USC Football Should Use Adoree’ Jackson To Stop Christian McCaffrey

How can USC football hope to stop Stanford’s Heisman Trophy candidate Christian McCaffrey? Put Adoree’ Jackson on the job.

USC football had a rather significant win this past weekend against Utah State, with a strong defensive performance against the Aggies.

Porter Gustin and Cameron Smith led the way for the Trojans in the 45-7 win. Adoree Jackson finally got a kick he could return and dazzled defenders with his electric moves and top end speed. And Micheal Pittman had a huge blocked punt that energized the entire team and resulted in the first touchdown of the year.

When USC scores on big plays like punt returns and blocks they usually win the game, but that kind of aggressive play will be even more key this Saturday at Stanford.

That’s because Stanford has a very good running back named Christian McCaffrey. who only set the NCAA record for total yards last year.

If you doubt McCaffrey’s skills he will absolutely burn you.  No. 5 is the real deal with an entire elite arsenal of running back ability at his disposal. He’s fast, quick and elusive but also has tremendous patience as he waits for his blocking to develop.

McCaffery is also an awesome returner so you take your chances even kicking in his direction.

These two athletic freaks of nature will clash this weekend in a dream match-up — the best offensive back in the Pac-12, and maybe the country, versus best defensive back in the Pac-12, and maybe the country.

Sure there are many other excellent players in the nation, but there is no question these two are among the best and, on any given Saturday, maybe the very best.

The best news is that they play on the same field at the same time and could challenge each other all afternoon long.

One thing is for certain and that’s if you want to beat Stanford you better contain and control No. 5, which is much easier said than done.

Last year McCaffrey galloped for 312 yards from scrimmage in the Pac-12 Championship game. Earlier in the year he was somewhat contained when his total yards were only 152 but Stanford still won 41-31.

This season Stanford is breaking in a new quarterback, so at least the Trojans don’t have to worry about Kevin Hogan slicing up the defense with 18-of-23 passing, 279 yards and two TDs.

That’s even more reason to “key” on McCaffrey.

In fact, Jackson could be the answer for USC, deploying No. 2 to spy on No. 5 on virtually every play. Special players deserve special attention and Jackson would be perfect for this defensive assignment.

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Let the new quarterback try to beat you with his arm not the Heisman candidate ripping off 20-yard runs all afternoon.

Adoree should have one thing on his mind this weekend and that’s stopping Christian McCaffrey.

Jackson has the speed, size and competitive spirit to accomplish to this task and he’s an excellent form tackler. Huge hits aren’t necessary to put No. 5 on his back.

Combine this tactic with lots off pressure on the first year quarterback, Ryan Burns, and USC could keep the game close enough to have a shot at the upset.

With a couple of big plays, USC could climb right back into the Pac-12 title conversation.