Bears Attempt to Conquer Trojans

It used to be easy for USC.

Not too long ago, the Trojans would barrel through their nonconference slate, stand toe-to-toe against conference opponents, and come out victorious more often than not.

Somewhere in between, they'd have their biggest worry - how to defeat all-time rival Notre Dame, and end years of futility against the Fighting Irish.

Now, the Men of Troy are fighting to win just one game in the Pac-10.

"USC is a team that has some issues of their own to deal with," Cal football coach Tom Holmoe said. "You look at them on film, and you don't know what the emotional scale will be."

The Trojans, unbelievably, are 0-4 in the conference, and chances are that they're seeking redemption heading into tomorrow's matchup with the Bears (2-5, 1-3 in the Pac-10).

Redemption for a season-turned-sour after a 3-0 start, and redemption for last weekend's heartbreaker against Stanford.

The Trojans (3-4, 0-4) blew their best chance at a conference win last Saturday at Palo Alto. USC was leading by 10 points with under six minutes left in regulation, but couldn't prevent Cardinal running back Kerry Carter from running in a touchdown on fourth down.

Backup quarterback Chris Lewis then completed a 20-yard touchdown strike in the final seconds for the 32-30 win.

"There's not much I can tell you after a heart-wrenching loss like that with the effort our team gave," USC coach Paul Hackett said. "Whether it was the defense, the offense, or the kicking game with the punting, we didn't come together in the fourth quarter."

Hmm, sound familiar?

One reason for the Trojans disappointing league season has been the inconsistent play of sophomore quarterback Carson Palmer.

Palmer had a standout season in 1998, when he cracked into the Trojans starting lineup as a true freshman. But the slinger has had his troubles this year - Palmer is completing 54.8 percent of his passes, but has 11 interceptions to seven touchdowns.

Still, USC has managed to put together the Pac-10's fourth-best offense, thanks in large part to its star running back.

Sophomore Sultan McCullough has rushed for 702 yards this season, including a game-high 130 yards on just 11 carries at Stanford.

"Sultan McCullough is a college elite sprinter," Holmoe said. "He can get in the open field and he's gone."

McCullough's continued success on the ground has allowed the Trojans air attack to slowly develop.

USC boasts 1999 Pac-10 Freshman of the Year Kareem Kelly as its best wide receiver, but the Trojans have struggled to get him the ball of late. Kelly leads the team with 23 receptions, but has caught only one touchdown pass.

Still, Holmoe knows his secondary will be tested against Kelly.

"Kareem Kelly is a stick of dynamite out there just waiting to blow up," Holmoe said. "He's got the potential to be great on any given day."

Great would also be the right word to describe the Trojan's linebacking corps.

Led by seniors Zeke Moreno and Markus Steele - two candidates for the Butkus award, given annually to the nation's top linebacker - USC is fourth in the league in total defense.

The Trojans will need the duo to have a superb game to stop the Bears' newfound offensive attack.

In an encouraging note for Cal, punter Nick Harris is no longer the Bears' best weapon. Although Harris needs just 63 punting yards Saturday to become the NCAA's career leader in the category, sophomore Joe Igber has emerged as the team's top offensive threat.

Igber is one of three players in the Pac-10 - McCullough being another - to average over five yards per carry, and has been responsible for two-thirds of Cal's total offense in the past three games.

"He is the focal point of where we have to start (planning our defense)," Hackett said. "It's not like he's going to out-run you, he's just going to out-maneuver you."

With the simultaneous development of Bears quarterback Kyle Boller, Cal hopes to establish its offense early tomorrow - and not break down in the final quarter.

"That's where we can get better," Holmoe said. "When you get down into a key situation in a game, where everything is on the line and you've got one shot, you've got to come up to the line of scrimmage and be totally poised and execute to perfection."

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