CB Morris Claiborne, LSU
CB Casey Hayward, Vanderbilt
CB Jayron Hosley, Virginia Tech
FS Tony Jefferson, Oklahoma
CB Dre Kirkpatrick, Alabama
CB Nigel Malone, Kansas State
SS Markelle Martin, Oklahoma State
FS T.J. McDonald, USC
CB Chase Minnifield, Virginia

DOAK WALKER AWARD
Montee Ball, Wisconsin
Rex Burkhead, Nebraska
Ronnie Hillman, San Diego State
LaMichael James, Oregon
Henry Josey, Missouri
Zach Line, SMU
Chris Polk, Washington
Joseph Randle, Oklahoma State
Trent Richardson, Alabama
David Wilson, Virginia Tech

Our countdown of the Pac-12's top 25 players continues.

You can see the final post-2010 top 25 here. It doesn't, however, include players from Colorado or Utah.

14. Matt Kalil, OT, USC

2010 numbers: Kalil started all 13 games at left offensive tackle as a sophomore. Oh, and he blocked a PAT against Notre Dame.

2010 ranking: Unranked.

Making the case for Kalil: Kalil is an interesting case. Not only did he not earn first- or second-team All-Pac-10 honors last year, he didn't even receive honorable mention. Yet it was he who was tapped -- as a redshirt sophomore -- to protect Matt Barkley's blindside, not first-team All-Conference pick -- and the No. 9 overall selection in the 2011 NFL draft -- Tyron Smith. Last year, USC ranked third in the conference in rushing (190 yards per game) and gave up the third fewest sacks (18), so while the Trojans O-line was maligned as underachieving and is a big question in 2011, there was some measurable success. Further, the 6-foot-6, 295-pound Kalil is projected by just about everyone to be a first-round draft pick this spring -- perhaps even top-five. ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper rates him No. 3 overall on his "Big Board," writing, "Another NFL-ready offensive lineman at Southern Cal. Kalil has the size, athleticism, footwork and bloodlines. He projects as a blindside tackle." His brother Ryan is a former USC All-American and is presently one of the NFL's best centers, while father Frank also played in the NFL, ergo the bloodlines. Our top-25 rankings don't always prioritize NFL draft projections, but Kalil's are so bright that he gets elevated here.

15. Delano Howell, S, Stanford
16. Mychal Kendricks, LB, California
17. Rodney Stewart, RB, Colorado
18. Jermaine Kearse, WR, Washington
19. Chase Thomas, LB, Stanford
20. Jeff Tuel, QB, Washington State
21. Robert Woods, WR, USC
22. Johnathan Franklin, RB, UCLA
23. David Paulson, TE, Oregon
24. David DeCastro, OG, Stanford
25. Marquess Wilson, WR, Washington State

ESPN.com's Chris Sprow looks at the college football teams with the most NFL prospects, and two Pac-12 teams make his top-10.

And it's a sign of the changing times in the conference who's ahead of the other, a program which stocks NFL rosters annually.

Here's what he's got to say about NFL draft powerhouse -- Stanford -- which ranks just behind No. 1 Alabama.

2. Stanford Cardinal
Don't scoff, SEC fans. They could be No. 1. Last week, an NFC director of scouting told me, "All you need to know about Andrew Luck is if he'd come out last year, he'd have been No. 1, no question." Well, sure. That's not a bold assessment. "And maybe the year before, too," he said. So there's Luck, perhaps the best QB prospect in a generation. But check his blindside. Jonathan Martin would go in the top 10 if the draft were tomorrow. That's two Cardinal (singular) off the board early, which means they are easily 1A. Throw in wideout Chris Owusu, tight end Coby Fleener, top junior guard David DeCastro and outside linebacker Chase Thomas. And if football doesn't work out, they can all work in food service Congress.

And then there's USC at No. 5

5. USC Trojans
Top-heavy, but elite. (Don't worry SC fans, the underclasses are loaded up again.) Matt Barkley has a Clausenesque vibe that may frighten some scouts, but he has all the tools, and the intangibles. If you want experience, after his junior year he'll have well over 30 starts. But he's not even as highly-ranked as junior OT Matt Kalil, who could be the first tackle taken in April if he comes out. Keep an eye on junior safety T.J. McDonald.

It's going to be interesting to see who gets drafted first, Martin or Kalil. Kalil is touted for his upside and obvious has good bloodlines -- he's the younger brother of Carolina Panthers center Ryan Kalil. But Martin has been more productive in college. The Cardinal offensive line certainly was better than the Trojans last season, even though Kalil was the tackle opposite Tyron Smith, who was picked ninth overall by Dallas.

On Friday, the Pac-10 becomes the Pac-12, and life as we all have known it ends.

But before we move on as a 12-team league, let's look back at the best of a 10-team league.

On Wednesday, we looked at the best players. Thursday, it's the best teams.

We've listed 12 teams because that's the new magic number (Arizona fans, see if you can guess who came in 13th).

Again, no team before 1978 -- when Arizona and Arizona State joined the Pac-8 -- was considered.

1. 1991 Washington: The Huskies finished 12-0 and split the national title with Miami.

Best player: Defensive tackle Steve Emtman won the Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award.

Point differential: Washington outscored its foes 495-115.

Best win: Whipped Michigan 34-14 in Rose Bowl. Wolverines finished ranked sixth.

Comment: Four wins over teams that finished ranked in the final top 25, including road victories at No. 15 Nebraska and at No. 8 California. Featured one of the great defenses in college football history, yielding just 9.2 points and 67.1 rushing yards per game. Eight Huskies earned first-team All-Pac-10 honors.

2. 2004 USC: While the NCAA and BCS have nixed it in their own ways, the Trojans finished 13-0 and won the national title on the field.

Best player: Quarterback Matt Leinart won the Heisman Trophy.

Point differential: USC outscored its foes 496-169.

Best win: Crushed Oklahoma 55-19 in the national title game.

Comment: Basically a push for dominance with 1991 Washington. Beat four teams that finished ranked in the top 25, including the bludgeoning of Oklahoma. Eight Trojans earned first-team All-Pac-10 honors.

3. 2003 USC: The Trojans finished 12-1 and split the national title with LSU. Their only loss came in triple overtime at California.

Best player: Receiver Mike Williams was a consensus All-American.

Point differential: 534-239.

Best win: The completely dominant 23-0 victory at then-No. 6 Auburn in the opener set the tone for the season -- and caused many Pac-10 fans to question how good these highly rated SEC teams really are.

Comment: The Trojans finished the regular season ranked No. 1 in both polls but lost out playing in the BCS title game because of the computer polls. LSU fans have been thanking the computers for that glitch ever since.

4. 2005 USC: A 34-game winning streak came to an end with a nail-biting loss to Texas in the national title game. The Trojans finished 12-1.

Best player: Reggie Bush won the Heisman Trophy.

Point differential: 638-297.

Best win: The 34-31 win at Notre Dame -- the "Bush Push" game -- was one of the all-time greats.

Comment: Perhaps the best collection of offensive players in the history of college football: Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, Dwayne Jarrett, Ryan Kalil, Sam Baker and Taitusi Lutui earned first-team All-Pac-10 honors. And don't forget LenDale White, Winston Justice, Steve Smith and Dominique Byrd.

5. 1978 USC: Finished 12-1 and split national title with Alabama. Lost to Arizona State, 20-7.

Best player: Charles White was a unanimous All-American.

Point differential: 318-153

Best win: A 24-14 win over the team that "claimed" the other half of the national title.

Comment: Split national title -- coaches liked the Trojans; AP the Crimson Tide -- despite a decisive 24-14 USC at Alabama. So much for head to head.

6. 1979 USC: Finished 11-0-1 and No. 2 behind Alabama. Tied Stanford 21-21.

Best player: Charles White won the Heisman Trophy.

Point differential: 389-171

Best win: The 17-16 win over Ohio State in the Rose Bowl, in which White ran for a record 247 yards, including the game-winning touchdown with just more than a minute remaining.

Comment: Team featured four future College Football Hall of Famers in White, Marcus Allen, Ronnie Lot and Brad Budde. By the way, THAT undefeated, untied Alabama team was really, really good: Outscored foes 383-67. So no sour grapes on that one.

7. 2001 Oregon: The Ducks finished 11-1 and ranked No. 2 in both polls. The only loss was 49-42 versus Stanford (a really, really weird game, if you recall).

Best player: Quarterback Joey Harrington finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting.

Point differential: 412-256.

Best win: A 38-16 win over Colorado in the Fiesta Bowl.

Comment: The Fiesta Bowl victory caused plenty of folks to bemoan the Nebraska-Miami matchup in the BCS title game, considering Colorado had blown out Nebraska the final weekend of the regular season. As for the Stanford loss, the typically straightforward AP noted the game had "everything but aliens landing on the Autzen Stadium turf."

8. 1984 Washington: Finished 11-1 and ranked No. 2 behind BYU. Lost to USC ,16-7.

Best player: Defensive tackle Ron Holmes was a consensus All-American.

Point differential: 352-145

Best win: Shocked Oklahoma 28-17 in the Orange Bowl. Sooners finished ranked sixth.

Comment: A controversial season. Before the Orange Bowl, Sooners coach Barry Switzer lobbied hard for the winner to be declared the national champion. As it was, BYU won the national title after beating a bad Michigan team in the Holiday Bowl. Does anyone believe BYU was better than the Huskies? No.

9. 2010 Oregon: The Ducks finished 12-1 and No. 3 in both polls, losing the national title game to Auburn.

Best player: Running back LaMichael James finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting.

Point differential: 611-243

Best win: The Ducks handed Stanford its only loss, 52-31, after trailing 21-3 early. Cardinal finished ranked No. 4.

Comment: An innovative, exciting team to watch, one that played faster than perhaps any big-time college team in history.

10. 1996 Arizona State: Finished 11-1 and ranked No. 4 in both polls. Lost Rose Bowl -- and potential national championship -- to Ohio State, 20-17.

Best player: Quarterback Jake Plummer finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting.

Point differential: 488-216

Best win: The Sun Devils trounced top-ranked, two-time defending national champion Nebraska, 19-0.

Comment: The Sun Devils lost one of the most dramatic Rose Bowls, when the swashbuckling Plummer was out-swashbuckled by Joe Germaine, who was raised in Arizona as an ASU fan.

11. 2000 Washington: The Huskies finished 11-1 and ranked No. 3, their only loss coming at No. 7 Oregon. They beat Purdue 34-24 in the Rose Bowl.

Best player: Marques Tuiasosopo finished eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting.

Point differential: 387-270

Best win: Beat Miami, 34-29. Hurricanes finished ranked No. 2.

Comment: This is not the most talented team on the list. In fact, some have rated the 2000 Oregon State team -- see below -- ahead of the Huskies. And based on NFL results, the Beavers were more talented than the Huskies. But head to head matters, and the win over Miami is better than anything Oregon State did.

12. 2000 Oregon State: The Beavers finished 11-1 and ranked No. 4, their only loss a 33-30 decision at Washington, which finished ranked No. 3.

Best player: Running back Ken Simonton was first-team All-Pac-10.

Best win: Beat Oregon 23-13 in Civil War. Oregon finished ranked seventh in the coaches poll.

Comment: One or two more plays at Washington, and the Beavers would have played for the national title. And they, by the way, were more talented than the Oklahoma team that did win the title. Notable Beavers: Ken Simonton, Chad Ochocinco (the Chad Johnson), T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Chris Gibson, DeLawrence Grant, LaDairis Jackson, Dennis Weathersby and Eric Manning. They spanked Notre Dame 41-9 in the Fiesta Bowl.

The SEC dominates college football, but the ACC and Pac-10 rock the NFL Pro Bowl.

Wheeeee!

As my esteemed colleague Heather Dinich pointed out in the ACC blog, the ACC led all conferences for the third consecutive year with 19 players selected to play in the Pro Bowl, which will be held on Jan. 30 at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, Hawaii. The SEC was second with 13 selections and the Pac-10 was third with 12. The Big Ten and the Big 12 had nine each.

But, of course, seeing that the Pac-10 at present has just 10 teams versus 12 for the ACC, SEC and Big 12, the numbers need to be adjusted for players per team. By that measure, the ACC is still No. 1 with 1.58 Pro Bowl players per ACC team, while the Pac-10 is second with 1.2 per team.

Here's the list of Pac-10 players in the Pro Bowl.

Marcedes Lewis, TE, Jacksonville (UCLA)
Steven Jackson, RB, St. Louis (Oregon State)
DeSean Jackson, WR, Philadelphia (California)
Tony Gonzalez, TE, Atlanta (California)
Ryan Kalil, C, Carolina (USC)
Maurice Jones-Drew, RB, Jaguars (UCLA)*
Haloti Ngata, DT, Baltimore (Oregon)
Terrell Suggs, DE, Baltimore (Arizona State)
Nnamdi Asomugha, CB, Oakland (California)
Troy Polamalu, S, Pittsburgh (USC)
Clay Matthews, LB, Green Bay (USC)
Lance Briggs, LB, Chicago (Arizona)

*Out of game due to injury

You also may have noticed that a Jets-Packers Super Bowl would mean both starting quarterbacks -- Mark Sanchez for the Jets (USC) and Aaron Rodgers for the Packers (California) -- hail from the Pac-10.

He was wearing my Harvard tie. Can you believe it? My Harvard tie. Like oh, sure, he went to Harvard!

• Now former Arizona receiver Delashaun Dean pleads not guilty to a misdemeanor weapons charge. And the Wildcats get a transfer QB from Ohio State.
• An honor for Arizona State coach Dennis Erickson.
• The biggest Big Game of the decade, at least from a California perspective.
• The devil may be in the details as Colorado tries to figure out its move from the Big 12 to the Pac-10.
• 20 Questions with former Oregon QB Danny O'Neil -- not this guy.
• A nice profile of Oregon State coach Mike Riley.
• Stanford's running game hopes its new TG approximates its old TG.
• UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel returns to Nebraska. For baseball.
• A former USC All-American, Ryan Kalil, speaks out about the Trojans NCAA sanctions. Checking in with new special teams coach John Baxter.
• Just let Jake be Jake: That's Washington's Jake Locker Heisman Trophy campaign. And the big picture for Locker and the Huskies is winning.
• How the Pac-12 splits up is causing, er, division.

USC's Kristofer O'Dowd was an adequate center while starting seven games last year, but that's not good enough for a player widely regarded as the best in the nation at his position when the season began.

It was not unlike going 9-4 for USC. A majority of programs would celebrate a nine-win season. For the Trojans, it represents failure and inspires talk that one of college football's great dynasties is crumbling.

O'Dowd dislocated his right knee cap during fall camp and never seemed to fully recover. The Trojans just seemed dislocated from the swaggering, dominant program that had won seven consecutive Pac-10 titles and two national championships.

"In those games I played, I wasn't playing to my capability," O'Dowd said. "What hurt the most was knowing I could play at a certain level and knowing what I could do but I wasn't getting there. That was the most frustrating thing ... [Because of his knee injury] I couldn't get the drive I was used to. I would just have the stalemate, which is acceptable at some places but it isn't acceptable for myself and the program here."

You could sort of substitute "USC" for "I" in that quote and get an accurate feel for the Trojans in 2009.

"What was our record? 9-4? That's a great year for other programs but is not acceptable for us," O'Dowd said.

O'Dowd, now the line's senior leader, is back this spring (though he missed some action after spraining his left knee) and so might be that swagger. It's no secret new coach Lane Kiffin and his staff have plenty of that. Kiffin and defensive line coach Ed Orgeron were two of the more boisterous presences during USC's best times working as assistants under former coach Pete Carroll.

"With this new coaching staff, they are teaching us the ways of what used to be -- the '03, '04, '05 seasons when USC was the team," O'Dowd said. "We're getting back there and it starts right now in spring."

O'Dowd picks his words carefully, but he admits something wasn't right last year, something about more than losing a bunch of starters to the NFL.

"It was full of a bunch of ups and downs," he said. "We didn't find that cohesiveness with one another on the team. I think that did affect us negatively last season."

The line around O'Dowd must replace three starters: tackle Charles Brown and guards Jeff Byers and Alex Parsons. As could be expected with USC, there's plenty of talent ready to step up -- no Pac-10 team's linemen pass the eye-test like the Trojans'. But they're unproven, and after last year, there is less justification to assume USC will automatically reload.

O'Dowd, however, seems to suspect the line, which underachieved last year, will be more than OK. It will again be a dominant crew.

He said the key is sophomore left tackle Matt Kalil, who made his first career start against Boston College in the Emerald Bowl, stepping in for academically ineligible right tackle Tyron Smith. Kalil is the younger brother of former USC All-American center Ryan Kalil, now an Pro Bowler for the Carolina Panthers.

"I think that left tackle position is going to be key," O'Dowd said. "Matt has shown great progress. He did at the end of the year starting against Boston College. He knows what he needs to do."

Something else could derail USC's return to the nation's elite: NCAA sanctions. A ruling from the infractions committee on alleged extra benefits provided by would-be sports agents to former USC running back Reggie Bush and other allegations is expected this month.

O'Dowd said possible sanctions are not a hot topic among the players.

"It doesn't get talked about," he said. "I've been hearing about it since I was a freshman. It's sort of like [the fifth wheel] who doesn't get invited. No one is really worried about it and I don't think it will have an effect for us at all."

What does have some effect is talk that USC is no longer the pre-eminent program in the conference as well as the nation. Yes, the Trojans do hear the negative chatter, O'Dowd said.

Still, O'Dowd knows he and his teammates, for the first time in years, now have something to prove.

"Of course it lights a fire beneath us, but in the same sense we did that to ourselves," he said. "It takes a man to go back and correct his faults."

When you wake up in the morning and the light is hurt your head
The first thing you do when you get up out of bed
Is hit that streets a-runnin' and try to beat the masses
And go get yourself some cheap sunglasses.

• Video of an Arizona State running back recruit.
• Jonathan Okanes has some California recruiting notes.
• Oregon recruiting got a big boost from running back Lache Seastrunk.
• Oregon State and Haitian relief. Nice job.
• How does UCLA look at running back? Not bad.
• How does USC look at running back? Pretty good.
• Checking in with a future Washington running back.
• Washington State won't play in Seattle in 2010 but it will return vs. UNLV in 2011.
• Carolina Panthers center Ryan Kalil, controversial member of the Pac-10 blog's All-Decade team, is going to the Pro Bowl. Just saying, Cal fans.
• Jon Wilner takes a look at Bay Area bowl money.

We've already ranked our top-10 Pac-10 players of the decade, but what follows is our All-Decade team.

As usual, feel free to disagree.

Offense

QB Matt Leinart, USC

RB Toby Gerhart, Stanford

RB Reggie Bush, USC

WR DeWayne Jarrett, USC

WR Mike Hass, Oregon State

TE Marcedes Lewis, UCLA

C Ryan Kalil, USC

OT Levi Jones, Arizona State

OT Sam Baker, USC

OG Adam Snyder, Oregon

OG Max Unger, Oregon

K Kai Forbath, UCLA

Defense

DE Terrell Suggs, Arizona State

DT Haloti Ngata, Oregon

DT Sedrick Ellis, USC

DE Kenechi Udeze, USC

LB Lance Briggs, Arizona

LB Rey Maualuga, USC

LB Keith Rivers, USC

CB Antoine Cason, Arizona

CB Marcus Trufant, Washington State

S Troy Polamalu, USC

S Taylor Mays, USC

P Tom Malone, USC

The notion that USC merely reloads talent ad infinitum despite the departure of a bevy of starters was cast into doubt this season, and it will be tested further -- unexpectedly -- in the Emerald Bowl on Saturday.

With starting running back Joe McKnight's eligibility for the bowl game against Boston College already in question due to an alleged NCAA rules violation, the school announced Tuesday that tight end Anthony McCoy, offensive tackle Tyron Smith and defensive tackle Averell Spicer have been ruled academically ineligible.

McCoy and Smith are both starters and earned honorable mention All-Pac-10 honors. Spicer is a key reserve. McCoy and Spicer are both seniors, so their USC careers are over.

"We're really disappointed these guys didn't come through," USC coach Pete Carroll said in a statement. "They had all the help in the world to get it done and they didn't do it."

How many times do you read a statement from a coach that was released through the school and sense genuine chagrin? In that single sentence, you can feel Carroll's disappointment.

So, if USC isn't able to resolve the McKnight situation over the next couple of days -- and expect an athletic department already under NCAA investigation to be as cautious as possible -- the Trojans will face Boston College down three starters and a reserve on their defensive line.

Not good for any team, even USC.

McCoy will be replaced by sophomore Rhett Ellison -- USC is already thin at tight end because of Blake Ayles' knee injury. Redshirt freshman Matt Kalil will replace Smith, a sophomore. Kalil is a major talent -- his older brother Ryan was was an All-American center for USC and now plays for the Carolina Panthers -- and he is expected to be fill one of the three vacancies on the Trojans offensive line next year.

As if USC falling from seven-time Pac-10 champion to four-loss Emerald Bowl team wasn't enough, the Trojans are now burdened with major off-field issues, which are forcing key players out of the lineup.

Heading into the bowl season, the main question was how motivated and focused USC would be against Boston College in a mid-level bowl game. That question is even more relevant now.

When a team is down and caught in a whirlwind of issues, it can either tear apart or come together.

Many will be curious to see what USC will do on Saturday against a BC team that surely sees blood in the water.