Morning USC Links: Reaction to Boston College victory, play-action bombs, and other links

Trojans replace the boos with a little buzz, but it’s a long season(Bill Plaschke | Los Angeles Times)

"After enduring what Kiffin dubbed “hell week,” the Trojans used an early afternoon picnic atmosphere to make peace with their fans, make room for a real starting quarterback, and make life a tad easier for the embattled duo of Kiffin and mentor Pat Haden."

‘Almost’ Counts For Everything As USC Upends BC 35-7(Mike Piellucci  | Neon Tommy)

"The old saying goes that ‘almost’ only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. But for one day, on one play in USC’s 35-7 win over Boston College, ‘almost’ was everything. It happened on the first snap from scrimmage. Cody Kessler – the victor of Lane Kiffin’s vaunted quarterback competition – took the snap under center, faked the handoff and turned his glance downfield for what felt like the first time all season."

Don’t get carried away, but USC football team did take a positive step(Vincent Bonsignore | LA Daily News)

"It was everything USC hadn’t been over two wobbly weeks and one major stumble against the Cougars. And while little can be drawn from beating a clearly inferior opponent, the well-executed game plan went a long way toward lifting the embarrassment that hovered over USC all week after the meager seven points the Trojans managed against Washington State."

President Nikias Saves the Day On Offense(Evan Budrovich | Conquest Chronicles)

"Head Coach Lane Kiffin opened up about his much beloved play call, thanking USC President Max Nikias for some inspiring words of confidence on offense. “He said throw it deep and they’ll cheer whether or not it’s complete,” Kiffin said post-game. And the fans certainly responded when Kessler ran the play-action pass and just missed Lee."

USC 35, Boston College 7: The Coming Letdown(Joe Micik | Soaring To Glory)

"Football games are not played on paper, but if they were, then what we would see is that the Trojans are a deeper, more talented team built to win now and every year. The Eagles, on the other hand, are a team in the third game of a multi-year rebuild. The disparity between Boston College and USC is large, and the 2013 Eagles at maximum effort would lose to the 2013 Trojans at maximum effort almost every time."

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